Benavente Bull Festival
The Festival of the Tied Bull is more than 300
years old, has been declared of touristic interest in Castilla
y León, and is one of the great attractions of the village
of Benavente.
It takes place during the celebrations of Corpus Christi, but
has its prelude 50 days before the start of the festival. On this
day the villagers act out the traditional demanding of the bull,
the origin of which lies in the tale of how the son of the Benaventen
Countess was killed by a bull. When she was told the news, the
Countess asked as revenge that the bull was run to death in the
streets by the villagers.
From then on in memory of her son she donated a bull to the villagers
on the same day every year. When the Countess died, the villagers
ran to demand the bull from the mayor, and this tradition is now
also repeated every year. On this day in the Plaza Mayor all the
villagers clamour for a bull: "¡toro! ¡toro!
¡toro!" until the mayor concedes.
Zamora guide