FESTIVITIES IN HONOUR TO THE SANTÍSIMA Y VERA CRUZ DE CARAVACA.
The end of  Winter and the beginning of Spring is celebrated at the Night of El Reventón.

Festivities from the 1st to the 5th of May/ Festivities Commission/ Festivities in Honour to the Santísima y Vera Cruz de Caravaca.

Festivities in Honour to the Santísima y Vera Cruz de Caravaca.

The Royal and Illustrious Brotherhood of the Santísima y Vera Cruz de Caravaca is the institution in charge of the organization of the festivities in honour to the Cross. It also watches for the maintenance of the cult to the holy Cross.

The Brotherhood, headed by its Brother Superior, depends on the Festivities Commission and its sections. There are three different associations, the Moorish groups, the Christian groups and the Wine Horses groups.

MOORS AND CHRISTIANS
Every 25th of April, the "Tio de la Pita" comes to our city announcing the proximity of the festivals. He always plays very well-known melodies, such as "Serafina la rubiales".

The festivals are celebrated from the 30th of April to the 5th of May.

The 30th of April is the Night of the Migas. That night the whole city ingroups or "peñas", cook their migas in the street.

The festivals are held until the 5th of May, the day in which the Cross, Patron Saint of Caravaca, returns in procession to the Sanctuary.

The festivals are mainly religious and always honouring the Holy Cross.

The most important ritual takes place the 3rd of May. At the Templete, the Blessing of the water is celebrated.

Before that Blessing, the two kings, the Moor and the Christian, have a Parliament in which they try to reach an agreement.

The Moorish and Christian Groups, wearing their best costumes, accompany the Cross in all its processions during the festivals.

The 4th of May in the evening is the Great Parade of Moors and Christians.

THE WINE HORSES
Nevertheless, the passion  emerges the 2nd of May; the day of the Wine Horses.

Lots of horses, with beautiful hand-embroidered harnesses, parade along the main streets of Caravaca.

It is a very passionate festival. It has a very high degree of emotion and competitiveness, which has its best moment during the Race of the Wine Horses, held at the last hill that reaches the Sanctuary. After the Race, at the esplanade of the Sanctuary, the prizes are given for the Harnesses competition and for the Race competition.

There is a legend that tells us that in the 13th Century, being the population besieged at the castle due to the Moorish attacks, and lacking water, several Christian horsemen, warned by signals of aid from the interior of the enclosure, decided to burst in the castle surprising the Moorish guard.

They used fast horses carried with wine-keepers and were able to arrive at the interior of the enclosure.

The Cross blessed that wine and it suddenly began to cure the wounded Christians and they managed to resist the Muslim attacks.

On the other hand, the historical reality, seems to aim the fact of Blessing the wine in the XVII century. At that time the horses used to carry some wine to be blessed by the Holy Relic. This is surely the only ritual of this kind celebrated in the Christian world.

The referred horses were beautifully dressed and soon, both the Harnesses competition and the Race competition were born.