Holy Week in Badajoz is presented as a fascinating mosaic of religiosity, history, art, color and austerity, splendidly fused, thus achieving the distinction of being recognized as the “Festival of National Tourist Interest” in 2011.
The roots of the Badajoz Semana Mayor tradition date back to the 16th century, and over the years, more than forty brotherhoods have walked its streets. Currently, eleven of these brotherhoods, each with its own history, display monuments and works of art in the most picturesque corners of the old town. This laudable effort is materialized thanks to the discreet work of the costaleros, who assume the responsibility of carrying the processional steps.
The festival begins on Friday of Sorrows and ends on Easter Sunday. Each day is marked by unique and moving processions, with Holy Thursday being the most notable, with the departure of the Patroness, the Virgin of Soledad.
Holy Week in Badajoz is not only a religious event, but a living testimony of the rich history, exceptional art, palpable devotion and deep-rooted tradition of the city.
Among the various brotherhoods, the Brotherhood of Humility stands out, which presents some curiosities worth mentioning. Firstly, since the 17th century, the name of Christ of Humility fell on the image that we know today as Christ of Arrest, processioned at dawn on Holy Thursday. Later, due to the interruption of the procession in the 1940s and the lack of a new Mystery of the Arrest, the name Jesus of Humility was transferred to the image that gives life to the passage of the Prayer in the Garden, leaving the procession with just two steps.
The second curiosity is closely linked to the previous one. The Brotherhood undertook with great effort the project of a new Paso del Prendimiento, which, after going out onto the street and not being liked by the Brotherhood, was left abandoned in the basements of the Church of the Concepción, where it is still preserved.
In 1943, the Brotherhood decided to commission a new step of the “Arrest of Jesus” from the Granada-born image maker Pérez Alcunce. Despite the controversy that arose for not complying with what was agreed in the contract, the images were blessed by the Bishop of Badajoz, D. José María Alcaraz y Alenda, during Holy Week in 1946. However, the torn and terrible appearance of The figures, especially the excessive gesture of Judas caused the sudden disappearance of the step in the procession of the Brotherhood in its first and only year of departure, due to the excessive weight of the figures and the size of the bearers. This is the story of the attempt to provide the Brotherhood with a new step of the Capture, which in reality turned out to be a “Judas Kiss.”
