INTRODUCTION: Popular politics in the Hispanic monarchy. Discourses, spaces and social actors (1700-1868)

The Hispanic monarchy, 1820s. In Madrid, a matador famous for wearing a white suit embroi-dered with the fleur-de-lis – symbol of the royalists – fights black bulls – the colour of the liberals. As this matador performs in Seville’s bullring, a rival steps out dressed entirely in black. Simultaneously, in Bilbao, a veteran of the liberal militias challenges the best pelota player in Spain to a match. The challenge is accepted by a young man who has served in the royalist militia. Whether in a bullring or in the fronton stands, the audience were not indifferent to these political signals. Their passionate booing or applauding, depending on their political inclinations, sometimes led to violent acts. 1 Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, various officers from the pro-independence army fight bulls before an audience in celebration of the independence of the Mexican Empire. These same officers would write proclamations to maintain public order in the bullring (Cossío y Corral[1943-1997] 2007, vol. 7: 239–242).