Antonio Gil y Zárate
Antonio Gil y Zárate (1 December 1793–27 January 1861) was a Spanish dramatist and pedagogue whose work is associated with Romanticism. He is known for his tragedy, Guzmán el Bueno. Drama en Cuatro Actos, set in the Middle Ages and exploring the life of a legendary hero of Spain. He was an academician of both the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando and the Real Academia Española. The mineral Zaratite was named after him. Early life and education Antonio Gil y Zárate was born in El Escorial in 1793 to Bernardo Gil, an actor well known in Madrid, and Ántonia Zárate. His mother died when the boy was quite young, and his father married a "celebrated actress", Antera Baus, so Antonio grew up in the world of theatre in Madrid. As a youth, Gil y Zárate was sent to France for several years for his studies; he also studied in Madrid, Spain, in the subjects of physics and mathematics. He spent another two years in France in studies, where he also enjoyed the latest works in French literature. After returning to Spain, initially Gil y Zárate entered Spanish politics, like other young men of his class, but he