Our Lady of Victory

Melilla's Patron · crowned in 1948

From time immemorial, the patron of Melilla, Our Lady of Victory - whose image, according to tradition, came on a ship diverted by a little after Lepanto - was crowned canonically in 1948 and celebrates its party on September 8.

Origin and history

Our Lady of Victory is the patron of the city of Melilla, which belongs ecclesiastically to the diocese of Málaga - whose main patron is Santa María de la Victoria. The devotion is documented as immemorial: the tradition places his acclaim as a patron in 1631, following an attempt to kidnap the image, and his patronage was officially ratified on February 3, 1756, when King Fernando VI confirmed it and the people issued a notarized public oath.

According to the chronicles, a few years after the battle of Lepanto (1571) the image would have arrived in Melilla on a ship from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, destined for the Indias, to which a temporary prevented further travel; some historians advance their presence even to 1497. It was canonically crowned in 1948 by the bishop of Málaga, under a brief of Pius XII. His party, on September 8, is also a local city party.

The exact date of the election as a patron: it is not documented (recognized as old in 1756).