Miguel de Cervantes biography

Synopsis

Early Years

For nearly his entire life, Cervantes struggled financially. His father Rodrigo, deaf from birth, worked as a surgeon, a lowly trade at the time. He and his family around several times in his youth as his father searched for better work prospects.

Cervantes was an avid reader as a child, a skill he was reportedly taught by a relative. Whether he had much formal education has been a subject of debate among scholars. Some believe that Cervantes may have been taught by the Jesuits based on some of his writings, but others dispute this claim.

Poetry and War

The first published works by Cervantes appear in 1569. He contributed some poetry to a memorial collection after the death of Elizabeth of Valois, the wife of Spanish king Philip II. By the following year, Cervantes had put his words aside and picked up a weapon.

Cervantes joined a Spanish military unit in Italy. Known for his bravery, he took part in the battle of Lepanto. Cervantes, stationed on the ship La Marquesa, fought against the Ottoman Empire and sustained serious injuries in the conflict. He had two chest wounds and his left hand was completely maimed. Despite his disability, Cervantes continued to serve as a soldier for several more years.

In 1875, Cervantes and his brother Rodrigo tried to return to Spain, but they were instead captured by a group of Turkish ships during their voyage. He spent five years as a prisoner and a slave despite his best efforts to escape. After a ransom was paid for his release, Cervantes went home.

Don Quixote

Cervantes published his first novel, La Galatea in 1585. This pastoral romance failed to make much of a splash. Around this time, Cervantes tried to make it the then-lucrative world of theater. Plays were an important form of entertainment in Spain at the time and a successful playwright could earn a good living. Unfortunately, Cervantes did not achieve fortune and fame with his plays. In fact, only two of his plays survived.

In late 1580s, Cervantes began working for Spanish Armada as a commissary. It was a thankless task, collecting grain supplies from rural communities. Many did not want to provide the goods, and Cervantes ended up in prison on two occasions because of charges of mismanagement. During this trying time, he started writing of literature's greatest masterpieces.

Cervantes published the first part of Don Quixote in 1605. The novel tells the story of an elderly man who becomes so enamored by old stories of brave knights that he seeks out his adventures. The title character gets lost in his own fantasy world where he thinks he is one of these knights. He convinces a poor peasant, Sancho Panza, to serve as his squire. In one scene, Don Quixote even fights a windmill, mistaking it for a beast.

The book proved to be the first best-seller, eventually being translated into more than sixty different languages. Cervantes published the second part of the story in 1615. In this novel, Don Quixote regains his senses shortly before the end of his life.

Death and Legacy

Don Quixote did not make Cervantes wealthy. During these times, authors did not receive royalties for their works. He continued to write after the success of Don Quixote, but he failed to finish The Labors of Persiles and Segismunda before his death. Cervantes died on April 23, 1616, in Madrid. He was buried on the grounds of a convent there in an unmarked grave.

Since his passing, Cervantes has been credited with writing the first modern novel. His work has inspired countless other authors, including Gustave Flaubert, Henry Fielding and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. And the story of Don Quixote has been retold in many ways, including in the popular musical The Man of La Mancha and in an artwork by Pablo Picasso.

Personal Life

Cervantes married Catalina de Salazar y Palacios in 1584. The couple remained married until Cervantes's death. They never had any children, but Cervantes did have a daughter from a prior relationship named Isabel de Saavedra.

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