Pero López de Ayala
Don Pero (or Pedro) López de Ayala (1332–1407) was a
Life
Pero López de Ayala was born in 1332 at
The Ayala were one of the major aristocratic families of Castile. The earliest known record of their family was an account written by Pero's own father, which claims they descended from
As Alférez mayor del Pendón de la Banda (second lieutenant), he fought with Henry at the
He subsequently served as a supporter of
Upon his release in 1388 or 1389, he continued his diplomatic activities in France. He later returned to Castile, where he was named Canciller mayor ("grand chancellor of the realm") by Henry III. He died at Calahorra at the age of 75.[3]
Literary career
López de Ayala is best remembered for his
In one of the first known literary references to chivalresque tales, López de Ayala, in his Rimado de Palacio, would regret a misspent youth:
It pleased me, moreover, to hear, many times,
Books of idle pursuit and proven fictions,
Amadis and Lancelotand invented falsities,In which I wasted long hours of my time.[4]
In his Libro de la caza de las aves, López de Ayala attempted to compile all of the correct and available knowledge concerning falconry. In the prologue, López de Ayala explains that concerning "this art and science of the hunting with birds I heard and saw many uncertainties; such as on the plumage and characteristics and nature of the birds; such as in domesticating them and ordering them to hunt their prey; and also how to cure them when they suffer and are hurt. Of this I saw some writings that reasoned on it, but did not agree with others."[5]
He also wrote the chronicles for the reigns of Pedro I, Henry of Trastamara (Henry II of Castile), and John I, and a partial chronicle of the reign of Henry III of Castile, collected as History of the Kings of Castile.
As a source, López de Ayala is considered to be generally reliable, as he was a witness to the events he describes. The first part of his chronicle, which covers only the reign of Pedro I, was printed at Seville in 1495. The first complete edition was printed in 1779–1780 in the collection of Crónicas Españolas, under the auspices of the Spanish Royal Academy of History.
López de Ayala also translated the works of ancient authors, such as
The Castilian poet Pero Ferrús (fl. 1380) dedicated one of his cantigas to López de Ayala.
Among his direct descendants are major Spanish poets and writers
Notes
- ^ de Ayala 1950, p. ?.
- ^ Roth 2002, p. 377.
- ^ a b Chisholm 1911.
- Amadis of Gaul.
- ^ Libro de la caza de las aves – Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes
- ^ Translation and Intercultural Studies
References
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 71.
- Roth, Norman (2002). Conversos, Inquisition, and the Expulsion of the Jews from Spain. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 377. ISBN 978-0299142339.
- Wilkins, Constance L. (2003). "López de Ayala, Pero". In Gerli, E. Michael (ed.). Medieval Iberia : an encyclopedia. New York: Routledge. OCLC 50404104.
- Serrano de Haro, Antonio. "Pero López de Ayala". Real Academia de la Historia (in Spanish).
- de Ayala, Juan Contreras y López (1950). de Lozoya, Marqués (ed.). Introducción a la biographía del Canciller Ayala, con apéndices documentales (in Spanish). Bilbao.
Sources
- (in Spanish) Artehistoria.com: Personajes[permanent dead link]
- (in Spanish) La Poesia del Siglo XIV
- (in Spanish) Biografía de Pero López de Ayala
- (in Spanish) Libro de la caza de las aves