Hernani

The premiere of Hernani at the Comédie-Française on February 25, 1830, triggered a series of nightly disturbances known as the Battle of Hernani, in which supporters of Victor Hugo's Romantic style clashed with defenders of classical French theater. The uproar lasted for weeks and became a defining moment in French literary history.

Hugo openly violated the classical unities of time, place, and action that had governed French drama since the 17th century. He also used everyday language on stage, mixed comic and tragic registers, and told audiences in his preface that there should be no artificial barriers between art and life.

The play is set in 1519 Spain and follows Hernani, a nobleman turned outlaw, who loves Doña Sol but must compete for her against her uncle the Duke of Rua and King Carlos I (the future Holy Roman Emperor Charles V). The lovers are finally allowed to marry, but the Duke's revenge drives them to suicide on their wedding night.

Hernani is regarded as the manifesto play of French Romanticism, deliberately breaking with the Neoclassical tradition that had dominated the Comédie-Française since the era of Corneille and Racine. Its success opened the door for a generation of Romantic dramatists and reshaped the conventions of French theater.