Magdalena Festival

Magdalena Festival
Magdalena Festival
Official name	Fira i Festes de la Magdalena
Also called	Magdalena Festival
Type	Local
Localization	Castellón de la Plana
Begins	The third Saturday of Lent
Ends	Eight days after the start of the festival
Dates of the festival	February–March–April (depending on the year)
Purpose	Commemoration of the city's origins and the move of the city from the Hill of Magdalena to the plain in 1251.
	Official site

The Magdalena Festival is the main festivity of Castellón de la Plana, the capital city of the province of Castelló, in the Valencian Community, Spain. It commemorates the origins of the city, recalling the move of the city from the Hill of Mary Magdalene to the fertile coastal plain in 1251.

This festival lasts for 9 days. It starts on the third Saturday of Lent and it was declared an Event of International Tourist Interest in 2010.^[1]

Historical background[]

History of the festival[]

The semana festera[]

Typical ribbon used as a symbol of the Festivity

Dates of the festival[]

2015: from 7 to 15 March.

Next celebrations^[2]

2016: from 27 February to 7 March.
2017: from 18 to 26 March.
2018: from 3 to 11 March.
2019: from 23 March to 1 April.
2020: from 14 to 22 March.

The first day of the Magdalena Festival is the third Saturday of Lent.

Considering that the first day of Lent (since the First Council of Nicaea in 325) is the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox, the dates of the Magdalena Festival between 1945 and 2050 are, according to the calculations of M. Armengot (using Gauss's law), as follows:

03/03/1945, 03/23/1946, 03/08/1947, 02/28/1948, 03/19/1949, 03/11/1950, 02/24/1951, 03/15/1952, 03/07/1953, 03/27/1954, 03/12/1955, 03/03/1956, 03/23/1957, 03/08/1958, 02/28/1959, 03/19/1960, 03/04/1961, 03/24/1962, 03/16/1963, 02/29/1964, 03/20/1965, 03/12/1966, 02/25/1967, 03/16/1968, 03/08/1969, 02/28/1970, 03/13/1971, 03/04/1972, 03/24/1973, 03/16/1974, 03/01/1975, 03/20/1976, 03/12/1977, 02/25/1978, 03/17/1979, 03/08/1980, 03/28/1981, 03/13/1982, 03/05/1983, 03/24/1984, 03/09/1985, 03/01/1986, 03/21/1987, 03/05/1988, 02/25/1989, 03/17/1990, 03/02/1991, 03/21/1992, 03/13/1993, 03/05/1994, 03/18/1995, 03/09/1996, 03/01/1997, 03/14/1998, 03/06/1999, 03/25/2000, 03/17/2001, 03/02/2002, 03/22/2003, 03/13/2004, 02/26/2005, 03/18/2006, 03/10/2007, 02/23/2008, 03/14/2009, 03/06/2010, 03/26/2011, 03/10/2012, 03/02/2013, 03/22/2014, 03/07/2015, 02/27/2016, 03/18/2017, 03/03/2018, 03/23/2019, 03/14/2020, 03/06/2021, 03/19/2022, 03/11/2023, 03/02/2024, 03/22/2025, 03/07/2026, 02/27/2027, 03/18/2028, 03/03/2029, 03/23/2030, 03/15/2031, 02/28/2032, 03/19/2033, 03/11/2034, 02/24/2035, 03/15/2036, 03/07/2037, 03/27/2038, 03/12/2039, 03/03/2040, 03/23/2041, 03/08/2042, 02/28/2043, 03/19/2044, 03/11/2045, 02/24/2046, 03/16/2047, 03/07/2048, 03/27/2049, 03/12/2050.

It should be highlighted that, since the first celebration of the Magdalena Festival in 1945, the year with the earliest date of the festivities was in 2008, from 23 February to 2 March; whilst the celebration which began on the latest date was in 1981, from 28 March to 5 April.^[3]

In both 1948 and 2032, the most important day of the festival, the Sunday of the Magdalena Festival (third Sunday of Lent and first Sunday of the week of celebrations), is 29 February; the coincidence of the events on 29 February in each respective century.

