Chivalric Novels: Curial e Guelfa and Tirant lo Blanc

Curial e Guelfa: An Anonymous Chivalric Tale

Curial e Guelfa is a chivalric novel by an anonymous author, likely written in the first half of the fifteenth century. It was not discovered until the late nineteenth century. The action is set during the reign of Peter II (1276-1285) and recounts the social ascent of Curial, a man of low status, through chivalry and love.

Curial is initially helped by a noble lady, Guelfa, but he falls in love with Laquesis, a lady of even higher status, causing a break with Guelfa. After traveling to the Holy Land and Greece, Curial is shipwrecked near Tunis. He is enslaved, taking the name John (Samag), and does not reciprocate the love professed by Camera, his master's daughter. When released, he becomes captain of the Christian army, culminating in his successful marriage to Guelfa.

Tirant lo Blanc: A Landmark in Modern Fiction

Tirant lo Blanc, Joanot Martorell's first printed novel, is dated to the city of Valencia in the year 1490, twenty-five years after the author's death. The success of this first edition motivated others, as well as translations into Spanish, Italian, and French. It also received complimentary commentary from Cervantes in his Don Quixote. Cervantes praises the novel for two reasons: its ability to entertain and the realism with which the lives of knights are treated. From a literary history perspective, Tirant, like Curial, is considered one of the first great modern novels.

Joanot Martorell: The Author Behind Tirant lo Blanc

Joanot Martorell was born in Valencia in 1410, into a prosperous and influential family during the reign of Martin I. However, his family fell from grace after the death of his father in the year 1435. Joanot was then declared heir and had to cope with debts and defend the family's honor for the rest of his life.

He served in various courts of the Trastámara dynasty, including that of Alfons of Aragon in Naples (1450-1458), where he heard the news of the fall of Constantinople into the hands of the Turks. Martorell wrote Tirant lo Blanc in Barcelona between 1460 and 1464, and died in early 1465. Martorell's life experience as a knight, soldier, courtier, and diplomat significantly influenced the writing of his novel. Constantinople's fall, and the idea of a crusade to restore the Byzantine Empire's capital, were significant themes. Martorell's literary work was particularly influenced by his court activity.