Basilica of Our Lady of Fátima

The Sanctuary of Fátima in central Portugal commemorates the six apparitions of the Virgin Mary to three shepherd children — Lúcia dos Santos, and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto — that occurred at the Cova da Iria between May 13 and October 13, 1917. The children reported that Our Lady asked for prayer (especially the Rosary), penance for the conversion of sinners, and the consecration of Russia to her Immaculate Heart. The apparitions concluded with the 'Miracle of the Sun' on October 13, 1917, witnessed by approximately 70,000 people — including secular journalists and non-believers — who reported seeing the sun dance and appear to plunge toward the earth.

The Chapel of the Apparitions was built in 1919 at the exact site where the Virgin appeared in a holm-oak tree. The original Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, completed in 1953, and the modern Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity, consecrated in 2007 with capacity for 8,600 seated worshippers, together form one of the largest shrine complexes in the Catholic world.

Jacinta and Francisco Marto were canonized in 2017 by Pope Francis during his visit on the 100th anniversary of the apparitions. Sr. Lúcia's cause is open.

Fátima draws approximately 6 million pilgrims annually, with the major pilgrimage dates being the 13th of each month from May through October and the anniversary celebrations on May 13 and October 13. The candlelight procession on the eve of each major feast day, bringing together tens of thousands of pilgrims singing the Ave Maria, is among the most moving expressions of Catholic piety in the world.