Feria goyesca en Ronda

Enrique Ponce

 

The best known Ronda Festival is the “Feria Goyesca de Pedro Romero” which takes place during the first week of September every year. The main attraction of this fiesta is the bullfight which takes place on the first Saturday of the month in the Real Maestranza bullring. Before the bullfight there is a procession of horse drawn carriages through the streets of Ronda with everyone dressed in 18th century Goyesque costumes. The matadors themselves also wear this traditional attire.

 

The tradition of dressing in these 18th century costumes, from the times of the celebrated Spanish painter Francisco de Goya, dates back to just 1954 when local bullfighting hero Antonio Ordóñez arranged the first Goyesca festival in honour of the 200th anniversary of Pedro Romero who is generally considered the founder of modern bullfighting.