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At the Cova da Iria ...

 

The Chapel of the Apparitions, in Portuguese “Capelinha das Aparições” is located within the walls of the Sanctuary at Cova da Iria.

 

The chapel was built on the site of the Apparitions in 1917. It is a response to the request of the Virgin Mary : "I want a chapel to be built here in my honor".

 

In the place of the holm oak ...

 

The Virgin Mary appeared on a holm oak; it is there that the children say they have seen it five times: May, June, July, September and October, on the 13th of each month; however, the pilgrims who ran to the very place of the apparitions cut the branches of this holm oak to make relics. Some even testified to having smelled an inexplicable “good smell” . The holm oak therefore quickly disappeared.

 

The construction of the Chapel.

 

The construction of the chapel took place from April 28 to June 15, 1919; it was built with stone and lime and covered with tiles. It is 3.30 meters long, 2.80 meters wide and 2.85 meters high. However, it was destroyed by strangers opposed to the Catholic religion in 1922. Popular indignation was great and it was rebuilt identically and completed in 1923. In 1982, a porch made of bay windows was built and now overlooks the Chapel. It shelters pilgrims in prayer.

 

The statue of Our Lady of the Rosary.

 

At the place of the small green oak is now a pedestal on which rests a statue of Our Lady of the Rosary. It is a sculpture made of cedar wood from Brazil. She is four meters tall and weighs 19 kilos. The crown which is shown only on great pilgrimage days is a gift made by the women of Portugal on October 13, 1942. They made this gift in thanksgiving for the protection afforded to Portugal during World War II (and its non-participation in the conflict). It is gold, weighs 1.2 kg, has 313 pearls and 2679 gemstones. In addition, John Paul II offered to the Sanctuary on March 26, 1984 the bullet that was intended for him during the attack against him in Rome on May 13, 1981 and this bullet has been embedded in the crown since 1989.

 

The Pilgrim Virgin of Fatima.

 

The statue made a few trips to Portugal and the Vatican, but in response to many requests, copies were made: “the Pilgrim Virgin of Fátima” in order to continue traveling around the world.

 

Marie: Queen and Patron Saint of Portugal.

 

Our Lady has been considered Queen and Patron Saint of Portugal for several centuries. Indeed, in 1646, King John IV of Portugal placed the crown of Portugal on the head of Our Lady of the Conception, in Portuguese “Nossa Senhora da Conceição” in the church of Vila Viçosa where the family palace was located. By this gesture, he placed the Virgin Mary as protector of the Portuguese kingdom. After this date, no Portuguese sovereign will wear the crown on his head.

 

Our Lady, long before the apparitions of Fatima, was therefore already considered the protectress of Portugal. It is still so in this place where countless graces are given to those who make a pilgrimage to the Sanctuary.