The action occurs in the early 12th century Galicia during the reign of Alfonso VII.
Don Tello offers to be best man at the wedding but on seeing Elvira falls in love with her beauty and kidnaps her.
It is from the 'villano honrado' (honest villain) genre, which involves a peasant fighting the abuses of a nobleman and the king finally giving him justice, restoring his honour and punishing the offending nobleman with death.
In this play, the villain is Sancho de Roelas and the nobleman is Don Tello or Tello de Neira, who abducts and rapes Sancho's fiancée.
The play was adapted into the 1974 Rafael Gil film The King is the Best Mayor.