The Lieutenant Nun

This volume contains the English translation of the seventeenth-century literary and archival materials about a Basque person who died under the name Antonio de Erauso (b. ~1580, d. 1650), bringing readers closer to an individual who could be considered a trans ancestor.

Born into a noble family in San Sebastian, Spain, as Catalina de Erauso, Erauso lived most of their life as a man, serving as a soldier in Peru and Chile, and working as a muleteer in Mexico until their death in 1650. This book provides – for the first time – an English translation of texts related to Erauso: the contemporary play Famosa comedia de la monja alférez (The Famous Play of the Lieutenant Nun), contemporary Accounts (Relaciones) about Erauso, selected archival documents about Erauso’s Petition for a Pension to the Council of the Indies, and contemporary letters mentioning Erauso.

This book presents early modern scholars working in English with new material essential to understanding the historical and literary figure of Erauso, and historical documentation that provides a glimpse into the terms Erauso (and others) seemingly chose for themselves.

Marta Albalá Pelegrín is Associate Professor at Cal Poly Pomona specializing in Mediterranean Studies and Early Modern Drama. She is co-editor of the special issues Crossroads in Early Modern Italy (2023), Comedia Crossings (2023) and Mobilities in the Western Mediterranean (12th–21st centuries) (forthcoming), and coordinates the public-facing podcast Radio Comedia.

Edward McLean Test is Professor in the Department of Theatre, Film, and Creative Writing at Boise State University. His publications include Sacred Seeds: New World Plants in Early Modern English Literature (2019) and a book of poetry, Fata Morgana (2004).