PhD Program in Historical studies
The Feast of the Madonna of the Militias of Scicli (Ragusa)
The Feast of the Madonna of the Militias of Scili commemorates a mythical battle that took place near the town of Ragusa at the time of the Norman conquest of Sicily undertaken by the Great Count Roger of HautevilleRoger I of Sicily, also known as the Great Count Roger (1031-1101) belonged to the dynasty of the Hautevilles or Altavilla in Italian. The son of Tancred, Roger completed the conquest of Apulia and Calabria together with his brother Robert Guiscard, and personally led the conquest which freed Sicily from Arab domination. An accomplished diplomat, he obtained the support of the papacy, and his nomination as Grand Count of Sicily. to the detriment of the Arabs in the eleventh century. Unlike in the representations from Abruzzo and in the Scamiciata of Fasano in Puglia, which instead are inspired by events which likely took place around the famous battle of Lepanto (October 7, 1571). In this way in Scicli the time of the Ottoman Empire and the barbarian raids merges with the myth of the Christian liberation of the island. Today’s commemoration of the decisive victory of the Saracens inflicted by Roger is staged on the last Saturday of the month of May, to commemorate the providential intervention of the Madonna of the Militias. Legend has it that the Virgin Mary had come from heaven on horseback, on a white horse, sword in hand, to liberate the city from the Saracens just before Scicli and the Great Count capitulated. The Festival consists of an evocative play in which the scenes and characters of the battle are relived in local dialect. It is worth participating to admire the parade of the exceptional life-size statue of the Madonna: depicted on a caparisoned horse, with a crown, sword and armour.