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The Manaies de Girona and the steps are clean and ready for the magical Holy Week procession, as can be seen in the Photos of the Readers of La Vanguardia.
The manaies are the Roman soldiers who traditionally parade during Holy Week in some towns and cities in Catalonia, such as Girona in this case. In some places, such as Badalona or Besalú, they are also called estaferms.
The first reliable documentary data on the existence of the manaies in Girona dates back to 1751, as detailed by the Confradia de Jesús Crucificat.
At that time, four manaies guarded “the mystery” of the Holy Sepulcher in the Carme church throughout Holy Thursday and also opened the procession.
Since then, the manaies have participated, leading them, in the processions of Holy Week in Girona: the one on Maundy Thursday (organized by the Royal Brotherhood of the Immaculate Blood, founded in Girona in 1568) and the one on Good Friday (organized by the Archconfraternity of the Passion and Death, founded in 1684).
The manaies have been overcoming the difficulties of the years and have reached our days as one of the great attractions of the Holy Week processions in Girona.
Currently, the Confradia de Jesús Crucificat, which brings together about 900 brothers, makes the manaies and their heritage known.
