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1500 — 1567 .
Thebe are several other poets whose names belong tothis age, of whom very little is known except by theirworks. Yet to complete the history of Spanish literarymen, it will be necessary to mention what has comedown to us.
The first on the list is Herrera. Fernando Herrerawas a native of Seville . \Ye learn nothing of his family,and even the date of his birth is unknown. It isconjectured that he was born at the beginning ofthe sixteenth century. He was an ecclesiastic; butit is believed that he adopted this profession late inlife, and we are ignorant of the position he held inthe hierarchy, and of all the events of his life. It isbelieved that he died at a very advanced age; hut whenand where we are not told. In the midst of all thesenegatives as to events, we get at a few affirmatives withregard to his qualities. There is an inedited work, en-titled “ The illustrious Men, Natives of Seville, ” writtenby Rodrigo Caro , who thus mentions him :—“ Herrerawas so well known in his native town of Seville , andhis memory is so regarded there, that I may be consideredin fault if my account of his works is brief: however, Iwill repeat all I have heard without futile additions,for I knew, though I never spoke to him,— I being a boywhen he was an old man; but I remember the reputationhe enjoyed. He understood Latin perfectly, and wroteseveral epigrams in that language, which might rival themost famous ancient authors in thought and expression.
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