Alférez and captain

The captain and the alférez are the two most important roles in the Moors and Christians fiestas: they lead their side or their comparsa (troupe) in the parades and in the mock battle. The names come from the old town militias that many of these fiestas grew out of, but here they’re honours, not ranks: people take them on in turn, out of sheer enthusiasm and, often, out of their own pocket.

What the fiesta roles are

As well as the festeros (fiesta members) who parade, each side or comparsa chooses people for the main roles, known as cargos. The most common are the captain, the alférez, the standard-bearer (abanderada or abanderado) and the ambassador; some places also have sergeants, such as the sargentos mayores who lead off each side in Alcoy. Not every town has them all or uses the same names, and the roles are shared out differently from one fiesta to the next.

The captain and the capitanía

The captain is the public face of their side during the fiestas. In Alcoy, during the Christian entrada the governor of the castle (alcaide) hands the Christian captain the keys to the town, and on the day of the alardo it’s the captain who leads half the filaes out for the encaro, the stand-off with the opposing captain.

The capitanía is a comparsa’s turn to provide that captain. As the comparsas take it in turns, each one waits for its year. In Ontinyent, for example, the Valencian government’s official tourism site explains that the fiesta revolves around annual capitanías, with roles such as ambassadors and standard-bearers.

The alférez, or standard-bearer

The Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) dictionary defines the historical alférez as the officer who carried the flag in the infantry and the standard in the cavalry, and lists abanderado (standard-bearer) as a synonym. The word comes from the Hispano-Arabic alfáris, “horseman” or “knight”.

In the fiesta, the alférez is the second great role on each side. In Alcoy’s alardo, while the captain follows one route, the alférez takes the other with seven filaes and squares up to the opposing side’s alférez.

How it varies from town to town

Town	How the roles work
Alcoy	One captain and one alférez per side; they’re the leading figures and pay for their own special costumes and pageantry
Villena	Fourteen comparsas; any local can be captain or alférez, and no role is above any other
Ontinyent	Annual capitanías, with ambassadors and standard-bearers
Petrer	Birthplace of the abanderada: tradition dates her to 1905, in the Moros Viejos comparsa

In Petrer, according to tradition, Tía Ramona “took down the flag” of the Moros Viejos in 1905, and since then the figure of the abanderada has spread to a great many fiestas.

Roles, presentations and meals

Anyone holding a fiesta role has a packed diary for months beforehand: the presentation, rehearsals, parades, dinners and visits from other comparsas. The presentation of the cargos is a good moment to welcome guests and local dignitaries with drinks and canapés. At Xepep we organise drinks receptions for presenting the cargos, get-together lunches and catering for cuartelillos around the fiesta programme. To plan it all in good time, see our article on the comparsa or filà meal.

For more vocabulary from the table and the fiesta, explore Escuadra (Moors and Christians).