El Zorro: Folk Legend and Hero

The character of El Zorro is a legendary hero who fought against injustice.

photo credit: tvtropes.org

Inspired by real-life figures, El Zorro has given rise to a legend, attached to his mask, that symbolizes the struggle against oppression and contempt of an arrogant authority.

During the Inquisition in Mexico, this figure, connected to ideals and his courageous struggle, brought about numerous compositions that honored his fight against injustice. He was condemned to die in 1659 in Mexico City.

So, the myth of El Zorro is born, and this figure earns the title of first martyr of the liberation of Mexico from Spain.

There is debate among historians, novelists, and researchers about the existence of another character, who inspired the legend of El Zorro. His name was Joaquín Murrieta. According to historians, parish documents have been found and weapons dating from the mid-1800’s were found in a cave, including swords with the initials JM.

In the early 1900’s, El Zorro appeared as a vigilante in New Spain California, who disguised his personality with that of a Spanish aristocrat. The literary character of Don Diego de la Vega, El Zorro, is another inspiration, a figure who appears in novels. He is a Spanish aristocrat with a double life, a secret formidable swordsman and agile escapist who ridicules his adversaries with his intelligence. There are claims parish documents certify that Don Diego de la Vega was born in El Fuerte, in the state of Sinaloa, in 1795, in a stately house on Calle del Resbalón. Oral tradition upholds the legend in the sequence that makes Diego the vigilante protector of the weak against the rich of New Spain. El Zorro is represented in a statue that is located the city of El Fuerte, Sinaloa.