The History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Volume II Part 17

[37] Such is the high encomium of the Abate Andres, (Letteratura, tom. v.

part. 2, lib. 1.)--Cervantes does not hesitate to call it "libro divino;"

and the acute author of the "Dialogo de las Lenguas" concludes a criticism upon it with the remark, that "there is no book in the Castilian which surpa.s.ses it in the propriety and elegance of its diction." (Don Quixote, ed. de Pellicer, tom. i., p. 239.--Mayans y Siscar, tom. ii. p. 167.)

Its merits indeed seem in some degree to have disarmed even the severity of foreign critics; and Signorelli, after standing up stoutly in defence of the precedence of the "Orfeo" as a dramatic composition, admits the "Celestina" to be a "work, rich in various beauties, and meriting undoubted applause. In fact," he continues, "the vivacity of the description of character, and faithful portraiture of manners, have made it immortal." Storia Critica de' Teatri Antichi e Moderni, (Napoli, 1813,) tom. vi. pp. 146, 147.

[38] Bouterwek, Literatura Espanola, notas de traductores, p. 234.-- Andres, Letteratura, tom. v. pp. 170, 171.--Lampillas, Letteratura Spagnuola, tom. vi. pp. 57-59.

[39] Rojas, Viage Entretenido, (1614,) fol. 46.--Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca Nova, tom. i. p. 684.--Moratin, Obras, tom. i. pp. 126, 127.--Pellicer, Origen de la Comedia, tom. i. pp. 11, 12.

[40] They were published under the t.i.tle "Cancionero de todas las Obras de Juan de la Encina con otras anadidas." (Mendez, Typographia Espanola, p.

247.) Subsequent impressions of his works, more or less complete, appeared at Salamanca in 1509, and at Saragossa in 1512 and 1516.--Moratin, Obras, tom. i. p. 127, nota.

[41] The comedian Rojas, who flourished in the beginning of the following century, and whose "Viage Entretenido" is so essential to the knowledge of the early histrionic art in Spain, identifies the appearance of Encina's Eclogues with the dawn of the Castilian drama. His verses may be worth quoting.

"Que es en nuestra madre Espana, porque en la dichosa era, que aquellos gloriosos Reyes dignos de memoria eterna Don Fernando e Ysabel (que ya con los santos reynan) de echar de Espana acabavan todos los Moriscos, que eran De aquel Reyno de Granada, y entonces se dava en ella principio a la Inquisicion, se le dio a nuestra comedia.

Juan de la Encina el primero, aquel insigne poeta, que tanto bien empezo de quien tenemos tres eglogas Que el mismo represento al Almirante y Duquessa de Castilla, y de Infantado que estas fueron las primeras Y para mas honra suya, y de la comedia nuestra, en los dias que Colon descubrio la gran riqueza De Indias y nuevo mundo, y el gran Capitan empieza, a sugetar aquel Reyno de Napoles, y su tierra.

A descubrirse empezo el uso de la comedia porque todos se anima.s.sen a emprender cosas tan buenas."

Fol. 46, 47.

[42] Signorelli, correcting what he denominates the "romance" of Lampillas, considers Encina to have composed only one pastoral drama, and that, on occasion of Ferdinand's entrance into Castile. The critic should have been more charitable, as he has made two blunders himself in correcting one. Storia Critica de' Teatri, tom. iv. pp. 192, 193.

[43] Andres, confounding Torres de Naharro, the poet, with Naharro the comedian, who flourished about half a century later, is led into a ludicrous train of errors in controverting Cervantes, whose criticism of the actor is perpetually misapplied by Andres to the poet. Velasquez seems to have confounded them in like manner. Another evidence of the extremely superficial acquaintance of the Spanish critics with their early drama.

Comp. Cervantes, Comedias y Entremeses, tom. i. prologo.--Andres, Letteratura, tom. v. p. 179.--Velazquez, Poesia Castellana, p. 88.

[44] Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca Nova, tom. i. p. 202.--Cervantes, Comedias, tom. i. prol. de Nasarre.--Pellicer, Origen de la Comedia, tom. ii. p.

17.--Moratin, Obras, tom. i. p. 48.

[45] Bartolome Torres de Naharro, Propaladia, (Madrid, 1573.)--The deficiency of the earlier Spanish books, of which Bouterwek repeatedly complains, has led him into an error respecting the "Propaladia," which he had never seen. He states that Naharro was the first to distribute the play into three jornadas or acts, and takes Cervantes roundly to task for a.s.suming the original merit of this distribution to himself. In fact, Naharro did introduce the division into _five_ jornadas, and Cervantes a.s.sumes only the credit of having been the first to _reduce them to three_. Comp. Bouterwek, Geschichte der Poesie und Beredsamkeit, band iii.

p. 285,--and Cervantes, Comedias, tom. i. prol.

[46] In the argument to the "Seraphina," he thus prepares the audience for this colloquial _olla podrida_.

"Mas haveis de estar alerta por sentir los personages que hablan quatro lenguages, hasta acabar su rehyerta no salen de cuenta cierta por Latin e Italiano Castellano y Valenciano que ninguno desconcierta."

Propaladia, p. 50.

[47] The following is an example of the precious reasoning with which Floristan, in the play above quoted, reconciles his conscience to the murder of his wife Orfea, in order to gratify the jealousy of his mistress Seraphina. Floristan is addressing himself to a priest.

