The Virgen del Carmen was once known as 'Queen of the Seas'. |
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Virgen del Carmen Festival
July 16th
(every year)
Religious icons are hugely popular in Andalucia; they are normally handcrafted from wood and porcelain and spend 99.9 per cent of the year in glass-covered alcoves at the local church. Most are dusted down and placed on flower-decked thrones at Easter-time when they are lovingly and solemnly borne through the streets. The Virgen del Carmen, however, has her own special day.
On the evening of July 16, in the fishing villages and towns up and down the Coast, her much-loved effigy is not only paraded through the streets but also taken for a spin round the bay on a flower-adorned boat, accompanied by a flotilla of "jábegas" (fishing boats). Brass bands play, crowds cheer, rockets shoot off and fireworks fill the late dusk sky.
Celebrations vary slightly from town to town. In Málaga city, for example, the procession takes place not only on July 16, but on the following Sunday. A recent Malagueñan tradition, started in 1981, shows the Virgen del Carmen embracing all lovers of the sea - including scuba divers. That year, the City scuba diving club placed an image of their patron at the bottom of the sea and since then divers have paid their underwater homage annually. The more tradition processions take place on the 16th in the Malaga city fishing districts of Pedregalejo and El Palo.
The festival is especially important in the fishing villages of neighbouring Rincon de la Victoria and La Cala, both of which have the Virgen del Carmen as their town patron.
To understand why the Virgen del Carmen should be held so dear to the inhabitants of towns such as Estepona, Velez Malaga, Torremolinos, Fuengirola and Rincon de la Victoria, we need to go back to the Old Testament. Downshifting in his old age, the prophet Elias retreated to a cave in Mount Carmelo near Haife (Israel). Many centuries later, hermits following in Elijah's footsteps asked for the protection of the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmelo - the Virgin of Carmen. Stella Maris, as she was also known, was soon adopted by mariners and fishermen everywhere as their patron.
Although long overtaken by tourism, many Costa towns still retain fishing communities and barrio pescadores (fishermans quarter) and a strong attachment to "la Reina de los Mares" (the Queen of the Seas). It was once believed - perhaps in the days before water-purifying plants! - that the Virgin cleared up the waters with her presence and that only after July 16 would the sea be fit for swimming in.
Although Seville is not by the sea, it does have the River Guadiaro. The Virgen del Carmen de Calatrava will be taken out on the river on 16 July at 7.30 pm and again on Sunday 21 July at 7.50 pm from the chapel on calle Calatrava. The Virgen del Carmen de Santa Catalina will also leave her chapel on 16 July at 21.15. The Virgen del Carmen del Santo Angel leaves from her chapel on 17th June at 20.00.
Virgen del Carmen in coastal towns
If the Virgen del Carmen is safe anywhere on the Costa del Sol it would have to be Marbella. There the image of the Virgin is kept 12 metres underground in a vault. Thankfully, she sees the… More →
Like many large cities, Málaga has absorbed what once were nearby villages. Therefore, some of Málaga’s seaside neighbourhoods continue to carry on the customs handed down to them by the fishermen… More →
Every year, Estepona celebrates its long fishing tradition with its own Virgen del Carmen festival on July 16. The event comprises several days of magnificent Catholic display and civic… More →
The Virgen del Carmen will be carried on the shoulders of the strong men of the parish in the direction of the beach. The procession will depart the church at 20:45 hours after the 20:00 mass… More →
La Feria del Carmen de Los Boliches in one of the more important annual festivals in Fuengirola.
Torremolinos celebrates the fiestas of the Virgen del Carmen in the traditional fishermen's quarter of La Carihuela. The Virgen del Carmen is the patron saint of sailors.
In Caleta de Vélez, the Cofradía de Pescadores (Fishermen's Guild) organises two days of festivities. The main procession begins at around 21.00 and this leads the Virgen del Carmen… More →
Several villages though-out the municipality of Vélez-Málaga celebrate the Virgen del Carmen, patron saint of fishermen day. On July 16th you will find processions over both land and out into… More →
On the 16th of July, the last day of the Veladilla del Carmen (Candlelight vigil) in Benalmádena, the daytime fistival will take place on the terrace of the Nautical Centre.
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| The Virgen del Carmen was once known as 'Queen of the Seas'. |