Some researchers say that Spanish Vaquero is the origin of horse riding shoes. Dating back to the 1600s, these cowboys who herded bulls and cattle on horseback on the Iberian Peninsula are still around today and still rocking their riding boots.
These boots were and still are made of durable leather, with a high heel and pointed shoe for a better grip. The evolution of these shoes have been gradually transformed by the Spanish people since the 1800s.
Moving away from the from the crowded and populated beaches of Spain’s Costa del Sol, among the plains of the Guadalquivir River and the olive tree covered hills, is rural Andalusia. Andalusia has many ancient traditions and is the homeland of the flamenco, bull fighting, the Andalusian horse and the Spanish vaqueros. Right from the start of recorded history, horses and cattle have been a part of life on the Iberian Peninsula and thus has their riding footwear.
Image source: http://www.thespanishbootcompany.co.uk/collections/spanish-riding-boots
As bullfighting was (unfortunately) a big part of their culture, the bulls required an increasingly specialised breeding of aggressiveness which made handling them especially difficult – particularly in the extensive fields of southern Spain. These certain methods and skills used by the horsemen produced a Spanish cowboy culture and the vaquero tradition began to develop and it is still evolving today. Today, the vaquero is a part of the Spanish tradition of working riding and the costumes they wear reflect that of the 19th and 20th centuries with the boots still calf length, leather with a relatively high heel.
Riding is still incredibly popular across southern Spain and Portugal with many tourists travelling over to go on riding holidays. Thus, riding boots and other riding gear is easily available in local shops. As they pride themselves on being the origin of the modern-day riding boot, there is a large variety of beautiful and traditional Spanish boots in these shops, which are very authentic and are fantastic quality. Evolved from the original Spanish Vaquero boots, the boots in these shops pride themselves on being the very best looking and the very best quality, however, unless you’re there in southern Spain or Portugal, they are hard to come by.
Fortunately, there are a few stores that imitate the Spanish boot such as styles from Ralph Lauren but unfortunately, they lack the authenticity. I have recently discovered an online shop called The Spanish Boot Company that stocks beautiful indigenous Spanish riding boots which are exceptional quality and look stunning. These boots are perfect not only for riders but non-riders alike as they are timelessly fashionable and have become a staple part of a fashionable wardrobe. The link to their website is: http://www.thespanishbootcompany.co.uk
It’s incredible how we here in Britain have adopted and adapted such a traditional boot from another culture. The native Spanish Vaquero were clearly inspired and designed their boots both extremely practically (so much so that no one has improved on this practical design since) and beautifully so that both men and women love this barely altered design. Although now the top of the boot is typically tighter around the calf, and the toe more rounded than pointy, not much has really changed and we are so glad of that because of how beautiful they are!