About Andalucía. provincial fiestas. huelva. el rocío

THE STORY OF THE APPARITION OF THE VIRGIN

The story tells that at the beginning of the 15th century a hunter from Almonte, Gregorio Medina, went out hunting in the countryside and after some time he noticed that his dogs started barking constantly at some bushes in a place known as La Rocina. He went through the bushes and found an image of the Mother of God in the trunk of a tree.
After discovering this mysterious finding, he worshiped the image for a few minutes and later on he took it away from the trunk. After that Gregorio decided to take a nap as he had had a rather tired and exciting day.
When he woke up he realised that the image was not there by his side and felt very sorry and disappointed about the loss. After a few minutes searching for it he could see that the image was back in the same place where he found it. Gregorio then realised that the image wanted to be in that place and it was there where it had to be worshiped. He got back to the village and told everyone about his finding and everybody showed much devotion for this Virgin image and started to build a small chapel to worship their Lady.
The image discovered by Gregorio was the ‘Virgen de losRemedios’, as per the inscription at the back of the carving. The image took the name of ‘Virgen del Rocío’ later on because of the place where it was found, ‘La Rocina’.

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The image was first worshiped by everyone in the region, and little by little it became better known and worshiped in many places.

The origin of the popular pilgrimage or ‘Romería’ is said to be in 1649 and subsequent years when a terrible epidemic scourged Seville and its region. The people from Almonte decided to take the Virgin from the small chapel in ‘La Rocina’ to the village chapel, and the village was released from the epidemic. For this reason a party was celebrated and the image was chosen to be the Patron Saint of the village. Likewise the annual festivities are held as from those times on the second day of Pentecost. The origin of the main ‘hermandad’ or brotherhood, in charge of keeping this celebration day and the worship to the Virgin, also dates back to the same time.
The devotion to the ‘Virgen del Rocío’ has increased so much that many ‘hermandades’ or brotherhoods have been created ever since in the most unexpected places, and every year they take part in this pilgrimage and make the journey to gather in the hamlet of ‘El Rocío’.

El Rocío

THE PILGRIMAGE OR ‘ROMERÍA’

For the ‘hermandades’ or brotherhoods or the pilgrimage starts with the journey to the hamlet of ‘El Rocío’. They go from their places of origin to the hamlet of ‘El Rocío’. Once they reach the hamlet all of them at a time and according to their age, pass by the Chapel.
Once the presentation takes place, different religious events are held such as recite or pray the Rosary, holy masses… However the most exciting moment in the pilgrimage is no doubt when the pilgrims jump over the fence to take the Virgin in procession throughout the hamlet. Millions of people gather in the hamlet to see the Virgin in the procession carried in the air by the people of Almonte.
There is no doubt that the hardest moment is the way back, especially because of the excitement of the meeting of the ‘rocieros’ or pilgrims and their Lady. Preparations for next year’s pilgrimage are started the moment each ‘hermandad’ or brotherhood reaches its place of origin.

For further information please visit www.portalrociero.com

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