Saturday: De la festa, la vespra[]

Official announcement of the festival[]

The festivities begin at 12:00 noon, when commemorative fireworks are set off; the number of fireworks reflects the number of years that have passed since the celebration of the festival. This is followed by a mascletà, a very loud coordinated firecracker display, which is prepared by the winners of the previous year's pyrotechnic competition and takes place in Plaza del Primer Molí; it lasts between 10 and 15 minutes.

Official opening parade[]

A traditional, vernacular parade reflecting the mythology, history, customs and folklore of Castellón.

This parade starts at 4:00 p.m. and lasts for approximately 4 hours, passing through central and northern parts of the city. The following sections can be distinguished:

Mythology of Castellón. The Colla del Rei Barbut performs the mythology of Castellón.
History of Castellón. Participants dress up as members of groups of people that left their mark on Castellón: the Moors (), the Christians (), the Jews () and the pirates ().
Towns of the province. Most of the towns of the province take part at this point of the parade.
City of Castellón. This section focuses on the folklore and customs of the city; the marjaleria, the plain, the mountains and the city. Some parts of this section makes reference to elements of the festival itself:
- Pikes of the city: Two castelloneros holding long stick decorated with red and yellow carnations and .
- Sector commissions. Each of the 19 major gaiata sector commissions (groups organising a gaiata display) takes part in this part of the procession. Each commission is made up of a standard bearer, the "ladies and their gentlemen" and of the "maid of honour", on the arm of the first vicepresident, of the respective gaiata sector commission.
- The Virgin's basket: a large basket containing red and yellow carnations held by the presidents of the gaiatas, who present them to the Blessed Virgin Mary during the offering.
- Bugles of the city: four musicians riding on horseback before the town crier, playing the City March.
- Local festival opening speech: the most important element of the procession; the town crier sings the verses written for this event by . After they have been sung before the gallery of dignitaries, the festival begins.
- A Carriage with the maids of honour, the ladies of the city and the queen of the festival: two oxen-drawn carriages, linked together, on which the maids of honour of each of the gaiatas, the ladies of the city, and the queen of the festival sit.
- The Castellón music band closes the procession.

After the opening speech (pregó) ends, the Enfarolà del Campanar begins. It is a display which consists of illuminating el Fadrí, the tower in the centre of Castellón, with a pyrotechnic display.

Sunday: "Magdalena festa plena"[]

The most important day of the Magdalena Festival.

Pilgrimage of the canes[]

Mary Magdalene Chapel

The day starts with the ringing of the "Vicent" bell at 5:30 am. As mentioned in the last part of the pregó (an announcement made by a town crier), the bell's chime means "Ja el día es arribat de la nostra Magdalena" ("The day of our Magdalena celebration has come").

At 8:00 am, the pilgrimage starts from the Plaza Mayor (Castellón) (Main Square). Although its official starting point is the Plaza Mayor, most pilgrims start from Plaza María Agustina (María Agustina Square, which is a typical meeting place and through which the main route passes. From there, the pilgrimage goes through several streets of the north side of the city and it continues, along rural paths, until it reaches the . Halfway there, one of the compulsory stops (according to tradition) is Sant Roc de Canet, where people have a mid-morning snack, for example the typical "figa i doset",^[4] and where pilgrims say a prayer.

After this long walk, people arrive at the . A (a series of pyrotechnic explosions) is set off to announce the arrival of the pilgrims, who are handed "rotllos" (ring-shaped pretzels). Then, there is a service in the chapel, after which everyone tries a little of an enormous^{[clarification needed]} paella.

