FEASTS OF TOURIST INTEREST
Moors and Christians
Coinciding with the first weekend after Easter, and also with the commemoration of the feast of Sant Vicent Ferrer, Agullent celebrates the Moors and Christians. A celebration that reminds the struggles and wars between the kingdoms of Christians and Muslims. A symbolism that we can see throughout the celebration and the representation of the verbal fight for the castle that closes the feast.
The celebration of Moors and Christians of Agullent take us every year back to the history, remembering us the origins and identities of the town with its unique folklore. Agullent has an ancient, deep-rooted and singular celebration, which is obviously open to new contributions at both the festive and the musical level but remains constant in its character making it original. In fact “la Entrada de Agullent” is a must for the whole region.
Although the festive program of Agullent includes joint events of the celebration of Moors and christians in the territories, it denotes some peculiarities. For example, the day of “ la Entrada”, at night, takes place “la Retreta”, a night parade with paper lanterns. A parade that is similar to those occuring in the feasts of September dedicated to our patron Saint Vincent Ferrer. The act of “Combregar dels Impedits” is also a religious feast of importance. All the public walk in silence with flowers in their hands. All united in a strong collective identity, which is another significant feature of our party.
The Festivals Board is responsible for organizing the program of events, which includes a total of 9 feasts. Those celebrations were recently declared as Celebrations of Tourist Interest in Valencia.
Festivities of San Vicente Martir
The feast called Miracle of Agullent, includes in its program one of the oldest nightly pilgrimages of Valencia which is a good reason to come to this small town in the Vall of Albaida. Each first Friday of September, at night, neighbors and visitors go up to the chapel of Sant Vicent Ferrer with lanterns and torches with the aim of remembering the miracle of the plague. Everybody sing all together and after that wait in line for having some miraculous oil of Sant Vicente´s lamp.
Beyond the religious beliefs, “ Nit de les fogueres d’Agullent” has become over the centuries an excellent testimony of the festive heritage of the land. An act of high historical, cultural and ethnological value declared by the Department of Tourism as Feast of Tourist Interest.
This tradition has been kept alive continuously for more than four hundred years and is linked to a singular population as well as to the celebrations of Agullent in September (days 6, 7 and 8 in 2013). The natural and architectural assets of the town offer a spectacular environment for those events.
As part of these celebrations, the Dance takes place on the main square on the first Saturday of September in the evening. Dancers come out on the square, make a big circle and dance while the music band set up the rhythm.