The Legend of the Werewolf of Galicia
For decades, a story capable of instilling fear among travelers and villagers circulated in the mountains and rural roads of Galicia. Several people disappeared without a trace, and rumors pointed to a man who seemed to hide a dark secret.
Some considered him a murderer; others were convinced that he transformed into a wolf on full moon nights.
That man actually existed. His name was Manuel Blanco Romasanta, and his case became one of the most unsettling criminal episodes in Spanish history, where reality and legend ended up blending almost inseparably.
Who was Manuel Blanco Romasanta?
Manuel Blanco Romasanta was born in 1809 in the province of Ourense. He lived in rural Galicia, a region marked by poverty, superstitions, and long routes through forests and mountains.
Throughout his life, he held various trades, including itinerant salesman and road guide. His work allowed him to travel constantly and earn the trust of many people. This very ease of movement and interaction with others would eventually play a fundamental role in the crimes that made him famous.
The Mysterious Disappearances that Instilled Fear
Between 1846 and 1852, several people disappeared after embarking on journeys accompanied by Romasanta. Many were women and children seeking better job opportunities or needing help to move to other towns.
Over time, family members and neighbors began to suspect. People left but never returned. Nor was there any news of them. Rumors grew until investigations pointed to Romasanta as the main suspect.
He was arrested in 1852 and accused of multiple murders. Although the exact number could never be established with certainty, he was attributed between thirteen and seventeen victims, making him one of the first documented serial killers in Spanish history.
Why Did People Believe He Was a Werewolf?
The reputation of being a werewolf did not arise solely from popular imagination. During the judicial process, Romasanta himself claimed that he suffered from a curse that transformed him into a wolf and compelled him to kill.
According to his account, the transformations occurred against his will, and during that state, he lost control of his actions.
These statements caused an enormous impact in an era when many people still believed in supernatural creatures and legends passed down through generations.
In Galicia, where forests, superstitions, and wolf tales were part of daily life, the story found fertile ground to become a legend.
The Trial that Shocked Spain
Manuel Blanco Romasanta's trial aroused extraordinary interest both inside and outside the country. The possibility that a defendant claimed to physically transform into an animal was as shocking as the crimes themselves.
During the process, Romasanta confessed to several murders but insisted that he did not act of his own free will. However, the doctors involved in the investigation rejected the supernatural explanation and concluded that he was fully aware of his actions.
He was finally found guilty and sentenced to death. The sentence, however, was later commuted to life imprisonment, a decision that further increased the case's fame.
Was He Really a Lycanthrope or a Murderer?
From a historical perspective, there is no evidence that Romasanta underwent physical transformations. Specialists consider that the story of lycanthropy was part of his defense strategy or an interpretation influenced by the beliefs of the time.
Today, the existence of so-called clinical lycanthropy is known, a rare psychiatric disorder in which a person believes they transform into an animal. However, Romasanta never received such a diagnosis, and there is no evidence to state it with certainty, although there is also no way to completely rule it out, since this disorder was not known at that time and, consequently, there were no means for its diagnosis.
Despite this, most historians consider him a real murderer whose figure became shrouded in legendary elements; after all, regardless of the circumstances that may have led him to commit such acts, his victims were real.
Why Does His Story Still Generate Fear Today?
More than a century and a half later, Manuel Blanco Romasanta's case continues to fascinate because it brings together all the ingredients of a great historical horror story: mysterious disappearances, solitary forests, popular superstitions, real murders, and an accused who claimed to turn into a wolf.
The most unsettling thing is that, behind the legend, there were real victims and a documented judicial process.
This combination of proven facts and supernatural beliefs is what has kept the myth of the Galician werewolf alive to this day.
