La Tamborrada of San Sebastian
The Basque city of San Sebastian commemorates its patron saint and its 1813 defiance against the French troops with a noisy and visually spectacular 24 hour drum festival.
We’re celebrating another saint this week - this time the patron saint of the stunning coastal city San Sebastian, situated in the Pais Vasco region in the north of Spain. Reborn from the ashes of its dark ETA years of bombings and political assassinations, the Basque Country has been flexing its wings over the past 20 years, becoming a popular tourist destination for those looking for a cooler, greener and perhaps, somewhat more sophisticated alternative to Spain’s touristy southern region.
Its combination of sea, mountains, vineyards and orchards has defined a cuisine of succulent seafood, asador grill houses, fruity young wines, and excellent apple cider, and has been an inspiration for countless renowned chefs including Arzak, Aduriz, Berasategui, and Subijana. Their world-famous restaurants have turned the Basque Country into a region that boasts the world's second-highest Michelin Star density per capita, surpassed only by Tokyo.
San Sebastian, also known as Donostia in the Basque language Euskara, is the capital of the province Gizpuzkoa, and sits on the Bay of Biscay close to the French border. The city is synonymous with pintxos (bite-sized tapas), a stunning crescent-shaped beach, an international film festival, cider houses, and its old centre crammed with more bars per square metre than anywhere else in the world.
So, it has good reason to celebrate its namesake every 20th January.
Saint Sebastian (255-288CE) was a Christian martyr who was first tied to a tree and shot with arrows. However, this did not kill him so he was very shortly after clubbed to death instead. Now, rather aptly, he is the patron saint of archers and pin-makers. The city was named after a monastery of the same name.
Midnight 19th January the Constitution Square is sardine-packed with crowds waiting for the mayor to raise the city’s flag and the region’s red, green and white flag that will begin the Tamborrada – 24 hours of non-stop drumming. Tamborradas are seen in many parts of Spain, especially during Easter, and involve a large group of people dressed in their fraternity colours banging at drums for hours on end throughout the city streets.
In San Sebastian, the Tamborrada is the city’s most important festival in which more than 15,000 Donostiarras (people from San Sebastian) take part. Its origins go back to the time when French troops led by Napoleon took over the city during the Peninsular War in 1813. It’s said that the troops would march through the streets banging on their drums at all hours of the day, and the women who fetched water at the fountains would mock them by beating on their buckets.
I guess the action caught on among the defiant locals and today continues to be a symbol of national identity and perhaps a touch of the proud resistance that characterises the Basque identity.
There are around 125 different drumming groups dressed in traditional 19th century costumes; Basque water bearers, Napoleonic soldiers, and even chefs. This latter group represents the Culinary Clubs which are an integral part of the Tamborrada, carrying on the tradition of soldier cooks, and are a symbol of the status that Basque cuisine enjoys around the world.
The early hours in the Square kick off with a display of folk dancing while everyone sings the “March of San Sebastian”. The drummers make their way through the city’s streets accompanied by brass bands, flags, and revellers who have perhaps spent the day in one of the many sagardotegi - cider houses that serve locally made cider from the barrels and steaks as large as your head. More of that in another post. 😊
At 12:00 midday, 5000 children add to the rhythmic beats that reverberate through the streets as they perform their own Tamborrada, also dressed in soldiers’ costume. As I mentioned in the Vijanera article, the inclusion of children in these events ensures the continuation of the cultural traditions, and many of Spain’s festivals show no sign of disappearing any time soon. On the contrary, tourism and regional pride have reinforced their continued presence and Spain’s unique and colourful fiestas continue to grow.
The day ends at midnight back in the Constitution Square with the lowering of the flags and the band of the Union Artesana association closing the celebrations. The revelling continues in this tireless city during the early morning hours for the more robust citizens and tourists, while the rest crawl back to their beds to enjoy a drum-free night.