Our Lady of Chamorro

"Virxe do Nordés" · patron of Ferrol (A Coruña)

On the top of Mount Chamorro, on the river of Ferrol, a medieval hermitage guards the "Virxe do Nordés," patron of Ferrol; every Easter Monday, thousands of faithful go up in Rome on their Via Cruces.

Origin and history

The hermitage dates back to the end of the Middle Ages - its first documentary quote is 1499 - with tarootic features. The stable Romeria was promoted by the Brotherhood of the Virgin of the Norse in the 17th century (about 1666). The original image is a Romanesque size of the 12th century; in procession a contemporary image comes out today, keeping the primitive in the hermitage. She is venerated as the patron of Ferrol and the "seas and valleys" of the region.

The tradition explains the name "Chamorro" by the legend of a fisherman who, about to drown, shouted in Galician "Xa morro!" ("I already die") invoking the Virgin, who saved him; another version speaks of an apparition to two shepherds. They're legendary stories. The pilgrimage of Easter Monday, closely linked to the people of the sea, includes mass, procession and a Way Crucius that goes up to the sanctuary, with promises and penitential acts.

Canonical coronation: not found in the sources.