Why the Catholic Church Tried to Ban Bullfighting

Bullfighting was very popular among Spanish aristocracy in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Era. But the Catholic Church didn't like it and tried to ban it.

Bullfighting had a long tradition among medieval aristocracy in Spain. The famed 11th century knight El Cid was said to be the greatest bullfighter. Bullfights were staged at important events such as the marriage of Alfonso VII of León and Castile to Berengaria of Barcelona, daughter of Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona in 1128. The chronicles report that “among other celebrations, there were also bullfights.”

Aristocratic bullfighting continued in the Early Modern Era. In 16th century the Habsburgs, who came to rule these lands, continued this tradition with great enthusiasm. Emperor Charles V himself lanced a bull on the birthday of his son Philip II which endeared him to his Spanish subjects.

These fought the bulls mounted on a horse and armed with a lance!

But the Catholic Church did not like such spectacles in which wild beasts were challenged, as they feared that it would lead to damnation of souls of men who participated. In the eyes of the Catholic Church, bullfighting presented an unnecessary voluntary risk to life for nothing but personal vanity and pursuit of vainglory, as bullfighters could end up dead or maimed. The attitude towards bullfighting became especially hostile following the Council of Trent which took place between 1545 and 1563. The churchmen observed with great worry that despite warnings men have not ceased engaging in fights with bulls and other wild animals.

Eventually the Catholic Church responded with a stronger reaction. In November 1567, Pope Pius V issued a papal bull in which bullfighting was prohibited under threat of excommunication!

The papal bull contained some very harsh words for aristocratic bullfighters and provided the following reasoning for the condemnation:

“Divine Providence granted us the responsibility for caring for the Lord's flock and with deep concern we are so compelled by relevant pastoral duties to at all times deviate all the faithful of our congregations from imminent perils to the body and from condemnation of the soul.

Verily, although the abominable use of the duel, introduced by the devil to also gain condemnation of souls through the cruel death of bodies, was forbidden by a Decree of the Council of Trent, up to now in many cities and places, so as to demonstrate their strength and courage at public spectacles, many individuals have not ceased engaging with bulls and other wild animals, frequently resulting in the death of men, in mutilation of members and endangering souls.

Therefore, considering such spectacles which are removed from Christian piety and charity, in which bulls and wild animals are challenged in circuses and plazas, and desiring to abolish such cruel and base spectacles of the devil and not of man, and to take measures for the salvation of souls as far as we are able with the power of God - to each and every Christian prince, in any kingdom or enjoying any high position, whether ecclesiastical, civil or imperial, proclaimed by any name by any community or republic in perpetuity, by means of our constitution valid for the future, on pain of ipso facto excommunication and anathema, we interdict and prohibit the carrying out of spectacles of this nature in their provinces, cities, lands, castles and places where spectacles of this kind are realized, where bullfights and similar sports with other wild animals are permitted. We forbid military personnel and other persons from daring to join such spectacles, whether on foot or on horseback, to confront bulls or other animals.

Ecclesiastical burial will be denied to anyone who is killed as a result of participating in such bullfights.

We also prohibit churchmen, both regular and secular, with ecclesiastical benefices or constituted in Holy Orders, from participating in such spectacles, on pain of excommunication.

We totally prohibit, we abrogate, annul and decide and declare forever invalid, null and useless all obligations, oaths and vows made by persons, communities or groups of persons to this date, or which may be made in the future, related to bullfights, even though they may have erroneously thought that they were honoring the saints or giving greater splendor to ecclesiastical solemnities and festivities. Such festivities must be celebrated with divine praise, spiritual joy and pious works and not with similar sports.

And all venerable patriarch brethren, primates, archbishops and bishops and other high Church officials, by virtue of the holy obedience and on pain of divine judgment and eternal interminable condemnation, shall adequately divulge and seek to obey our letter in their own cities and dioceses, on pain of incurring ecclesiastical punishment and censure.”

But the papal bull achieved very little and the practice continued. Eventually the Church was forced to ease its stance on it and eight years after the bull was issued, Pius V’s successor Gregory XIII rescinded the ban for engaging in bullfights at the request of King Philip II. However bullfighting still remained banned on religious holidays, and the clergy was not allowed to take part. They also tried to prevent more dangerous forms of bullfighting such as mass bullfights where dozens of bulls were released at the same time.

