Camargue bulls in France, Rhone Delta, by the Mediterranean
We found these native Camargue bulls in a pasture on the way to down the Rhone delta called the Camargue in France. These bulls are an ancient breed of cattle and native to this area. We saw many different pastures with Camargue cattle and since they look like Spanish bulls, I did research in Arles and found that bullfighting originated in this area of France with this breed of bulls. Apparently when the King of Barcelona was in control of the Provence area around Arles and the Camargue, he and the Spaniards discovered bullfighting and these bulls and took them back to Spain. There are still bullfights in this area of France, but they do not kill the bulls. Rather they tie a cockade (a decoration made of ribbon) between the horns of the bull. Then the bullfighter wins if he is able to get the cockade from between the horns. Although I had learned to imitate the sounds bulls make when they're fighting, when I was young, I did not make any effort to talk to this bull as it always upsets bulls. With only a three strand wire fence between me and this bull, I did not want to risk having him come through the fence before I could get back in the little rented Renault and get out of the ditch and back on the one lane road. So I moved very slowly and tried to be very quiet. Still he seemed displeased that I was as near to him as I was. So I left since I have not been trained in bullfighting and he has. The best article I've found on the Camargue is a National Geographic article from July 1922: books.google.com/books?id=WcEKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA19&lp... cattle brands&f=false
Camargue bulls in France, Rhone Delta, by the Mediterranean
We found these native Camargue bulls in a pasture on the way to down the Rhone delta called the Camargue in France. These bulls are an ancient breed of cattle and native to this area. We saw many different pastures with Camargue cattle and since they look like Spanish bulls, I did research in Arles and found that bullfighting originated in this area of France with this breed of bulls. Apparently when the King of Barcelona was in control of the Provence area around Arles and the Camargue, he and the Spaniards discovered bullfighting and these bulls and took them back to Spain. There are still bullfights in this area of France, but they do not kill the bulls. Rather they tie a cockade (a decoration made of ribbon) between the horns of the bull. Then the bullfighter wins if he is able to get the cockade from between the horns. Although I had learned to imitate the sounds bulls make when they're fighting, when I was young, I did not make any effort to talk to this bull as it always upsets bulls. With only a three strand wire fence between me and this bull, I did not want to risk having him come through the fence before I could get back in the little rented Renault and get out of the ditch and back on the one lane road. So I moved very slowly and tried to be very quiet. Still he seemed displeased that I was as near to him as I was. So I left since I have not been trained in bullfighting and he has. The best article I've found on the Camargue is a National Geographic article from July 1922: books.google.com/books?id=WcEKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA19&lp... cattle brands&f=false