Pedro Romero Martínez (19 November 1754 – 10 February 1839) was a legendary

bullfighter A bullfighter (or matador) is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter and describe all the performers in the activit ...

from the Romero family in

Ronda Ronda () is a town in the Spanish province of Málaga. It is located about west of the city of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is about 35,000. Ronda is known for its cliff-side location and a deep chasm ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. His grandfather Francisco is credited with advancing the art of using the

muleta A muleta is a stick with a red cloth hanging from itmuleta' in the Diccionario de la Real Academia. that is used in the final third ('' tercio de muleta'' or ''de muerte'') of a bullfight. It is different from the cape used by the matador earlier ...

; his father and two brothers were also

torero A bullfighter (or matador) is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter and describe all the performers in the activity ...

s. As a youth he participated in bullfights in

Algeciras Algeciras ( , ) is a municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cádiz, Andalusia. Located in the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, near the Strait of Gibraltar, it is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeci ...

and in Seville in 1772; and in Madrid, with his father and

Costillares Joaquín Rodríguez (July 20, 1743 – January 27, 1800), better known as Costillares, was a Spanish bullfighter who has been considered the father of modern spectator bullfighting. Biography Costillares was born in Seville, son of the matad ...

, in 1775. In the following year he killed 285 bulls, establishing his reputation. He allegedly fought 5,558 bulls without incurring serious injury before retiring in 1799. He was known as the first matador to present the bullfight as an art form as well as a display of courage. After retiring, Romero was appointed the head of a bullfighting school in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

. Although the school lasted only from 1830 to 1832, it had an enormous influence where Romero offered his knowledge to matadors-in-training. He is credited with the invention of the classical style of bullfighting in the School of Ronda and Pedro Romero's name is inseparable from the Plaza de Toros (bullring). He killed numerous bulls in a bullring in Madrid at the age of eighty, probably the last corrida he fought.

Notable References

Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fi ...

, in his novel ''

The Sun Also Rises ''The Sun Also Rises'' is a 1926 novel by American writer Ernest Hemingway, his first, that portrays American and British expatriates who travel from Paris to the Festival of San Fermín in Pamplona to watch the running of the bulls and the bu ...

,'' portrays a young, "beautiful" and very artful bullfighter whom he names Pedro Romero, presumably after Pedro Romero Martinez. *The infamous organisation PTNKY has been noted for its use of the art piece "Portrait of the Matador Pedro Romero" in its art exhibitions and events.

References

1754 births 1839 deaths People from Ronda Sportspeople from the Province of Málaga Spanish bullfighters {{spain-bullfighting-bio-stub

Notable References

See also

References