Cautivas cristianas y enamorados turcos: el tratamiento épico de unos infortunios náuticos en la guerra de Chipre

Abstract

In Cyprus, in the autumn of the year 1570, a Turkish ship carrying to Constantinople the spoils of the battle of Nicosia sank following a violent explosion off the island shores. Historians in Italy ascribed the catastrophe to the heroic sacrifice of one of the captives, who had sought to free herself from slavery through suicide. Whereas no Spanish historian mentions the episode, several epic poets make reference to it, though they add other kinds of motives, romantic or fantastic in nature. Three texts, La Felicísima Victoria by Jerónimo Corte-Real, La Naval by Pedro Manrique, and La Austríada by Juan Rufo show three different modes of inserting this episode into the narrative, revealing three different understandings of epic poetry. The particulars of the treatment by the Spanish epic poets of the event are surprisingly similar to the Cypriot adventures of Miguel de Cervantes'El amante liberal.

Keywords

• cautivas
• Miguel de Cervantes
• Chipre
• Corte-Real Jerónimo
• explosión
• Manrique Pedro