Manuel Blanco Romasanta: The 'Werewolf of Allariz'
- Jun 16
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 25
Spain's first documented serial killer did not deny his crimes — he blamed them on a curse. Manuel Blanco Romasanta, remembered as the 'Werewolf of Allariz', confessed in the 1850s to a series of murders in the mountains of Galicia, then told a stunned court that he had been transformed into a wolf and could not be held responsible. His case, blending real and brutal crimes with folklore and superstition, became one of the strangest in legal history. Out of respect for the victims, this account avoids graphic detail.
Behind the werewolf legend lay a calculating killer who preyed on the trust of vulnerable travellers, and whose true story is far grimmer than any myth.
Key Facts at a Glance
Full name: Manuel Blanco Romasanta
Born: 18 November 1809, Ourense, Galicia, Spain
Known as: The Werewolf of Allariz
Victims: Confessed to 13 murders (1840s–1850s)
Defence: Claimed a curse turned him into a wolf
Outcome: Convicted 1853; death sentence commuted; died in prison
A singular life
Romasanta was born in 1809 in a small village in Ourense, Galicia. Unusually, he was initially registered as female and named Manuela, a confusion about his sex that was only later resolved, and he remained notably small in stature as an adult. Educated at a time when few were, he worked as a tailor and then, after his wife's death, became a travelling salesman roaming the rural roads of Spain and Portugal — a trade that put him in contact with the isolated people who would become his victims.
The mountain guide
Romasanta offered his services as a guide, promising to lead people safely through the mountain passes of Galicia to find work or to reach distant towns. His victims — predominantly women and children who entrusted themselves to him for the journey — would set off into the hills with him and never arrive. For a time he sent reassuring letters in their names back to their families, delaying any alarm and buying himself cover to continue.
The 'Tallow Man'
One of the most disturbing aspects of the case earned him another grim nickname: the 'Tallow Man' or 'Fat Extractor'. Romasanta is said to have rendered the fat of his victims and sold it as high-quality soap and grease, turning murder into a macabre business. It was the trade in this suspiciously fine soap, alongside the mounting disappearances, that eventually drew suspicion toward him.
Capture and a bizarre defence
Romasanta was arrested and brought to trial in Allariz in the early 1850s. He confessed to thirteen killings, but mounted a defence unlike any heard before: he claimed to suffer from lycanthropy, a curse that turned him into a wolf during which, he said, he was not in control of his actions. He described his supposed transformations to the court in vivid detail and even claimed two other men had joined him as wolves.
A royal reprieve
The court rejected the werewolf defence, found him sane and responsible, and condemned him to death by garrotte. But the case had attracted enormous fascination, including from the medical world. Queen Isabella II intervened to commute his death sentence, reportedly so that doctors could examine him as a possible case of what would later be understood as clinical lycanthropy — a delusion of being an animal.
A murky end
Romasanta was sent to prison to serve his sentence, but the records of his final years are incomplete and contradictory. Accounts variously claim he died of illness shortly after arriving, was shot, or — in the most fanciful local legend — escaped to roam the woods forever. He is generally recorded as having died around 1863.
The Werewolf of Allariz endures in Spanish folklore and has inspired films and books, but the legend can obscure the reality: a manipulative predator who exploited the trust of poor travellers and the credulity of his age. His victims — the women and children who followed a friendly guide into the mountains — are the human truth beneath the myth, and the part of the story that deserves to be remembered.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many people did Romasanta kill?
He confessed to thirteen murders and was convicted of nine, with some accounts suspecting more, in 1840s–1850s Spain.
Why is he called the 'Werewolf of Allariz'?
At his trial he claimed a curse turned him into a wolf, compelling him to kill; he was tried in the town of Allariz in Galicia.
What happened to Manuel Blanco Romasanta?
His death sentence was commuted by Queen Isabella II so doctors could study his claims, and he died in prison around 1863.
Watch: Full Documentary
Sources & Further Reading
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