It is a great irony that the highly celebrated Catholic victory against the Ottomans at Lepanto in 1571, when bullfighting was still banned, was won by an avid bullfighter, John of Austria. John of Austria represented the king of spirit of warrior aristocracy that was often at odds with the Catholic Church, but was sometimes also praised since it could deliver crucial victories. He was a bullfighter, a womanizer and a dancer who liked to enjoy life, but in battles he was the bravest precisely because of his risk-taking approach to life which inspired his men to fight. The mentality that led him to bullfighting led him to victory at Lepanto. Despite his various sins, John of Austria was also on board with the Catholic ideology as well, as he ultimately wanted to gain prestige in the eyes of Christendom, and was willing to fight for it. He became a great hero of Catholic Christendom, and went on to triumph against the Protestant rebel in the Low Countries as well.

This kind of dynamic existed between the Catholic Church and European warrior aristocracy since the Crusades. The Church was aware that Christendom needed its warrior class to defend itself and expand in neighboring territories, but also wanted to keep the rough knights under its control and tried to prevent their excesses. This included trying to unsuccessfully ban certain ostentatious fashion styles like the krakow shoes or practices deemed pagan such as the exchange of New Year gifts or étrennes which were very popular among aristocracy.

The fighting in war part was not seen as problematic in itself by the Catholic Church, if it was done for acceptable reasons, and just war doctrine was famously formulated by Thomas Aquinas. But methods used for waging war were sometimes under scrutiny. This included the training for war itself, as aristocracy liked to engage in various risky activities that served to prepare them for the adrenaline that comes with battles, and get them used to dealing with fear and danger. These activities included hunting and tournaments which both became associated with aristocracy and became an important part of their social interaction and court culture. Bullfighting was viewed in similar manner. It was something that could be justified as training for war, but the Catholic Church always viewed it with suspicion and tried to regulate it.

For example monastic military orders, which were created during the Crusades and modeled after a more strict Catholic interpretation of how Christian warriors should look like, allowed their knights to engage in hunting only in limited form. The Templars were allowed to hunt only lions, while the Teutonic Knights were allowed to hunt wolves, lynxes and bears, but without using hounds and falcons and only for necessity. Hunting for pastime was forbidden, as was participating in tournaments and other knightly games. To practice their shooting skills they were allowed to shoot at birds.

Secular aristocratic knights were under no such restraint and continued to engage in various activities that the Church didn’t like, and eventually created a splendorous and boastful culture around it. People seem to have this wrong perception that the medieval culture was dictated solely by the Catholic Church, but in reality the aristocracy was also a powerful cultural force which could enforce its way of life against the Church wishes, and also influenced the Church itself, as high clergy came from aristocracy. Not everything that shaped in the Middle Ages had the blessing of the doctrine of the Catholic Church, but existed and thrived anyway if it was adopted by the aristocratic elite.

The issue with bullfighting was therefore just another example of Catholic doctrine clashing with the lifestyle of warrior aristocracy. While modern debates about bullfighting revolve around questions about animal cruelty, the 16th century issue with bullfighting was about men risking their lives for nothing but vanity and showboating. It was the same reason why hunting and tournaments were also viewed with suspicion.

To finish this short article, I would just like to answer one thing that people reading this might be wondering. Why is modern bullfighting no longer practiced in the manner in which 16th century aristocrats practiced it?

For 600 years bullfighting consisted of a mounted aristocrat armed with a lance. But this changed in the early 18th century when ordinary people began embracing the sport and the bullfighting on foot as we know today was introduced. It is believed that this happened around 1726. A bullfighter of obscure origins named Francisco Romero is considered to be the pioneer of the modern style of bullfighting, facing the bull on foot. This quickly became very popular with the masses as the dramatic tension was greatly increased. Very soon a total shift occurred in which bullfighting was no longer elitist but a means for poor men to escape poverty and achieve fame and fortune by becoming popular matadors and winning over the crowds of ordinary people.