Why did thousands of sheep flock to the centre of Madrid?

Honouring a tradition with distant roots in the Middle Ages

This past Sunday, residents and visitors of Madrid got to enjoy the sight of thousands of sheep taking over Alcala Street in the centre of the city. The unusual gathering was part of the 30^th edition of the Fiesta de la Trashumancia (The Transhumance Festival), which has the purpose of preserving and promoting ancient rural traditions and reminding urban residents about the importance that agriculture has had for ages in things like food provision, material provision, biodiversity and environmental health.

The practice of transhumance refers to mobile type of livestock farming, which involves moving flocks of sheep south for the winter and the north for the spring, between Castilla-Leon and Andalucia.

Although the Festival was established by the local authorities in 1994, its origins date back much further. In fact, this year was another round anniversary – 750 years since the adoption of the charter of royal council, which granted special protection and privileges to the powerful association of medieval livestock owners called Concejo Real de la Mesta (Mesta Royal Council).

Every autumn, large flocks of sheep would pass through specially designated routes called cañadas, some of which passed directly through Madrid and other cities. Also, keep in mind that Madrid back then was much smaller, and it wasn’t even the capital of the kingdom yet. These drove roads still exist as heritage in the rural areas and there are stone markers in the city, in Plaza de la Independencia.

Female shepherd – for the first time

In a way, in the old times, the passing of the sheep was also a reminder that winter is coming. Nowadays, most sheep are transported by rail, however, Spaniards are keen to preserve ancient traditions and do it in a tangible way that new generations can also experience first-hand.

Part of this tradition also included the payment of transhumance fees by the livestock owners to the city authorities. This was recreated yesterday when Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida symbolically accepted 50 maravedís per thousand sheep. (Maravedí was the name of a currency in circulation during the Middle Ages).

This year, it was also the first time that the main shepherd of the flock was a woman. Thus, Marity González García received a special greeting from the mayor for “highlighting the role of women in the countryside”.