In the early days of its creation, the title of Prince of Asturias was not just a simple honorific title, as it included control of the territory of Asturias. The Prince ruled it in representation of the King and was able to appoint judges, mayors, etc. King JohnII by decree dated in Tordesillas on 3March 1444 declared the conversion of the principality into a jurisdictional lordship, linking the cities, towns, and places of Asturias deOviedo with their rents and jurisdictions to the Majorat of the heirs of the Crown; however, this document was in some case disobeyed and ignored by the Asturian towns as it went against their traditional "fueros". On 31May of that same year the future HenryIV tried to make the Majorat effective and remember Oviedo and the twenty-one principal Asturian villages that rightfully belonged to his lordship even though he had not "executed or used principality because of my minority and the great debates and scandals that have taken place in these kingdoms".