History of the Seville Feria
The Feria started in 1846 as a livestock fair in the Prado de Sebastian, where horses were traded. Its aim was also to provide an uplifting distraction from the aftermath of the Napoleonic invasion and the hurricane of 1842, a category 2 storm which had destroyed homes in Seville.
The men who had the idea came not from Seville, but from Bilbao and Barcelona – city councillors José María Ibarra and Narciso Bonaplata.
The inaugural Feria lasted for three days, 18-20 April. There were 19 casetas and 15,000 visitors.
Other notable instances of the Feria include a stressful few days in 1931, when the Second Republic was declared after King Alfonso XIII had fled the country, just before the Feria was due to start. Republican flags had to be hastily created, to replace the royal ones.
In 1964, a fire damaged 67 casetas, with 50 injured and one person died. The affected casetas were rapidly rebuilt and the Feria carried on.
By 1973 the Feria had outgrown its original site, with now 630 casetas over 64,000m2 , and transferred to the current site in Los Remedios.
Famous people who have attended the Feria include Grace Kelly, Ava Gardener and Audrey Hepburn.
For more about the history of the Feria, see this article.
