Nuestra Señora del Rosario as the patron saint of La Unión

Our Lady of the Rosary is the patrón saint of La Unión

The patron saint of La Unión is Nuestra Señora del Rosario, or Our Lady of the Rosary, who is also the patron saint of battles. Her feast day is 7th October, a date which in 1571 marked the victory of the Christian fleet over the Ottomans in the Battle of Lepanto, and is celebrated in the municipality every year, although how she came to be chosen to represent the people of the town has never been fully verified.

There is, however, a tale which many believe provides an explanation.

The story goes that there was a disaster in one of the mines of Herrerías, when various men died after one of the galleries collapsed, and that the people of the village held the mining company officials to blame. Fearing for their lives, the bosses fled to Cartagena and from there are said to have boarded a ship heading for America.

However, consumed by their anger at the mining officials, the locals had neglected to pray for the souls of those who lost their lives in the tragedy, and not long afterwards when they were attending Mass at the small church of Herrerías a mysterious and beautiful lady appeared, dressed in white and carrying a rosary comprised of large beads. She took up a position next to the altar and proceeded to reproach them for their forgetfulness, urging them to say a prayer for the deceased. As soon as they had finished doing so she is said to have glided from the building without her feet touching the floor.

The congregation concluded that they had witnessed an apparition of Nuestra Señora del Rosario, who has been revered in many towns of the Region of Murcia, especially since her cult was spread by the Dominicans in the 16th century.  

In La Unión, the first holy image of Nuestra Señora del Rosario was commissioned in the late 19th century by a tavern owner called Antonio Vivancos from the famed sculptor Sánchez Araciel, and this increased the devotion to her among the townspeople. This devotion was soon reflected in the flamenco Cante de las Minas, with various lyrics reflecting the esteem in which she was held by miners, who combined their worship for her with their admiration of the Cristo Minero de La Unión.

“Soy minero temerario
y con orgullo sincero
llevo al pecho un relicario
con la Virgen del Rosario
y el Cristo de los Mineros”
(I am a fearless miner
And with sincere pride
I wear on my chest a locket
With the Virgen del Rosario
And the Cristo de los Mineros”)

So strong is the link between mining and religion in La Unión and the flamenco music of the Cante de las Minas that Nuestra Señora del Rosario is sometimes referred to as the Virgen Minera, and she is mentioned not only in the municipal anthem of the town but also in the hymn which represents the Cante de las Minas international flamenco festival:

“Es el pecho del minero santuario
y su cante de levante es un vergel
con aromas de la Virgen del Rosario
que velando en todo instante está por él...”

The image of the Virgen del Rosario remains in the parroquial church thoughout the year, the Iglesia parroquial de Nuestra Señora la Virgen del Rosario