Archives

José Arrue. Digitized postcard. Labayru Fundazioa Photographic Archive.

The Memorial literario, instructivo y curioso de la Corte de Madrid [Instructive and curious literary memorial of the Court of Madrid] was a magazine (fortnightly at first and monthly later) published from January 1784 to December 1790, when the government suppressed it, same as almost all other main Spanish press publications, in order to prevent the flourishing French Revolution from spreading to the south of the Pyrenees.

The chronicle “Una fiesta de toros [A Bullfight]” which appeared in the October 1785 issue, and which reported on bullfights taking place “on the 3rd, 7th, 17th and 24th of the month in the Ring located outside the Door of Alcalá” (Madrid’s main bullring since 1749 until its demolition in 1874) includes this passage, concerning the 24 October fight:
 (more…)