Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

Cervantes Saavedra, Miguel de (1547–1616), Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright, a major figure of Spanish literature. In 1585 he wrote La Galatea, a pastoral novel in verse and prose. In 1605 he published the first part of Don Quixote de la Mancha, his masterpiece. A debunking of pseudo-chivalric romance and a rich tragi-comic novel, it was an immediate success. He also wrote about 30 plays, of which 16 survive, a volume of short stories, and the second part of Don Quixote (1615). His last work was the prose epic Persilas and Sigismunda (1617).

See also: Don Quixote.