La tornà de la romeria (the return from the pilgrimage) and the Procession of Penitents[]

The so-called tornà de la romería had disappeared for some years, but it was recently started again by the Colla El Pixaví. It begins at 3:45 pm at the Mary Magdalene Chapel and stops at every chapel and religious building on the way. The arrival at the Basilica of Our Lady of Lledó is especially emotional, as this is the place where some people pray and where pilgrims sing the Hail Mary. It is also the place where the dignitaries going to the Mary Magdalene Chapel and the pilgrims coming back from it meet.

At 7:00 pm the pilgrims arrive back in the city, preceded by the carros (motor-driven house-like constructions on wheels) which participate in the pilgrimage. They are followed by little traditional gaiatas, els Cavallers and the dignitaries, who walk in procession as far as the Plaza Mayor. Next comes the "Penitents' Procession", which is traditionally the first procession of Holy Week in Spain.

Gaiatas Parade[]

The Gaiatas Parade is part of la tornà de la romería. It allows the townspeople to show off the nineteen different gaiatas of the city (one per district), accompanied by the members of the respective sector commission. In addition, two more gaiatas are shown: one sponsored by a well-known savings bank that maintains the tradition of les xiquetes del meneo, and the other the gaiata of the city, which represents the whole city and was the one chosen as the best gaiata in the previous year's gaiata competition.

The Gaiata Parade passes through the city with the festival queens and their corresponding courts of honour, as well as a representation of the City Council and of the 'Corporació Municipal de Festes', the 'Junta de Festes de Castelló' and the Banda Municipal de Castelló.

The only music which can be played at the parade is the classic . It starts after la tornà de la romeria. The members of the "commission" of gaiata infantil are followed by the members of the commission in charge of the main gaiata in the procession. One of the traditions of this act is les voltetes (the queen dances around her canya). People ask members of the commissions, only girls, to do the volteta so that they show their dresses.

Monday[]

Day of the Local Festival.

Parade of Festooned Carriages and Children’s Parade[]

With the participation of children, ancient scenes from Castellón are reenacted, and there is an exhibition for children.

Lighting up of Gaiates[]

All gaiatas are lit up at the same time for the public to admire them, and there is a competition in which the winner is the gaiata that receives the highest valuation from the jury. Later, every gaiata returns to its own district and presides over the events organized by every commission. A main walk takes place through the . But exceptionally, in 2009 and 2010, it took place along the Av. Rey Don Jaime due to roadworks. But, since 2012, it has also taken place in the Av. Rey Don Jaime.

During the whole week[]

During the week, a multitude of celebrations are held, the most important of which appear in the following list:

Mascletá, at 2:00 pm in .
Pyrotechnics Display, which starts about 11:00 pm at the area of Pau Gumbau, in the northeast of the city.
Bullfighting at the bullring of Castellón.
The Nit Màgica (the Magic Night): a fire display performed by the Xarxa Teatre company.

On Tuesday after 11:00 pm.

Children's fair: Entertainment for kids. Located in the showground.
The Colorful High Street: a pitched battle of confetti, although flowers were used in the past, taking place on Thursday at 5:00 pm on Avenida del Rei. The main participants of this event are the members of the district commissions.
The alternative fira: alternative fair from Thursday in the gardens of the Auditorium.
Mesón del vino (the Wine Fair): located on Avenida Blasco Ibáñez, in the northeast of the city.
Mesón de la tapa y la cerveza (the Tapa and Beer Fair): in Plaza España, scheduled from 12:00 pm to 4:30 pm and from 7:00 pm to midnight.
Concerts: in the concert venue, next to Avenida del Mar and Ronda Este, with the performances by popular singers from across Spain. From Monday to Saturday, around midnight.

The last Saturday[]

The Offering of Flowers to the patron of the city, the Our Lady of Lledó. One of the most emotive acts of this festival is performed by the men of the Gaiata 1, who make a floral tapestry with the flowers that have been brought by the people who have visited their basilica. The route to be taken is the following: Plaza Mayor, Calle Mayor, Plaza Maria Agustina, Avenida de la Mare de Déu del Lledó and Paseo de Lledó, where we finally find the Basilica.

