Our Lady of Madroñal

Sanctuary of Auñón, on the Tagus (Guadalajara)

In a cliff by the river Takho, a baroque hermitage of the 17th century guards the Virgin of the Madroñal of Auñón, to which the people dedicate each night of April 30 the song of the "Mayos."

Origin and history

The sanctuary-hermitage of the Virgin of Madroñal is located to the north-east of Auñón, in a cliff next to the Tagus. The hermitage, of great proportions and with Baroque altarpiece, was built in the 17th century - a "glorious century" for devotion, with works of expansion and beautification.

The Virgin of the Madroñal is the main advocation of Auñón, with its own sanctuary and celebrations; a characteristic is the song of the "Mayos" to the Virgin in the parish of Saint John the Baptist on the night of April 30. The sources do not collect a documented foundational account of the image.

Formal patronage, date of the feast and canonical coronation: they are not accurately recorded in the sources.