It was during the crisis of the regency, exercised by Manrique Pérez de Lara, that Gutierre, with his brothers, Fernando, Pedro and Álvaro abandoned Castile[3] due to their differences with the members of the House of Lara and sought refuge in the Kingdom of León to serve King Ferdinand II, where the four brothers were appointed to relevant posts.

The first of these was Benavente in 1180, in 1182 several regions in Galicia in the area of Toroño and Lemos and Montenegro as well as Villalpando in Zamora, Asturias and Extremadura.

[5][6] His presence is attested in several royal charters from 1186 to 1190 in Castile in the curia regis of King Alfonso VIII.

The Castro brothers confirmed a donation to the Monastery of Santa María de Retuerta made in 1153 by their mother Elo and her second husband Count Ramiro Froilaz .

[13] Between 18 September 1172 and 12 July of the following year he married Elvira Osorio, daughter of Count Osorio Martínez and Teresa Fernández de Villalobos, widow of the Galician magnate Nuño Fernández with whom she had two children: Munio and Urraca Núñez.