Click it and Unblock the Notifications
In October of each year, hundreds of Swiss Farmers come together at the Roman amphitheatre, Martigny, in Canton Valais on the French border, for the finals of the Combat des Reines ( the battle of Queens) between Switzerland's most ornery cows. And only cows - bulls are banned. The contestants at Martigny are already 'Queens' - proven champions that have fought their way up through the village and regional contests held on Sundays throughout the spring. In fact, the combat des Reins developed from the scuffling push and shove between the senior matrons of every herd that takes place each spring to decide which cow will lead the herd to its Alpine grazing.
Long, long ago farmers noticed that Eringer cows bred in the Val d'Herens were regularly more aggressive and generally more feisty than others, and began to breed them specifically for fighting. The centuries-old tradition was formalized in 1923, and now it is the sport of thousands in the Swiss Alps.
Cows are never forced to fight. Horns are filed and contests are bloodless to the extent that most of them consist of psyching the opposition with aggressive cud-chewing and bovine mean looks. A bellow, a leery looming of the front haunches, and perhaps a jabbing sort of shove; then if it escalates, much pawing of the ground (cue cheering of the spectators and the bookies holding their surprisingly large bets) followed by a solid head-butt does the trick. Cows that funk it get a prod with a stick from a 'Rabatteur, before being returned to pasture.
But in the close, slightly foetid, carnival-like atmosphere of shouting, drinking and cheering, with the earthy smell of animals and dung-soaked straw, you reach far past the Switzerland of Victor Hugo ('The Swiss milk his cow and lives in peace') to the atavistic Helvetian celebration of its own, too-well hidden world.
When It Happens
October
Location
The Roman Amphitheatre, Martigny
Best For
Folk culture, sport
You Should Know
The spectators are far more passionate about the Combat des Reines than the cows, who despite being trained like sumo wrestlers on massage, with special food and allegedly wine, never seem to get the point. The winning cow gets a cowbell as a prize and the winning owner gets a small fortune as breeding fees.
