Marian devotion
Our Lady of Atalaia
The great Romeria of the Cirios · Montijo (Setúbal)
In Atalaia, next to the Tagus estuary, the Royal Sanctuary of Nossa Senhora da Atalaia is one of the oldest Marian Romeries in Portugal, linked since 1507 to the officials of the customs of Lisbon, who crossed the river in thanksgiving for the end of a plague.
Origin and history
According to tradition, the cult was born from an apparition of the Virgin on an aroeira (lentisco) next to a fountain later held by "Fonte Santa," which led to the opening of a first oratory. This story is explicitly transmitted as legend.
Historically, devotion has been attested to since at least 1409. In 1507, during a terrible plague in Lisbon, the officials of the Customs (Confraria das Alfândegas) crossed the Tagus and went in procession to the sanctuary to ask for the intercession of Santa Maria de la Atalaia; when they were taken care of, they established an annual rosemary that lasts until today. The present temple is a construction of the XVIIIth century. The sanctuary retains a remarkable Museum of Exvotes.
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