Don Gaspar Gregorio

Don Gaspar Gregorio is a young gentleman whose love for Ana Félix carries him from Spain into exile and leaves him stranded in Algiers, separated from her by a disguise that protects him while placing him in further danger. His story turns on loyalty across a forced departure: he follows Ana Félix out of attachment, then remains hidden among the women of a powerful household while she is sent back to Spain.

Identity and Background

Ana Félix identifies Don Gaspar Gregorio as the eldest son of a gentleman who is lord of a village near hers. In Sancho Panza’s earlier account to Ricote, the young heir in love with Ricote’s daughter is called Don Pedro Gregorio. The accounts differ in the name used, but both place him among the wealthy young Christian heirs of the region and connect him to Ana Félix.

Before their separation, Don Gaspar Gregorio found opportunities to see Ana Félix despite the seclusion in which she lived. Their attachment was mutual. Ana Félix does not recount its beginnings in detail, but says that his heart was lost to her and that she did not keep hers from him.

Following Ana Félix into Exile

When Ana Félix was expelled from Spain with her Morisco relatives, Don Gaspar Gregorio chose to accompany her. He joined a group of departing Moriscos and used his knowledge of their language to travel among them, befriending the two uncles who were taking her away. His decision made love an act of shared exile: rather than remain in the country where he belonged, he entered the company of those being driven from it.

Sancho Panza had seen Ana Félix leave their village. He recalled that she wept, embraced those who had come to see her, and asked them to commend her to God and Our Lady. The departure moved Sancho to tears as well. He reported that the young heir was the person most affected and that, after Ana Félix left, the young man was no longer seen in the village. Villagers suspected that he had followed her, though at that point they had heard nothing further.

Separation in Algiers

In Algiers, the ruler heard reports of Ana Félix’s beauty and wealth. She told him that the valuables her father had buried in Spain could be recovered if she returned there herself. During their conversation, the ruler was also told of the striking appearance of the young person who had come with her. Ana Félix recognized that this meant Don Gaspar Gregorio had been noticed and feared the danger he faced.

To protect him, Ana Félix told the ruler that the youth was a woman and asked permission to dress her accordingly. She changed Don Gaspar Gregorio into Moorish women’s clothing and presented him to the ruler, who decided to keep the supposed young woman and send her as a gift to the Grand Signor. To avoid the risks of the seraglio, he ordered her placed in the household of women of rank, where she would be cared for. The disguise thus shields Don Gaspar Gregorio from immediate exposure but confines him among strangers, apart from Ana Félix.

Return Plan and Narrative Significance

The ruler arranged for Ana Félix to return to Spain by brigantine, accompanied by two Turks and a Spanish renegade. Don Gaspar Gregorio did not travel with her; he remained in the women’s household in Algiers, in what Ana Félix describes as imminent danger. She and the renegade were meant to be put ashore in Christian dress, but the two Turks instead took the vessel along the coast in search of a prize. Its encounter with Christian galleys ended the planned passage and brought Ana Félix before the authorities, where she explained Don Gaspar Gregorio’s perilous situation.

The available account establishes the separation and the danger surrounding Don Gaspar Gregorio, but does not tell what ultimately happens to him. His role is defined by the contrast between the villagers’ uncertain suspicion that he followed Ana Félix and the later disclosure that he did: the apparently absent heir has crossed the border with her, only to be hidden by the very disguise that keeps him from immediate discovery.