Riding a horse as an aid in jumping, roping, or bullfighting is
probably related to the hunting or chasing of animals practiced
by ancient Europeans and Asians who used the horse for this
purpose. Thousands of years later, the Plains Indians of North
America also made use of the horse in the buffalo hunts.
However, the art of bullfighting on horseback, as currently
practiced in Portugal, where it is called toureio equestre and
in Spain and Mexico, where it is called rejoneo, has a more
direct and recent origin in the Iberian Peninsula, since it
developed from the war exercises of the middle ages. As it is
well known, the Muslims occupied parts of Portugal and Spain,
the Iberian peninsula, for over seven centuries, from 711 AD.
until 1492. During this time the Iberians were involved in a
constant struggle to overthrow the invaders from their land.
Horses were the principal war implement and both horses and
riders were specifically trained for the martial arts. Out of
the war exercises evolved the intricate mov