PhD Program in Historical studies
The Feast of Moors and Christians of Almansa (Castile-La Mancha)
Almansa is a Spanish town in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. The parade of Moors and Christians takes place during the festivities in honour of the patron, María Santísima de Belén, Blessed Mary of Bethlehem, for whom a fine Baroque sanctuary was erected. The festival, recently declared of national touristic Interest, recalls the period of the “Conquest” of the Arab peninsula and Christian Reconquista from a Catholic perspective. The Fiesta Mayor of Almansa is organized by the Agrupación de comparsas de Moros y Cristianos (the organization of troupes of Moors and Christians). Although its origins are quite recent, the parade in Almansa is one of the most striking examples of this tradition. It is a grand theatrical performance that takes place around an enchanting medieval castle, built in the fourteenth century on the site of an earlier Muslim building. The ceremony begins on 1 May with the triumphal entry of the Moors and ends five days later with the Procesión Mayor de Nuestra Señora de Belén. On the night of 2 May the first battle that culminated with the occupation of the city by the Arabs is staged. The next two days are dedicated to the rescue of the Christians, that on 4 May stormed the fortress. The crucial steps of the festival are reconstructed to the smallest details, through the use of characters, clothes and weapons commonly associated with the epic of the Reconquista.