130 years ago, the first French matador, Félix Robert, hero of the historic bullfight of Dax

Jean Cazenabe was born on April 14, 1862 in Meilhan in Landes near Tartas. He is the last of a family of eight children. His father is a miller, but this inheritance hardly makes him dream; At a very young age, he developed a passion for horned animals. One day, during a local festival, he secretly pushes aside cows to avoid his grandfather’s ire. After an apprenticeship as a clog maker, he earned his living as a waiter in Mont-de-Marsan.

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It is in 1881 he began a career as a Landes distance guard. He took the opportunity to change his name and chose his middle name, Félix, which he added to the surname Robert, from the name of his brother-in-law, to make him “more of a bullfighter”. On August 15, 1892, he “distinguished himself” by stabbing his first toro with great difficulty, in Vichy, giving him no less than 10 blows with his sword, provoking the anger of the anti-bullfighters.

In August 1893, he tried his luck in the United States, and made a triumphant tour there. On his return, he took a decisive step by enrolling in the bullfighting school in Seville. And, the On May 15, 1894, he obtained the qualification that no Frenchman had yet achieved: a “matador francés” diploma. This is how he became the first French matador.

Bad press

But bullfighting does not have a good press in France. In September 1894, the Minister of the Interior published a circular ordering the prefects to prohibit bull races with killings. But the Landais are rebellious; On October 6, the mayor of Dax, Raphaël Milliès-Lacroix, deliberately issued a decree authorizing this type of racing, which led to his dismissal by the President of the Republic, Jean Casimir-Perier. Through numerous subterfuges, the bullfight is prepared behind the scenes, under the noses of the prefect and the police.

October 14, 1894: Félix Robert and Paul Nassiet, heroes of the Dax bullfight

On October 14, 1894, the fight began and, while the doors were ajar to allow the police forces to enter, the toro escaped despite two blows from Félix Robert. Cornered in an alley, since renamed rue du Toro, it is completed by Paul Nassiet. Robert and Nassiet will both end up in prison. Released three days later, matador took the alternative on November 18, 1894 in Spain, in Valencia. It was not until May 2, 1899 that he confirmed it in Madrid with Enrique Vargas for godfather. For the anecdote, while he proudly displayed a legendary pair of mustaches, he had to give it up, the Iberian bullfighting community did not tolerate it, believing that it was reserved only for tenors playing the role of Escamillo in the opera “Carmen.”

After a lackluster end to his career, he stayed for a while in Mexico, where he married the daughter of a banker before being chased out by the revolution. He made a detour to the United States, where he would be a circus director and owner of a horse stable. In 1913, he settled permanently in Marseille, where he tried in vain to provide the city with arenas. He died of cancer on January 19, 1916 and was buried in the Saint-Pierre cemetery in the Phocaean city. Meilhan, his hometown, paid tribute to the first French matador by renaming its main artery after him in 2012.