Why is miguel cervantes famous

Miguel served as a soldier in a Spanish Regiment in Naples during after studying literature and philosophy in Italy. His left hand became useless when he encountered an injury on aboard ship Marquesa during the battle of Lepanto A few years later Cervantes was kidnapped from a ship on his way back home. He made several unsuccessful escape attempts but was released after five years of slavery when his mother had finally raised enough money to pay the ransom.

Upon return to Madrid in , Cervantes supported his expenses by undertaking several low paying jobs which did little to improve his financial crisis. Cervantes published the second part of the story in Despite its undisputed place in the literary canon, Don Quixote did not make Cervantes wealthy at the time, as authors did not receive royalties for their works. However, he continued to write, setting to work on The Labors of Persiles and Segismunda, though he would not complete it before his death on April 22, , in Madrid.

He was buried on the grounds of a convent there, in an unmarked grave. Since his passing, Cervantes has been credited with writing the first modern novel. His work has inspired countless other authors throughout the centuries—including Gustave Flaubert , Henry Fielding and Fyodor Dostoyevsky —and the story of Don Quixote has been retold in many ways, including in the popular musical The Man of La Mancha and in an artwork by Pablo Picasso.

Cervantes married Catalina de Salazar y Palacios in , and the couple remained married until Cervantes's death. Though they never had any children, Cervantes had an affair with actress Ana Franca de Rojas, with whom he had a daughter, Isabel de Saavedra in We strive for accuracy and fairness.

If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us! Subscribe to the Biography newsletter to receive stories about the people who shaped our world and the stories that shaped their lives. He was married to Marie Antoinette and was executed for treason by guillotine in Henry the Navigator, a 15th century Portuguese prince, helped usher in both the Age of Discovery and the Atlantic slave trade.

He continued to fight and then traveled around Italy, finally settling down for two years in Naples. In , when he was returning to Spain from Naples, the boat Miguel de Cervantes and his brother traveled on was attacked by Algerian corsairs under the command of Arnaut Mami , an Albanian renegade that was the terror of the narrow seas at that time.

They were taken to Algiers and Cervantes was made a slave. The letters of recommendation from the Duke of Sessa that he was carrying made them think he was someone important so a ransom was asked for, consisting of gold coins.

Cervantes remained captive in Algiers for 5 years, and during this time he tried to escape four times without success. His brother Rodrigo returned to Spain after their mother paid his ransom, which was unfortunately not enough for both brothers.

Find out more about one of the most famous Spanish writers — Miguel de Cervantes and his major work — the don Quixote de la Mancha. Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra is one of the most recognized Spanish authors largely due to the success of his novel Don Quijote de la Mancha , published in Cervantes, however, led a very difficult life; it seems the writer fit the mold for the starving artist stereotype.

Nonetheless, his passion for theatre and literature drove the man to create a masterpiece that has withstood the test of time. There is no official birth date on record for Cervantes but Michael, the name he was given, after St. Michael, suggests September 29th, the feast of St. Michael the Archangel. It is noted that Cervantes was christened on October 9th, and born in Alcala, a city near Madrid.

His father, Rodrigo de Cervantes is recorded as being a barber-surgeon or pharmacist-surgeon.