Lourdes
Basilica of the Rosary
Photos of the Basilica interior
Lourdes, town in southwestern France,
in Hautes-Pyrénées Department, on the Gave de Pau River, at the base of the
Pyrenees. An important fortress town in medieval times, Lourdes is now
principally a pilgrimage center. Each year millions visit the grotto where, in
1858, a 14-year-old girl, Bernadette Soubirous (later Saint Bernadette), claimed
to have had visions of the Virgin Mary. The waters of an underground spring in
the grotto are believed to have miraculous healing powers. A basilica (completed
1876) and a large underground church are at the grotto. Population (1999)
15,203.
mall in front of the Basilica
visitors on a rainy day
Grotte de Massabeille
town of Lourdes and its castle in the background
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