The History of Bull Fighting in Spain
Since antiquity, bullfighting has captivated spectators across the Iberian Peninsula. Adapted by the Moors from the more barbarous practices of the Visigoths, bullfighting did not arrive in its modern form until 1726, when Francisco Romero introduced the sword and cape that identify bullfighting today.
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The First Official Bullfight
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The bullfight, known in Spain as the "corrida," was launched as an official spectacle sport in 1133, at the coronation of King Alfonso VIII, and steadily gained in popularity through the years of the Reconquista, or reconquest of Moorish Spain.
Early Detractors
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Animal rights groups such as PETA protest bullfighting as a cruel, barbaric relic from an earlier age, and bullfighting has never been without its detractors, even in more "barbarous" times. In 1567, Pope Pius V issued a decree that forbid the fighting of bulls because the bullfighter's voluntary risking of life and limb put his soul in jeopardy. Eight years later, at the prompting of King Phillip II of Spain, a new Pope revoked the ban.
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Francisco Romero
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A carpenter's assistant from the town of Ronda, Francisco Romero invented the "muleta," or red cape, used to lure the bull past the matador's body. Legend has it Romero rescued a young nobleman by using his flat-brimmed Andalusian hat to lure away an irate bull. Thus was born the modern bullfight.
The Corrida
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A traditional corrida takes place in the early afternoon, and involves three matadors and six bulls. The corrida goes in three stages, each announced by trumpet call. In the first stage, the matador engages in a largely ceremonial dance with the bull before two picadors enter on horseback and stab the bull repeatedly in the neck with lances to drain its energy. In the second, three bandilleros plant barbed sticks in the bull's haunches. And in the final stage, the matador enters with cape and sword to finish off the bull with feints and flourish.
Did You Know?
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One common misconception about bullfighting is the bull is enraged by the bright red color of the matador's cape. In fact, bulls are color blind and are induced to charge not by the red of the cape but by its swirling motion.
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References
- Photo Credit Peter Welch