"Y por mas dano escusar no lo quiero hora hazer, sino que es menester, que yo mate luego a Orfea do Serafina lo vea porque lo pueda creer.

Que yo bien me mataria, pues toda razon me inclina; pero se de Serafina que se desesperaria.

y Orfea, pues que haria?

quando mi muerte supiesse; que creo que no pudiesse sostener la vida un dia.

Pues hablando aca entre nos a Orfea cabe la suerte; porque con su sola muerte se escusaran otras dos: de modo que padre vos si llamar me la quereys, a mi merced me hareys y tambien servicio a dios.

porque si yo la matare morira christianamente; yo morire penitente, quando mi suerte llegare."

Propaladia, fol. 68.

[48] Signorelli waxes exceedingly wroth with Don Blas Nasarre for the a.s.sertion, that Naharro first taught the Italians to write comedy, taxing him with downright mendacity; and he stoutly denies the probability of Naharro's comedies ever having been performed on the Italian boards. The critic seems to be in the right, as far as regards the influence of the Spanish dramatist; but he might have been spared all doubts respecting their representation in the country, had he consulted the prologue of Naharro himself, where he a.s.serts the fact in the most explicit manner.

Comp. Propaladia, prol., and Signorelli, Storia Critica de' Teatri, tom.

vi. pp. 171-179.--See also Moratin, Origenes, Obras, tom. i. pp. 149, 150.

[49] Propaladia; see the comedies of "Trofea" and "Tinelaria."-- Jovellanos, Memoria sobre las Diversiones Publicas, apud Mem. de la Acad.

de Hist., tom. v.

[50] Cervantes, Comedias, tom. i. prol.

[51] Pellicer, Origen de la Comedia, tom. ii. pp. 58-62.--See also American Quarterly Review, no. viii. art. 3.

[52] Oliva, Obras, (Madrid, 1787.)--Vasco Diaz Tanco, a native of Estremadura, who flourished in the first half of the sixteenth century, mentions in one of his works three tragedies composed by himself on Scripture subjects. As there is no evidence, however, of their having been printed, or performed, or even read in ma.n.u.script by any one, they hardly deserve to be included in the catalogue of dramatic compositions.

(Moratin, Obras, tom. i. pp. 150, 151.--Lampillas, Letteratura Spagnuola, tom. v. dis. 1, sec. 5.) This patriotic _litterateur_ endeavors to establish the production of Oliva's tragedies in the year 1515, in the hope of antedating that of Trissino's "Sophonisba," composed a year later, and thus securing to his nation the palm of precedence, in time at least, though it should be only for a few months, on the tragic theatre of modern Europe. Letteratura Spagnuola, ubi supra.

[53] Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca Nova, tom. i. p. 386.--Oliva, Obras, pref.

de Morales.

[54] The following pa.s.sage, for example, in the "Venganza de Agamemnon,"

imitated from the Electra of Sophocles, will hardly be charged on the Greek dramatist.

"Habed, yo os ruego, de mi compa.s.sion, no querais atapar con vuestros consejos los respiraderos de las hornazas de fuego, que dentro me atormentan." See Oliva, Obras, p. 185.

[55] Compare the diction of these tragedies with that of the "Centon Epistolario," for instance, esteemed one of the best literary compositions of John II.'s reign, and see the advance made, not only in orthography, but in the verbal arrangement generally, and the whole complexion of the style.

[56] Notwithstanding some Spanish critics, as Cueva, for example, have vindicated the romantic forms of the drama on scientific principles, it is apparent that the most successful writers in this department have been constrained to adopt them by public opinion, rather than their own, which would have suggested a nearer imitation of the cla.s.sical models of antiquity, so generally followed by the Italians, and which naturally recommends itself to the scholar. See the canon's discourse in Cervantes, Don Quixote, ed. de Pellicer, tom. iii. pp. 207-220,--and, more explicitly, Lope de Vega, Obras Sueltas, tom. iv. p. 406.

[57] "Ya en Italia, a.s.si entre Damas, como entre Caballeros, se tiene por gentileza y galania, saber hablar Castellano." Dialogo de las Lenguas, apud Mayans y Siscar, Origenes, tom. ii. p. 4.

PART SECOND.

1493-1517.

THE PERIOD WHEN, THE INTERIOR ORGANIZATION OF THE MONARCHY HAVING BEEN COMPLETED, THE SPANISH NATION ENTERED ON ITS SCHEMES OF DISCOVERY AND CONQUEST; OR THE PERIOD ILl.u.s.tRATING MORE PARTICULARLY THE FOREIGN POLICY OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.

CHAPTER I.

ITALIAN WARS.--GENERAL VIEW OF EUROPE.--INVASION OF ITALY BY CHARLES VIII.

OF FRANCE.

1493-1495.

Europe at the Close of the Fifteenth Century.--More Intimate Relations between States.--Italy the School of Politics.--Pretensions of Charles VIII. to Naples.--Treaty of Barcelona.--The French Invade Naples.-- Ferdinand's Dissatisfaction.--Tactics and Arms of the Different Nations.-- Preparations of Spain.--Mission to Charles VIII.--Bold Conduct of the Envoys.--The French enter Naples.