Manuel Bretón de los Herreros

author

Manuel Bretón de los Herreros

1796–1873

A major figure of 19th-century Spanish theater, he was celebrated for sharp comedies that captured everyday manners with wit and energy. His long career also reached journalism, literary institutions, and the leadership of Spain’s National Library.

1 Audiobook

Modern Poets and Poetry of Spain

Modern Poets and Poetry of Spain

by Juan Bautista Arriaza, Manuel Bretón de los Herreros, José de Espronceda, Leandro Fernández de Moratín, José María Heredia, Tomás de Iriarte, Gaspar de Jovellanos, James Kennedy, Francisco Martínez de la Rosa, Juan Meléndez Valdés, Manuel José Quintana, duque de Angel de Saavedra Rivas, José Zorrilla

About the author

Born in Quel, La Rioja, in 1796, he became one of the best-known Spanish playwrights of the 1800s. He studied in Madrid and built his reputation above all through comedy, writing for the stage with a lively, observant style that made him popular with audiences.

Beyond the theater, he worked as a journalist and held important literary posts. He was a member of the Royal Spanish Academy, and later directed the National Library of Spain, showing how central he was to the cultural life of his time.

He died in Madrid in 1873. Today he is remembered as one of the key dramatists of Spanish Romantic-era theater, especially for bringing humor and social observation together on the stage.