Our Lady of Covadonga
Encyclopedia
Our Lady of Covadonga is a title of the Virgin Mary, and a shrine devoted to her at Covadonga
in the province of Asturias
in north west Spain
. The shrine rose to prominence following the Battle of Covadonga
in 722, at which the Moorish
invasion of Spain was first resisted. A statue of the Virgin Mary, secreted in one of the caves, was believed to have miraculously aided the Christian victory. Our Lady of Covadonga is the patron of Asturias, and a basilica
was built to house the current statue. Pope John Paul II
visited the shrine at Covadonga to honour the Virgin Mary.
in 711, Roderic
, the Christian Visigoth King of Spain was defeated and killed at the Battle of Guadalete
. The battle was decisive and led to the swift conquest of most of Visigothic Spain.
The remnant of the Visigoth nobility retreated to the remote mountains of northern Spain. According to texts written in northern Iberia during the ninth century, they elected in 718 AD a man named Pelayo, or Pelagius, as their leader. Pelayo's father had been a dignitary at the court of the Visigoth King Egica. Pelayo gathered a band of warriors to resist Islamic encroachment. When in 722 the Arab commander of Spain sent an army to eliminate this resistance, the Christian army made its stand at a place of many caves known as Covadonga.
According to tradition Pelayo retreated to a cave where a hermit had secreted a statue of the Virgin Mary, saved from the Muslim conquest. He prayed to the virgin for victory. In the subsequent battle the Christians made use of the natural defences. Christian accounts of the battle claim miraculous intercession and that the slaughter among the Moors was horrific. Moorish accounts describe the battle as a mere skirmish. However the moorish commander fell in the battle, and his soldiers fled. This victory, considered the first of the Christian reconquista
of Spain, established the independence of the Kingdom of Asturias
in north west Spain.
Pelayo credited the intercession of the Virgin Mary for his victory. And in recognition of this miraculous intercession, King Alfonso I, the Catholic
(739-757) commanded that a monastery and chapel be built on the site in honor of Our Lady of Covadonga. The sanctuary came to be run by Augustinian canons but was destroyed by fire on 17 October, 1777. The shrine was rebuilt piecemeal, until replaced by a great Basilica that was consecrated in 1901. The basilica houses the current statue of Our Lady of Covadonga, dating to the 16th century. Pope John Paul II visited the shrine during his papacy.
In the Philippines
, The chapel of Our Lady of Covadonga is now in San Jose Parish Church Shrine of Our Lady of Covadonga in Poblacion, La Trinidad, Benguet
in Northern Luzon and many some parish churces in Metropolitan Manila.
Covadonga
Covadonga is a village and one of 11 parishes in Cangas de Onís, a municipality within the province and autonomous community of Asturias, in northwestern Spain...
in the province of Asturias
Asturias
The Principality of Asturias is an autonomous community of the Kingdom of Spain, coextensive with the former Kingdom of Asturias in the Middle Ages...
in north west Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. The shrine rose to prominence following the Battle of Covadonga
Battle of Covadonga
The Battle of Covadonga was the first major victory by a Christian military force in Iberia following the Muslim Moors' conquest of that region in 711...
in 722, at which the Moorish
Moors
The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...
invasion of Spain was first resisted. A statue of the Virgin Mary, secreted in one of the caves, was believed to have miraculously aided the Christian victory. Our Lady of Covadonga is the patron of Asturias, and a basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
was built to house the current statue. Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
visited the shrine at Covadonga to honour the Virgin Mary.
History
Covadonga is a mountainous region in the province of Asturias in the extreme north west of Spain. Following the Islamic Arab invasion of SpainUmayyad conquest of Hispania
The Umayyad conquest of Hispania is the initial Islamic Ummayad Caliphate's conquest, between 711 and 718, of the Christian Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania, centered in the Iberian Peninsula, which was known to them under the Arabic name al-Andalus....
in 711, Roderic
Roderic
Ruderic was the Visigothic King of Hispania for a brief period between 710 and 712. He is famous in legend as "the last king of the Goths"...
, the Christian Visigoth King of Spain was defeated and killed at the Battle of Guadalete
Battle of Guadalete
The Battle of Guadalete was fought in 711 or 712 at an unidentified location between the Christian Visigoths of Hispania under their king, Roderic, and an invading force of Muslim Arabs and Berbers under Ṭāriq ibn Ziyad. The battle was significant as the culmination of a series of Arab-Berber...
. The battle was decisive and led to the swift conquest of most of Visigothic Spain.
The remnant of the Visigoth nobility retreated to the remote mountains of northern Spain. According to texts written in northern Iberia during the ninth century, they elected in 718 AD a man named Pelayo, or Pelagius, as their leader. Pelayo's father had been a dignitary at the court of the Visigoth King Egica. Pelayo gathered a band of warriors to resist Islamic encroachment. When in 722 the Arab commander of Spain sent an army to eliminate this resistance, the Christian army made its stand at a place of many caves known as Covadonga.
According to tradition Pelayo retreated to a cave where a hermit had secreted a statue of the Virgin Mary, saved from the Muslim conquest. He prayed to the virgin for victory. In the subsequent battle the Christians made use of the natural defences. Christian accounts of the battle claim miraculous intercession and that the slaughter among the Moors was horrific. Moorish accounts describe the battle as a mere skirmish. However the moorish commander fell in the battle, and his soldiers fled. This victory, considered the first of the Christian reconquista
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
of Spain, established the independence of the Kingdom of Asturias
Kingdom of Asturias
The Kingdom of Asturias was a Kingdom in the Iberian peninsula founded in 718 by Visigothic nobles under the leadership of Pelagius of Asturias. It was the first Christian political entity established following the collapse of the Visigothic kingdom after Islamic conquest of Hispania...
in north west Spain.
The Shrine
Alfonso I of Asturias
Alfonso I , called the Catholic , was the King of Asturias from 739 to his death in 757.He was son of Duke Peter of Cantabria and held many lands in that region. He may have been the hereditary chief of the Basques, but this is uncertain...
(739-757) commanded that a monastery and chapel be built on the site in honor of Our Lady of Covadonga. The sanctuary came to be run by Augustinian canons but was destroyed by fire on 17 October, 1777. The shrine was rebuilt piecemeal, until replaced by a great Basilica that was consecrated in 1901. The basilica houses the current statue of Our Lady of Covadonga, dating to the 16th century. Pope John Paul II visited the shrine during his papacy.
In the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, The chapel of Our Lady of Covadonga is now in San Jose Parish Church Shrine of Our Lady of Covadonga in Poblacion, La Trinidad, Benguet
La Trinidad, Benguet
La Trinidad is a 1st class municipality in the province of Benguet, Philippines. It is the capital municipality of Benguet. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 97,810 people in 13,658 households....
in Northern Luzon and many some parish churces in Metropolitan Manila.
Reference
- http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11363a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia
- http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=2990&CFID=36118813&CFTOKEN=33814836
- http://www.frtommylane.com/homilies/pilgrimage/covadonga.htm
- http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j225sd_OLCovadonga_9-07.html