Antonio Hurtado de Mendoza facts for kids
Antonio Hurtado de Mendoza (born 1586 – died September 22, 1644) was a famous Spanish writer who mainly wrote plays. He was known for his cleverness and was a favorite of the king.
Biography
Antonio Hurtado de Mendoza was born in a town called Castro Urdiales in Cantabria, Spain.
When he was young, he worked for an important noble, the Count de Saldaña. Soon, other writers, like the famous Miguel de Cervantes, noticed his talent for poetry. Antonio quickly became popular with King Philip IV. The King made him his private secretary and asked him to write special plays for the royal theater at Aranjuez. In 1623, the King even gave him special honors, making him a knight of the Santiago and Calatrava.
Many writers of his time admired him, and Antonio seemed to get along well with most of them, except for one, Ruiz de Alarcón. He was involved in some big changes in the government, including the removal of a powerful leader named Olivares. Antonio Hurtado de Mendoza passed away unexpectedly in Zaragoza on September 19, 1644.
His plays often included short, funny acts called entreméses, which were performed between longer plays.
Only one of his plays, Querer por solo querer, was published with his permission. It was part of a book from 1623 that described the royal performances at Aranjuez. A good collection of his plays and poems is called Obras liricas y comicas, divinas y humanas (published in 1728). While much of his writing was simply graceful, some of his works showed great skill. For example, El marido hace mujer was a brilliant comedy about how people act in society. This play even inspired a famous French play by Molière called École des maris.
Two of his works, Fiesta que se hizo en Aranjuez and Querer por solo querer, were later translated into English by Sir Richard Fanshawe, who was an ambassador in Madrid. These translations were published in 1671 after Fanshawe had died.
Works
Poetry
- Convocatoria de las cortes de Castilla
- Vida de Nuestra Señora
- La guerra
Theatre
- Amor con amor se paga
- El marido hace mujer y el trato muda costumbre (1631–32)
- Cada loco con su tema o el montañés indiano (1630)
- No hay amor donde no hay agravio
- Los empeños del mentir
- Más merece quien más ama (after 1634)
- Querer por solo querer
- Ni callarlo ni decirlo
- Los empeños del mentir (written with Francisco de Quevedo)
- Quien más miente, más medra (written with Francisco de Quevedo in 1631)
Entremés
- Famoso Entremés Getafe
- El Ingenioso Entremés del Examinador Miser Palomo
See also
In Spanish: Antonio Hurtado de Mendoza para niños
