On Sunday, Senglea will be commemorating the first centenary of the granting of the basilical title to its collegiate church
The year 1921 was a most remarkable and special year for the people of Senglea because of two major events that have grafted an indelible mark on the glorious annals of the ‘Unconquered City’. It was a year which saw the realisation of a long-awaited dream of the people of Senglea who had long yearned for the solemn crowning, through a decree of the Vatican, of their beloved Bambina, or holy effigy of the Child Virgin venerated in their collegiate church.
[attach id=1008960 size="medium" align="right" type="image"]The miraculous effigy of the Holy Virgin, known locally as Il-Bambina, was crowned on September 4, 1921.[/attach]
The official petition for the solemn crowning of the carved effigy of the Child Virgin had been submitted to the Maltese Church authorities on March 31, 1920. The then archpriest of Senglea, Can Don Giuseppe Adami, on behalf of the Reverend Collegiate Chapter and the local citizenry, requested Archbishop Dom Mauro Caruana to intercede on their behalf with the Vatican Chapter to obtain the relevant ecclesiastical decree authorising the...
