Throughout history there have been many heroes who passed without pain or glory and, worse still, without any recognition. Some for anonymous and others, as in this case, for being a simple pig. I could pay tribute to him because he is an animal that "gives everything for us", but this particular pig saved the lives of many sailors.
We are located in the year 1805, on October 21, in the Bay of Cadiz in front of Cape Trafalgar. The Battle of Trafalgar takes place , which faces the English navy, led by Admiral Nelson , with the Franco-Spanish, led by Villeneuve . The better preparation of the English fleet, the ingenuity of Nelson, the clumsiness of Villeneuve and the lack of cohesion of the Franco-Spanish fleet gave the victory to the English.
The Neptune , led by Don Cayetano Valdés , she was one of the Spanish ships that participated in the naval battle and that after receiving several broadsides from the English artillery she was adrift. Without course, after losing the mast, the ship ran aground. From land they try to rescue the survivors but the strong waves do not allow them to reach the boats.
We don't know how or why, but on the Neptune there was a pig... and a clever sailor. The latter had the idea of tying a rope to the pig's leg and throwing it into the sea so that it would come – because pigs know how to swim – to the shore. The pig, knowing what he was doing, was able to get there and they used the rope to tie up the boats and get to the ship. They were all rescued.
Nothing else is known about this life-saving pig, but I do not know of any square, street or monument in the province of Cádiz dedicated to any pig. I only hope that this heroism served him to have a happier ending than the rest of his peers.
Image:Xurxo Vázquez. Post republished.