La Herradura will be commemorating the 459th anniversary of the naval disaster in its bay from today until Monday the 25th.

The fortress, which has a permanent display dedicated to the tragic sinking of almost an entire fleet, will have open days for the occasions.

“The special programme starting on Tuesday the 19th is for everybody; from the elderly to kiddies so that everyone can learn about the history of the shipwrecks, starting with a guided tour of the display for schoolchildren from the CEIP Las Gaviotas,” explained the First Councillor of La Herradura, Juan José Ruiz Joya.

He said that they wouldn’t all visit at once, but that groups of them would make the visit as the week progresses until they have all seen it.

There will be an ofrenda flora (wreath laying) at 11.00h next to the castle moat, with the collaboration of the Asociación Amigos de La Herradura.

He also said that they were in the middle of negotiating with the Guardia Civil for one of their launches to set off from Marina del Este at 16.30h with members of the public on board to the exact spot where the galleys went down.

The commemoration will conclude with an award for the Asociación Amigos de barca de Jábega for their conservation work on a jábega fishing boat and their efforts to spread knowledge on traditional, fishing methods during the recent history of the village.

The disaster where 25 of the 28 galleys in the fleet went down was such a traumatic shock for Spain at the time that Miguel de Cervantes made reference to it in the second half of El Quijote,

(New: Herradura, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)