Alonso de Ercilla facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | 7 August 1533 |
| Died | 29 November 1594 (aged 61) |
| Signature | |
 |
|
Alonso de Ercilla y Zúñiga (born August 7, 1533 – died November 29, 1594) was a Spanish soldier and a famous poet. He was born in Madrid, Spain.
Alonso de Ercilla is best known for his long poem, La Araucana. He started writing this epic poem while he was in Chile between 1556 and 1563. During this time, he fought against the Mapuche people (also called Araucanians). His poem tells the story of these battles. La Araucana is considered one of the most important epic poems from Spain's Golden Age. It has 37 parts, called "cantos," and was published in three sections over many years.
Contents
A Young Adventurer's Life
Alonso de Ercilla came from a noble family in the Basque region of Spain. His father was Fortuño García de Ercilla, and his mother was Doña Leonor de Zúñiga. Both were from a town called Bermeo.
Life at Court
When Alonso was 15, his father passed away. His mother became a lady-in-waiting to Princess María. This meant young Alonso became a page to Prince Philip, who later became King Philip II.
Being a page meant Alonso received an excellent education. He had the best teachers and got to travel a lot. He also met many important people at the royal court. When he was just 15, he traveled with Philip through Italy and Germany for three years. Later, he visited Austria, Hungary, and other countries.
Journey to the New World
In 1554, Alonso de Ercilla was with Philip when he married Queen Mary I of England in London. There, he met Jerónimo de Alderete. Alderete told exciting stories about his adventures in the New World (America). Ercilla was so inspired that he decided to go with Alderete.
In 1555, Ercilla got permission from King Philip and sailed to America. Sadly, Alderete died soon after they arrived in April 1556.
Fighting in Chile
In 1556, Ercilla continued his journey to Peru. He then joined García Hurtado de Mendoza, who had just been made Governor and Commander-in-chief of Chile. At that time, the Mapuche people had revolted.
Ercilla fought bravely in the battles that followed. He stayed in Chile for about 17 months, from 1557 to 1559. He was part of important battles like Lagunillas, Quiapo, and Millarapue. He also saw the death of Caupolicán, a brave Mapuche leader who became a main character in his poem.
It was during this time, while fighting in the Arauco War, that Ercilla began to write La Araucana. He wrote about the battles and the brave actions of both the Spanish soldiers and the Mapuche people.
A Difficult Moment
In March 1558, Governor García Hurtado de Mendoza founded a new city called San Mateo de Osorno. During the celebrations, Ercilla had a disagreement with an old enemy, Juan de Pineda. A fight broke out.
The governor found out and was very angry. He ordered both Ercilla and Pineda to be executed the next day. Many people thought this punishment was too harsh and tried to convince the governor to change his mind. Just when all hope seemed lost, two women, one Spanish and one Native American, managed to speak with the governor. They convinced him to spare their lives. Ercilla was imprisoned for three months and then sent away to Peru.
Later Life and Family
Alonso de Ercilla returned to Spain in 1562. He continued to travel for diplomatic reasons, visiting Austria, Italy, France, Germany, and Bohemia.
In 1570, he married Doña María de Bazán. She came from a respected family and was very intelligent. After more diplomatic work, Ercilla settled permanently in Spain in 1577. In 1571, he became a knight of the Order of Santiago. He also worked for King Philip II on a mission in Zaragoza in 1578.
Ercilla sometimes felt he was not wealthy enough, and he was disappointed that he wasn't offered a higher position, like secretary of state. His later years were sad because he lost his only son. Alonso de Ercilla passed away in Madrid in 1594.
His Great Work: La Araucana
Alonso de Ercilla's most important work is La Araucana. This is a long, epic poem with 37 parts. It describes the challenges the Spanish faced during the uprising in Arauco, Chile. It also celebrates the brave actions of both the native people and Ercilla's fellow soldiers.
The poem is like a history book in verse. Ercilla tried to be very accurate with the facts. Because of this, historians often trust his work. He was very good at telling stories. He described places wonderfully, gave exact dates, and showed the customs of the native people. This makes the poem lively and colorful.
La Araucana was published in three parts. The first part, written in Chile, came out in 1569. It mostly sticks to historical facts. The second part, published in 1578, includes some imaginative parts, like visions. The third part, which appeared in 1589-1590, adds more stories that are not always directly related to the main topic. Even with these additions, many experts believe it's one of the best epic poems written in Spanish during the Renaissance.
In Literature
The famous writer Jules Verne mentioned Alonso de Ercilla in his novel In Search of the Castaways (1867). Verne wrote that the Araucania Region of Chile is "populated by the Mapuche, the native Chilean race extolled in verse by the poet Ercilla."
Legacy
There is a municipality (a type of local government area) in the Araucania Region of Chile that is named after Ercilla.
See also
In Spanish: Alonso de Ercilla para niños
- Pedro de Valdivia
- Francisco de Villagra
- Jerónimo de Alderete
- Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza
- Arauco War
- Mapuche people
- Lautaro
- Caupolicán
- Colocolo
- Czesław Ratka, a Polish translator of La Araucana