The last Saturday: Magdalena Vítol![]

The final day of the Magdalena Festival.

The Grand Finale Fireworks[]

A pyrotechnic event running through the main streets of the center of Castellón takes place. The most daring run in front of the fireworks.

Magdalena Vítol![]

At the end of the pyrotechnic traca, in the , the queens of the festival shout from the balcony of the townhall: Magdalena and the crowd answers from below: Vítol!, ending the festival for one year and beginning the next year's Magdalena Festival.

Elements of the festival[]

Gaiatas[]

Gaiata of the city 2012, winner of the Gaiata's Contest of 2011 for the 15th Gaiata

The gaiatas are the festive monuments of the Magdalena Festival. Antonio Pascual Felip, a member of the First Central Board of Celebration, defined the gaiata as "a burst of light, with no fire or smoke".^[5] The gaiatas are monuments that are usually bout 19 feet high and resemble the lanterns that the inhabitants of Castellón used to find their way through the marshy ground at night. Also, the term gaiata refers to each of the 19 districts or neighbourhoods into which the city of Castellón is divided for the festival:

Gaiata 1: Brancal de la Ciutat ([1])
Gaiata 2: Fadrell ([2] y [3])
Gaiata 3: Porta del Sol
Gaiata 4: L'Armelar ([4])
Gaiata 5: Hort dels Corders
Gaiata 6: Farola - Ravalet
Gaiata 7: Cor de la ciutat
Gaiata 8: Portal de l'Om([5])
Gaiata 9: L'Espartera ([6])
Gaiata 10: El Toll
Gaiata 11: Forn del Plà
Gaiata 12: El Grau
Gaiata 13: Sensal
Gaiata 14: Castalia
Gaiata 15: Sequiol ([7])
Gaiata 16: Rafalafena
Gaiata 17: Tir de Colom ([8])
Gaiata 18: Crèmor
Gaiata 19: La Cultural

During the festival, each district exhibits its gaiata in its central square.

Organizing bodies[]

Federació Municipal de Festes Junta de Festes de Castelló.
Federació Gestora de Gaiates.

Collas[]

Ceramic Gaiata

In 2010, a cultural association named "Colla L'Esvaró" with over 20 members, was the first colla to produce a seven feet tall gaiata. As noted in the local newspaper Periódico Mediterraneo on March 5, 2010 [9], this gaiata was conceived by Carlos Benítez Barbero, a student of the course "Arts Decoratives del Món de la Festa de Castelló" and at "l'Escola d'art i Superior de Disseny de Castelló" (a higher education college of art and design in Castellón). In 2011, Carlos Benítez Barbero and Javier Granell Vives also created the first ceramic gaiata, a thirteen feet tall construction entirely covered by trencadis (a type of mosaic created from broken tile shards), faux stained glass and over 300 LED lights. Further information about this can be found in both newspapers El Mundo and Levante published on April 3, 2011.

Traditions[]

Symbols of the festival[]

References[]

^ Europa press (12 March 2010). "Fiestas de la Magdalena, declaradas de interés turístico internacional". Retrieved 15 March 2010.
^ Calendario futuro de las fiestas de la Magdalena, Ayuntamiento de Castellón de la Plana
^ Año de celebración de las Fiestas de la Magdalena desde 1945
^ Turismo Comunidad Valenciana (2 July 2012). "Fiestas de La Magdalena de Castellón". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
^ Festapedia (29 November 2010). "Gaiata". Retrieved 1 October 2012.

External links[]

Junta de Fiestas de Castellón
Magdalena.pdf Information leaflet about the Magdalena Festival on the official tourism web site of the Valencian community.

[1] Europa press (12 March 2010). "Fiestas de la Magdalena, declaradas de interés turístico internacional". Retrieved 15 March 2010.

