His birthplace
In the 13th century, the Iberian Peninsula (today, Spain and Portugal) was divided into kingdoms, and don Juan Manuel was the nephew of Alfonso X the Wise, king of the kingdom of Castile.
Don Juan Manuel was born on May 5, 1282 in the castle of Escalona, in the present province of Toledo, and died in Cordoba (southern province) in 1348.
At a very young age, he participated in the political struggles between Castile and Aragon, that were two great kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula.
His marriages and his children
Don Juan Manuel married three times, for political and economic convenience. His first marriage was in 1299 to Isabella of Majorca, daughter of King James II of Majorca, wich died soon, and they had no children.
In 1311 he married Constanza of Aragon, daughter of King James II of Aragon and Blanca of Naples. He had three children with her. Constanza died in 1327.
His third and last marriage was to Blanca de la Cerda, daughter of Fernando de la Cerda and Juana Núñez de Lara. He had two other children.
How important was Don Juan Manuel?
Don Juan Manuel became one of the richest and most powerful men of his time, to the point that he had an army of a thousand knights and also his own currency for a time, like the kings.
Spanish coins of the 14th century and seal of Don Juan Manuel.
In addition to being a writer, he was a military man and politician. He was criticized for dedicating himself to writing, which at that time was an activity considered inferior for a man of great reputation.
Around 1340, Juan Manuel left political life and retired to Murcia (on the east coast of Spain). There he spent his last years dedicated to literature.
He died in the city of Cordoba (in southern Spain) in 1348 at the age of 66, his body was taken to Peñafiel (in the present province of Valladolid), and buried in the monastery of San Pablo (created by him in 1318) in the main chapel of the church.
In 1955 they found in the monastery a wooden box with human remains. Several researchers and historians said that they were the remains of Don Juan Manuel.
Don Juan Manuel, writer
He was the first writer in the Spanish language interested in having a personal style, which is why he corrected his manuscripts himself and kept them in the castle of Peñafiel. Additionally, he compiled all his works into a single book. However, this book was destroyed in a fire, and no known copy has been preserved.
His works represent the cultural and educational interests of the aristocracy, and his books reflect the activities of the lords of his time: hunting (Libro de la caza), the behavior of knights (Libro del caballero y el escudero), religion and politics (Libro de los Estados).
El conde Lucanor, his best work
El conde Lucanor, his most important work, is a collection of 51 tales with the same structure: Count Lucanor asks Patronio, who is his advisor, for advice on a specific problem related to the government of his lands.
To explain his advice, Patronio tells a story as an example. All the stories end with verses that summarize Patronio’s teaching (the moral) in two verses. The purpose of this book is to be a manual for the education of nobles.
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These stories are not original to him, they are based on Arab and Oriental tales, and on European storybooks of Christian tradition, but Don Juan Manuel wrote them in a very personal way.
A very popular writer
He was a very popular writer because he used simple language. That is why kings and nobles read it, and it also reached many more people.
El conde Lucanor was widely read and imitated. Some of these tales have become famous, for example, the fable La lechera, by Samaniego (a version of the tale Doña Truhana) or El traje nuevo del emperador, written by the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen in 1837 and based on the tale written by don Juan Manuel.
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There are also other versions scattered all over the world, for example in Sri Lanka, Turkey and India.
In addition, the stories of Don Juan Manuel inspired other writers, such as Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare.
Along with Chaucer and Boccaccio, he is one of the great story writers of the 14th century.
Do you want to know about his stories?
HERE you have all the information you need if you are a beginner student.
And HERE, if your level is intermediate.
Enjoy!
