Belianís de Grecia facts for kids
Belianís of Greece is the main hero of an old Spanish adventure story called The Honour of Chivalry. This type of story is known as a chivalric romance novel. It's like a fantasy tale about knights and their brave deeds. The story of Belianís followed in the footsteps of another very popular knight story, Amadis de Gaula.
An English shorter version of The Honour of Chivalry was printed in 1673.
Why is Belianís of Greece Famous?
Belianís of Greece is mostly remembered today because it was one of the few books that was saved in a famous scene from the novel Don Quixote. In Chapter 6 of the first part of Don Quixote, the main character's friends and family decide to burn most of his knightly adventure books because they think these stories have made him crazy. However, they decide to spare Belianís of Greece, which shows it was considered a special book at the time.
Who Knew About This Book?
Even famous people in history knew about Belianís of Greece.
- The well-known English writer Samuel Johnson (who lived from 1709 to 1784) was familiar with this book.
- Edmund Burke, a famous Irish writer and politician (1729–1797), also mentioned Belianís of Greece. He used it to explain the difference between simple stories and more complex ones, like the ancient Greek epic poem The Iliad. Burke suggested that readers who enjoyed Belianís of Greece might not notice if the story wasn't always realistic or if it mixed up times and places. This was because they were just enjoying the adventure!
See also
In Spanish: Belianís de Grecia para niños