[2] Calendario futuro de las fiestas de la Magdalena, Ayuntamiento de Castellón de la Plana

[3] Año de celebración de las Fiestas de la Magdalena desde 1945

[4] Turismo Comunidad Valenciana (2 July 2012). "Fiestas de La Magdalena de Castellón". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2012.

[5] Festapedia (29 November 2010). "Gaiata". Retrieved 1 October 2012.

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v Fiestas of International Tourist Interest (Spain)
Andalusia	Carnival of Cádiz (1980) Holy Week in Málaga (1980) Holy Week in Seville (1980) Jerez Horse Fair (1980) Jerez Grape Harvest Fest (1980) Pilgrimage of El Rocío (1980) Seville April Fair (1980) Horse racing of Sanlúcar (1997) Holy Week in Granada (2007) Cascamorras (2013)
Aragon	Holy Week in Saragossa (2014) Ruta del tambor y el bombo including the Holy Weeks in Albalate del Arzobispo, Alcañiz, Alcorisa, Andorra, Calanda, Híjar, la Puebla de Híjar, Samper de Calanda and Urrea de Gaén (2014) Fiestas del Pilar (2019)
Asturias	International Sella River Descent (1980)
Canary Islands	Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (1980)
Cantabria	Cantabrian Wars Fest (2008)
Castile–La Mancha	Corpus Christi in Toledo (1980) Holy Week in Cuenca and its Religious Music Week (1980) Holy Week in Hellín (2007) Albacete Fair (2008) Holy Week in Toledo (2014) Fiestas Mayores of Almansa (2019)
Castile and León	Holy Week in Valladolid (1980) Holy Week in Zamora (1982) Holy Week in León (2002) Holy Week in Salamanca (2003) Holy Week in Medina de Rioseco (2009) Holy Week in Medina del Campo (2011) Holy Week in Palencia (2012) Holy Week in Ávila (2014) Running of the bulls in Cuéllar (2018) Corpus Christi in Béjar (2019)
Extremadura	Holy Week in Cáceres (2011) Holy Week in Mérida (2018)
Galicia	Fiestas of Santiago Apóstol (2001) Viking Festival of Catoira (2002) Ortigueira's Festival of Celtic World (2005) Rapa das Bestas of Sabucedo (2007) Corpus Christi in Ponteareas (2009) Holy Week in Viveiro (2013) Holy Week in Ferrol (2014) La Pinta Arrival to Baiona (2015) Bonfires of Saint John in La Coruña (2015) Festa do Albariño (2018) Carnival of Xinzo de Limia (2019) Fiesta del Cocido de Lalín (2020)
Community of Madrid	Fiestas of the Mutiny of Aranjuez (2014)
Region of Murcia	Fiesta de la Santísima y Vera Cruz de Caravaca (2004) Holy Week in Cartagena (2005) Festival del Cante de las Minas (2006) The Burial of the Sardine in Murcia (2006) Holy Week in Lorca (2007) Holy Week in Murcia (2011) Bando de la Huerta de Murcia (2012) Carnival of Águilas (2015) Carthaginians and Romans of Cartagena (2017) Holy Week in Jumilla (2019)
Navarre	Festival of San Fermín (1980)
Valencian Community	Falles in Valencia (1980) Moors and Christians of Alcoy (1980) Mystery Play of Elche (1980) Bonfires of Saint John in Alicante (1983) International Habaneras and Polyphony Contest of Torrevieja (1994) Procession of the Palm Sunday in Elche (1997) La Tomatina (2002) Moors and Christians of Villajoyosa (2003) Entrada de Toros y Caballos de Segorbe (2005) Magdalena Festival (2010) Holy Week in Orihuela (2010) Holy Week in Crevillente (2011) Falles in Sagunto (2013) Moors and Christians of Crevillente (2017) All Saints' Fair of Cocentaina (2019)
Note: Within parentheses, the year when honored