Ignez de Castro by António Ferreira
"Ignez de Castro" is a drama written by António Ferreira in the sixteenth century, which explores the tragic love story of Ignez de Castro and Prince Pedro of Portugal. Set in the fourteenth century, the narrative unfolds against a backdrop of political intrigue and familial duty, as Pedro grapples with his obligations to marry Princess Constanza, while his heart belongs to Ignez, the illegitimate daughter of a nobleman. The play captures the tension between true love and royal expectations, as King Alfonso IV seeks to eliminate what he views as a threat to the monarchy by ordering Ignez's assassination.
Despite the warmth of a beautiful spring day, foreboding shadows loom as Ignez remains hopeful for her lover's return, unaware of the tragic fate that awaits her. After her murder, Pedro, consumed by grief and rage, vows to seek revenge against those responsible, including his own father, and plans to honor Ignez posthumously. The play's themes resonate with notions of love, honor, and the harrowing consequences of political machinations, making it a poignant reflection on the intersection of personal desire and public duty. Ferreira's work is notable for its exploration of strong emotional currents amid the rigid social structures of medieval Portugal.
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Ignez de Castro by António Ferreira
First produced:A Castro, c. 1553-1556; first published, 1587 (English translation, 1825)
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Tragedy
Time of plot: 1354-1360
Locale: Portugal
Principal characters
Alfonso IV , the king of PortugalPrince Pedro , his sonIgnez de Castro , secretly married to PedroSecretary to the Prince ,Diogo Lopes Pacheco , ,Pedro Coelho , andGonzalves , King Alfonso’s advisers
The Story:
On a lovely spring day in the middle of the fourteenth century, Ignez de Castro feels especially happy as she walks in her garden in Portugal. Although she is an illegitimate daughter of a famous Galician noble, she wins the love of Prince Pedro, son of Alfonso IV of Portugal; at last she feels sure the world is about to learn that he loves her, too. Theirs is a star-crossed love. Pedro’s father, trying his best to destroy his son’s love for a woman unsuitable to rule Portugal, compelled his heir to marry the Princess Constanza of Castile. Ignez confides to her nurse, however, that fate was on the side of true love. The birth of Constanza’s son, heir to the crown of Portugal, cost his mother her life. At last Pedro is free. He carried out his father’s command by ensuring a continuation of the dynasty. Now he is coming back to the woman he really loves. Surely King Alfonso will now relent. The beauty of the day seems an omen, and Ignez is weeping with joy as she waits for her lover to appear.
The old nurse is less sure, however, that her mistress’s tears are an omen of joy; they might be a foreboding of tragedy. She begs Ignez not to count on happiness until everything is settled. Ignez, hearing Pedro approaching, will listen to no warnings.
The prince greets her with an assurance that all will go well. To himself, however, he wonders why he is not loved by the common people of Portugal and why his father is so incensed by his sincere love for Ignez. Nevertheless, he is confident, like Ignez, that their four children will move the stern old king to pity. Pedro hopes for the royal acceptance of the love between them and a state wedding to show King Alfonso’s recognition of his grandchildren.
Pedro’s secretary tries to disillusion him. In spite of the nobility of her famous father, the irregularity of Ignez’s birth is cause enough for King Alfonso’s repeated orders that Pedro must put her out of his mind. The secretary begs Pedro, for the good of the state, to let reason conquer desire and to give up the passion that enslaves him and makes him disobedient to the royal will. The prince refuses. He obeyed his father in marrying Constanza. Events prove that Ignez is fated to be his real wife.
King Alfonso, meanwhile, is pacing his throne room. His three advisers, Diogo Lopes Pacheco, Pedro Coelho, and Gonzalves, are deaf to his complaints that a king has more woes than pleasures. They preach the obligation of power, pointing out that an officially sanctioned marriage between Pedro and Ignez, whose children are older than the recently born son of Constanza, might jeopardize the succession of the young child. One of the advisers, the dominating Pacheco, argues that the removal of Ignez will solve all difficulties. In spite of King Alfonso’s basic agreement with the suggestion, much argument is needed before the king finally gives the trio orders to kill his son’s mistress.
That night Ignez has a dream in which she is about to die. She interprets it as proof that Pedro is dead; otherwise he would have been quick to defend her. Before she can discover what truth there is in her dream, the king arrives with a sentence of death. He is accompanied by Pacheco, who intends to block any appeals for royal mercy. Ignez pleads so touchingly, however, insisting on her innocence and the helplessness of her four children related through Pedro to King Alfonso, that the king, reminded of his love for his own child, finally agrees to spare her.
The reprieve does not last long. Once more the king’s advisers work on the king, determined that Constanza’s child should inherit the throne without difficulty. They cannot get his consent to the death of Ignez, but King Alfonso does not actually forbid it. Twisting his less-than-unmistakable statements into permission, the evil trio hurries away to murder the innocent Ignez.
In the meantime Pedro, hurrying eagerly to join her and confident that the king will consider his son’s happiness and permit their official marriage, is met by a messenger who tells the prince that the three advisers sought out Ignez and killed her. Out of his mind with grief, Pedro swears to have revenge on all concerned, including his father. He will cast him from the throne and then hunt down and torture the three evil murderers, and he will not only see to it that a child of Ignez is named his successor but also when he is crowned he will also have Ignez’s corpse exhumed and seated on the throne beside him to receive the honors of a royal coronation.
Bibliography
Bell, Aubrey F. G. Portuguese Literature. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 1922. Ignez de Castro is discussed in the context of sixteenth century Portuguese plays imitative of classical drama. Describes Ferreira as a competent craftsman but not at his best as a dramatist; his poetry receives greater praise in another section of the study.
Earle, T. F. The Muse Reborn: The Poetry of António Ferreira. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. A book-length study of Ferreira’s literary art. Offers brief remarks on Ignez de Castro, highlighting Ferreira’s debt to classical sources; the analysis of Ferreira’s techniques of imitation in his poetry offer insight into similar methodology in his drama.
Ferreira, António. The Tragedy of Ignes de Castro. Translated by John R. C. Martyn. Coimbra, Portugal: Biblioteca Geral da Universidade de Coimbra, 1987. In addition to the text of the play, which is provided in both English and Portuguese, the introductory essays in this edition provide a biography of Ferreira, a consideration of the relationship of Ferreira and Portuguese poet Luís de Camões, and analyses of the play’s themes, staging, plot, characters, and political, social, and religious background. It may be difficult to find this book in bookstores or online, but it is available in some university libraries.
Friederich, Werner. Outline of Comparative Literature from Dante Alighieri to Eugene O’Neill. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1954. Places Ferreira in the context of Portuguese and European writers of the sixteenth century. Discusses his version of Ignez de Castro as one of several works that retell the story of the legendary heroine.
Saraiva, António José. Initiation into Portuguese Literature. Translated by Christopher Lund. Updated ed. Santa Barbara: Center for Portuguese Studies, University of California, 2007. An updated version of the literary survey originally published in 1949. Chapter 4, “Time of Camões,” discusses the work of Ferreira.
Sismondi, Simonde de. Historical View of the Literature of the South of Europe. Translated by Thomas Roscoe. London: Henry Bohn, 1846. Considers Ferreira a greater dramatist than poet. Careful, detailed analysis of Ignez de Castro, focusing on Ferreira’s development of his heroine and examining his adherence to the classical unities.