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Hermitage of la Magdalena

Castelló de la Plana, La Plana Alta, Castellón

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Spain › Valencian Community › Castellón › La Plana Alta › Castelló de la Plana › Hermitage of la Magdalena

Hermitage of la Magdalena

Monument · Castelló de la Plana, La Plana Alta, Castellón

The hermitage of la Magdalena stands on the hill of the same name, on the outskirts of Castelló de la Plana, forming part of the Castell Vell, a castle of Islamic origin near which the town of Castellón stood until the mid-13th century. When the castle was abandoned, a hermit friar, with the help of local residents, fitted out part of it as a hermitage dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene, renovated in the 18th century. The area has been the site of pilgrimages since the Middle Ages; between 1562 and 1570 a vow for an annual penitential pilgrimage was instituted, which in the 18th century came to commemorate the move of Castellón's inhabitants from the hill to the Plana, a pilgrimage that gave rise to the present-day Magdalena festivities. It has been declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection) since 1996.

Photo: Marioluigiwario (Public domain)

What to see and do in Castelló de la Plana