Cebada Gago bulls keep up the heat. With a history of 56 gorings in their 29 appearances in Pamplona for the fiesta, there were no gorings this time, but there were 4 serious injuries for the 3rd running of the bulls, Sanfermins 2018.
Throughout its long history, the Sanfermines has been interrupted on only a few occasions, and always for political reasons. In 1937 and 1938 it was because of the Civil War, La Guerra Civil (17 July 1936-1 April 1939) and as recently as 1997, when there was a partial suspension of the fiesta following the kidnapping of a young city council member from the village of Emua in Vizcaya, Miguel Ángel Blancol, who was subsequently murdered by members of ETA, the Basque separatist group, two days later. The word of his death reached us on a Saturday afternoon and brought about an immediate halt to the bullfights. Thousands of Pamplonicas, dressed in the traditional festival costume of white and red, began to fill the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, the town hall square, demanding a suspension of the fiesta. The angry protest continued throughout the night with thousands more filling the Plaza del Castillo demanding an end to ETA. The fiesta finally resumed later Sunday morning, but the anger remained, with several clashes in the streets on the 14th between ETA supports and those who rejected the terrorist group. 1997 was also the year that President Clinton was rumored to come, but that is another story.
The political tensions prior to the start of Sanfermines 1978 were clear. Generalissimo Francisco Franco was still dead (November 1975). Navarra was claimed by the Basque nationalists as part of the Basque Country during a debate on the Constitution. The pro-amnesty week of 8-15 May 1977 had ended with two dead in the streets. In November the same year, ETA had assassinated the commander of the Guardia Civil, La Policía Armada, in Pamplona, only to have him replaced by a more hard-line commander to teach the rebellious Pamplonicas a lesson. This climate of violence during the first months of 1978 continued with actions in the streets by members of the extreme right and by nationalists. In May, the second in command of the Civil Guard was killed while walking in the street. Several Spanish flags placed by the City Council around the city were burned, including some ikurriñas, the Basque flag. On the afternoon of July 3, a group of eight people locked themselves in the City Hall, demanding amnesty for political prisoners and requesting freedom for the 5 detainees who have been rounded up in May after the death of the Guardia Civil commander. Tensions were beginning to boil over and after the death of Germán Rodríguez on July 8, and the subsequent death of another young man in a demonstration of solidarity in San Sebastián, it became difficult for the fiesta to continue.
At the end of the bullfights on the 8th, to the loud applause, whistles and shouts of San Fermín! San Fermin!, a few dozen young people from one of the local Peñas jumped into the bullring unfolding a banner demanding the release of the prisoners who have been rounded up by the Guardia Civil, drawing an immediate altercation between supporters of and those opposed to politicization of the Peñas. A few minutes went by before members of the Guardia Civil, dressed in riot gear and armed, entered the Plaza de Toros and attacked the Peñas. There were about 200 Guardia Civil surrounding the Plaza at the time, all armed. The tension exploded as the Guardia Civil began their attack, first firing rubber bullets and tossing smoke grenades and teargas canisters, and finally using live ammunition, firing wildly into the crowds in the stands. Seven Peña members were wounded by the resulting gunfire. Of the nearly 20,000 people attending the bullfights, many scrambled for their lives out of the Plaza de Toros, scattering through the streets, while others faced the Guardia Civil, throwing anything they could get their hands on, before the mayhem finally spread to the streets surrounding the bullring.
At the intersection of Calle Roncesvalles and Carlos III, at around 10:15 pm, Germán Rodríguez, a young man from Pamplona, was struct in the forehead, according to some by a burst of deadly machine gun fire. 40 years later it is still unknown who fired the fatal shot and the type of weapon used. Germán, a member of the Revolutionary Communist League (LKI) and the son of a well-known local family, died hours later at the hospital.
The riot turned into a full-on revolt, the battle lasting until dawn as demonstrators tried to attack the Civil Government and the palace of the Provincial Council. On the morning of the 9th, the center of the city was a sobering sight with banks, shops and bars destroyed. Dozens of cars, used as barricades, were still burning, more destroyed in the riot. Thousands of tourists fled the city as fast as they could, terrified. In the end, there was one dead and eleven wounded by gunfire, another 200 suffering different injuries during the long night. Protests spread throughout Navarra and into the Basque Country. In San Sebastián, another young man, José Barandiaran, died in a demonstration.
After two days of mourning, on July 11, Pamplona’s mayor announced from the balcony in the Ayuntamiento that the festivities were permanently suspended. As a result of the cancellation, the Sanfermines pequeños (small Sanfermines) were celebrated in September. Interesting enough, many Pamplonicas remember them as one of the best fiestas, without foreigners, a real family atmosphere, having finally recovered the feeling of a local celebration that had been missing since the late 1920s, which, in large part thanks to Ernest Hemingway, had been transformed in a universal party.
In 2005 the documentary Sanfermines 78, directed by Juan Gautier and José Ángel Jiménez, was presented at the Malaga Spanish Film Festival. The documentary provided unpublished images of both the clashes in the streets and the entrance of the Guardia Civil in the Plaza de Toros in coverage that had not been seen since the news on July 9, 1978. This year, 40 years later, we remember those events and say, never again!
The Feria del Toro has been an important part of Pamplona’s legendary festival for more than 100 years. The 8-day Festival Of The Bull, the encierro, the running of the bulls and the bullfights in the afternoopn, was a favorite of Papa Hemingway, whose classic 1926 novel, “The Sun Also Rises” (Fiesta), has attracted tens of thousands of visitors from around the world to the capital of Navarra since it was first released.
If you want to participate in the encierro, the running of the bulls, you should enter the route before 07:00 through the gate in the Plaza Consistorial and stay within the barricades in that section of the route, between the Town Hall Square and the Old Military hospital on Calle Santo Domingo. Shortly after 07:00 the access will be closed and your will not be allowed to leave until the encierro begins and the bulls are on their way.
There are no ‘safe’ places along the route, but the most dangerous stretches are at the top of Santo Domingo and from the Callejón to the Plaza de Toros.
Wear comfortable clothing and sneakers or running shoes. Do not carry any other items with you, including backpacks, cameras, etc. The police will remove you from the route and there is the possibility of having to pay a fine of up to €3000, depending on the infraction.
The running is neither a joke nor an opportunity for media coverage. The risks are enormous and the large number of runners, especially for the first encierro on the 7th, and over the weekend, makes it that much more dangerous. There are dozens of experienced runners, both local and foreign based, including the members of the Amigos de Pamplona, the Miami club, who will gladly offer advise if you only ask. Remember, it takes years of practice to become a good runner.
Getting into the flow is as important as getting out of the way. Get in gradually as other runners drop out. Or get straight into the run from a standing start as the bulls close in on your position. Do not stand on the side and block others trying to run with the bulls.
And remember, it’s always “Bulls Before Breakfast“, so be sure to get your copy of Peter’s book before you head to Pamplona!
The ranches, Granderías, for the Feria del Toro and the running of the bulls in Pamplona, have been selected for the Fiesta de San Fermín 2018. Eight bulls from each ranch will run in the encierros, which begin on July 7 and end on the 14th. The day each breed runs will be decided in the spring.
Miura
Victoriano del Río
Hermanos de D. José Cebada Gago
Jandilla
José Escobar Gil
Núñez del Cuvillo
Fuente Ymbro
Puerto de San Lorenzo
See Sanfermin Tours for our exclusive packages for the Fiesta de San Fermín and the running of the bulls.
