Ronda's Damas Goyescas collect their medals 45 years on

They were appointed as Damas Goyescas (Goyesca Ladies) 45 years ago, chosen by the town hall to represent the women seen in some of Francisco de Goya's paintings of bullfighting and pageantry from the late 18th century.

These ladies from Ronda are also chosen every year to represent women and to be the official representatives of Ronda and a welcoming committee for visiting dignitaries throughout the year as part of their appointed duties. They, of course, feature heavily in the town's main festival, the Feria and Fiestas of Pedro Romero in late August, early September.

In 1979, however, for various reasons, including cutbacks in the celebration of the fair, they did not receive their official medals of appointment. Now, almost half a century later, these Ronda women will get to fulfil this dream, as the town hall will award them their medals during the official proclamation of the Feria on 22 August, which will be held as usual in the Blas Infante Auditorium.

The event starts at 9pm and the opening speech will be given by Luis Candelas (lawyer, also one of the elders in the Vera Cruz brotherhood and president of the bullring in Ronda).

"It was a Feria with many shortcomings," said María José Cañestro, one of the 1979 Damas Goyescas, who will now receive her medal in 2024. That year María del Carmen Castillo, Conchi Llopis, Antonia Urda, Isabel González, Remedios Gallego, María Teresa Villalba, Auxi Troyano, María de la Paz Domíguez, Isabel Orozco and Ana María Jiménez were all named as 'Goyesca Ladies'.

This group had repeatedly asked the town hall to issue them their medals, so they are very grateful for the gesture that the council is making this year, 45 years later.

It should be remembered that this year's fair will not be the typical event either as it will not include any bullfighting. That part of the Feria week was suspended after the Real Maestranza de Caballería de Ronda (RMR - the association in charge of bullfighting events in the town) announced structural problems with the historic bullring, rendering it unsafe for public use.

Every year a president of the Damas Goyescas is chosen, usually a woman who is well respected in Ronda and fondly thought of by the people of the town. She stands for all the best that there is in womanhood.

The president and the Goyesca Ladies for 2024 have already been named. Just like in 1979, but for a different reason (no bullfights), 2024 will not see these ladies receiving their medals, nor will they be dressed in their traditional costumes. That will happen in 2025 when bullfighting events are expected to resume with the famous Corrida Goyesca as the iconic event.