Festivities of the Virgen de la Capilla

According to tradition, on the night of 10-11 June 1430 the Virgin descended to Jaén accompanied by a heavenly procession and stopped in the San Ildefonso quarter. The account was recorded at the time by the diocese's vicar general, Juan Rodríguez de Villalpando, with the testimony of residents who said they had seen a radiant woman holding a child. The Gothic image of the Virgen de la Capilla has been venerated ever since in what is now the Basilica of San Ildefonso.

Brotherhoods devoted to the patron saint are recorded from the 16th century. In 1926 they merged into one, the Brotherhood of Nuestra Señora de la Capilla, which Alfonso XIII granted the title of Royal. The carving has been a Site of Cultural Interest since 1988, is the only crowned image in the city, holds the Keys and Gold Medal of Jaén and bears the staff of office and sash of Honorary Mayor.

11 June is one of the two local holidays in the city of Jaén, and the City Council schedules the Virgen de la Capilla Fair and Festivities that month.

The heart of the festival is the Basilica Sanctuary of San Ildefonso, where the image is venerated and where, according to tradition, the Virgin stopped on the night of the Descent. The canons and the City Council walk there in procession from the Cathedral for the votive Mass. The procession goes through the streets of Jaén.

On the morning of 11 June, the Cathedral Chapter and the City Council hold the traditional votive Mass of the Cabildos at San Ildefonso. Before it begins, the account of the Descent recorded by Rodríguez de Villalpando is read out, and the Orfeón Santo Reino choir usually accompanies the celebration.

The climax is the Grand Procession of the Virgin through the streets of Jaén, the day the patron saint wears her finest robes. During those days the City Council schedules cultural events as part of the Virgen de la Capilla Fair and Festivities.