Lourdes is a small market town lying in the foothills of the Pyrenees in the Hautes-Pyrenees area in the Midi-Pyrenees region in south-western France. Up until 1858, Lourdes was a quiet, county-town with a population of approximately 4,000 people.
On 11 February 1858, a 14-year-old local girl, Bernadette Soubirous, said that a beautiful lady appeared to her in the remote Grotto of Massabielle. The lady appeared 18 times and identified herself as "the Immaculate Conception" and many believe she is the Blessed Virgin Mary.
By 1859, only a year following the apparitions, thousands of pilgrims were visiting Lourdes. Since then, Lourdes has become a major place of pilgrimage for Roman Catholics and there has been a number of alleged miraculous healings (The Roman Catholic Church has officially recognied 67 healings which occurred at Lourdes).
Lourdes current population is approximately 15,000 but it is estimated that it has 5 million visitors each season (from March to October). It has also been estimated that there has been approximately 200 million pilgrimages to Lourdes since 1860.
On 11 February 1858, a 14-year-old local girl, Bernadette Soubirous, said that a beautiful lady appeared to her in the remote Grotto of Massabielle. The lady appeared 18 times and identified herself as "the Immaculate Conception" and many believe she is the Blessed Virgin Mary.
By 1859, only a year following the apparitions, thousands of pilgrims were visiting Lourdes. Since then, Lourdes has become a major place of pilgrimage for Roman Catholics and there has been a number of alleged miraculous healings (The Roman Catholic Church has officially recognied 67 healings which occurred at Lourdes).
Lourdes current population is approximately 15,000 but it is estimated that it has 5 million visitors each season (from March to October). It has also been estimated that there has been approximately 200 million pilgrimages to Lourdes since 1860.
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