Alonso de Castillo Solórzano (1584?, probably in

Tordesillas Tordesillas () is a town and municipality in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, central Spain. It is located southwest of the provincial capital, Valladolid at an elevation of . The population was c. 8,760 . The town is located on ...

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

1647?, probably in

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

) was a Spanish novelist and playwright.

Life

He is said to have been

baptized Baptism (from ) is a Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by sprinkling or pouring water on the head, or by immersing in water either partially or completely, traditionally three ...

October 1, 1584. He is next heard of at

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in 1619 as a man of literary tastes. He was a close friend of

Sebastian Francisco de Medrano Sebastián Francisco de Medrano (Madrid, 1590–1653) was a prominent nobleman born into the Medrano family, a poet and playwright of the Baroque, Baroque period, and the founder and president of the Medrano Academy, located on Leganitos street ...

, founder and president of the

Medrano Academy The Medrano Academy (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Academia Medrano''), also known as the Poetic Academy of Madrid, was a prominent ''academia literaria'' of the Spanish Golden Age, founded by Dr. Sebastian Francisco de Medrano, Sebastián Francisc ...

(Poetic Academy of Madrid). Castillo joined the group of poets in 1619.La Barrera, 1860, p. 243. While in the service of the Marquis de Villars, he issued his first work, ''Donaires del Parnaso'' (1624–1625), two volumes of humorous poems; his ''Tardes entretenidas'' (1625) and ''Jornadas alegres'' (1626) proved that he was a novelist by vocation. Shortly afterwards he joined the household of the Marquis de los Vélez,

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, and published in quick succession three clever

picaresque novel The picaresque novel ( Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for ' rogue' or 'rascal') is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish but appealing hero, usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corrup ...

s: ''La Niña de los embustes, Teresa de Manzanares'' (1634), ''Las Aventuras del Bachiller Trapaza'' (1637), and a continuation entitled ''La Garduña de Sevilla y Anzuelo de las bolsas'' (1642). To these shrewd cynical stories he owes his reputation. He followed the Marquis de los Vélez in his disastrous campaign in

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(the

Reapers' War The Reapers' War (, ; , ), also known as the Catalan Revolt or Catalan Revolution, was a conflict that affected the Principality of Catalonia between 1640 and 1659, in the context of the Franco-Spanish War (1635–1659), Franco-Spanish War of 1 ...

) and accompanied him to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, where the defeated general was sent as ambassador. Castillo Solórzano's death occurred before 1648, but the exact date is uncertain. His prolonged absence from Madrid prevented him from writing as copiously for the stage as he would otherwise have done; but he was popular as a playwright both at home and abroad.

Works

His ''Marqués del Cigarral'' and ''El Mayorazgo figurón'' are the sources respectively of Scarron's ''Don Jophet d'Arménie'' and ''L'Héritier ridicule''. Among his numerous remaining works may be mentioned ''Las harpías en Madrid'' (1633), ''Fiestas del Jardín'' (1634), ''Los Alivios de Casandra'' (1640) and the posthumous ''Quinta de Laurel'' (1649); the witty observation of these books forms a singular contrast to the prim devotion of his ''Sagrario de Valencia'' (1635).

References

Bibliography

*Alan Soons, ''Alonso de Castillo Solórzano'', Boston(USA): Twayne Publishers, 1978. *Alan Soons, ''Siete Siglos de Autores Españoles'' ed. Kurt & Theo Reichenberger, Kassel, 1991: 143-146 {{DEFAULTSORT:Castillo Solorzano, Alonso de Spanish novelists Spanish Golden Age 1580s births 1640s deaths Spanish male dramatists and playwrights Spanish male novelists 17th-century Spanish dramatists and playwrights 17th-century Spanish novelists Spanish Baroque writers