[16] It has been commonly conjectured that Cervantes narrated his own adventures in the history of the “Captive,” in Don Quixote. With that story he has doubtless interwoven some of the incidents of his own life, for example, the particulars relating to the Battle of Lepanto. As to Captain Viedma’s captivity in Algiers and his elopement with the Moorish lady Zorayda, if those events are really founded on fact, the hero of them was probably one of the Spaniards who suffered captivity in company with Cervantes.
[17] In the year 1581, there was published in Grenada, a Narrative of the captivity of 185 Christians in Algiers, by the Fathers Juan Gil, and Antonio la Bella. This work is very scarce, but a copy exists in the Real Biblioteca at Madrid. The narrative contains a list of captives ransomed; and in this list appears the following entry: “Miguel de Cervantes, aged thirty, a native of Alcalá de Henares.” This fact was unknown, until the latter part of the last century, when the narrative above-mentioned happened to be perused by Don Juan de Yriate, Librarian to the King of Spain, who announced the fact, and therefore to him is assigned the honour of having been the discoverer of the birth place of Cervantes.
[18] In the story of the “Captive,” in Don Quixote, there is one passage in which Cervantes alludes, in a direct manner, to himself. It occurs in the description given by Captain Viedma of the imprisonment of himself and his companions in the Bagnios of Algiers, and is as follows:—“One Spanish soldier only, whose name was something or other (un tal) de Saavedra, Aga Hassan treated with greater consideration than the rest. This soldier did things which will remain in the memory of the Algerines for many years to come; all for the sake of recovering his liberty, and that of his companions. For the least of many things that he did, we all feared that he would be empaled alive—and he feared it himself oftener than once.”
[19] Lope de Vega, in his Cautivos de Argel, alludes to the plays acted by the captives in Algiers, and the old Spanish romances which were sung in those plays.
[20] This sister, who was older than Miguel, was at this time married to Sanctes Ambrosio or Ambrosi, a native of Florence.
[21] It will be recollected that he was originally the slave of Dali-Mami; but was forfeited to Aga Hassan, after his capture in the cave.
[22] The discrepancy observable in the statements of the mother and son, relative to the age, might be merely the effect of lapse of memory; or possibly the mother may have reckoned as completed the year which was only commenced, whilst the son may have counted his age by the number of years he had actually completed. This latter supposition would at least account for the difference of one year in the reckoning.
[23] Uno de los mayores contentos, que en esta vida se puede tener, cual es, llegar despues de luengo cautiverio, salvo y sano à su patria: porque no hay en la tierra contento que se iguale à alcanzar la libertad perdida.
[24] Don Antonio, a natural son of the Infante Don Luis, was one of the claimants of the Crown of Portugal, after the death of Cardinal Henry.