Every August 8th, the city of Ibiza comes to a standstill to remember its past and honour its patron saint, Sant Ciriac. The date commemorates the Catalan conquest of 1235, when the troops of Guillem de Montgrí, on behalf of King Jaume I, took the island from the Muslims. Almost eight centuries later, the celebration combines history with religious fervour and social life on the island.
The morning began in the Cathedral Square, with the sun already high and a cloudless sky. The heat was relentless, and attendees sought any shade under the walls. The Ciutat d'Eivissa Music Band opened the day with a concert in front of the façade, while the colla de ball pagès, made up of members of the folk groups of the Federació de Colles de Ball y Cultura Popular d'Eivissa, in their traditional costumes, waited their turn to enter the temple.
Conversations among those sitting on the benches and those standing were interrupted every time a new piece began. «The image is beautiful, but it's so hot. Thank goodness we found this shaded spot,» said one woman, nodding to her neighbours in agreement.
When the music in the square ended, the celebration moved inside the cathedral. The entrance procession was accompanied by the sound of drums, flutes and castanets played by the balladors. Incense filled the air as the canons and other priests advanced towards the altar. The ceremony was presided over by the Bishop of Ibiza, Vicent Ribas.
The front benches were occupied by various authorities, including Antoni Costa, the first vice-president of the regional government; Vicent Marí, the president of the Ibiza Council; the mayors of the island's five municipalities; Óscar Portas, the president of the Formentera Council; regional and national deputies; island councillors; Raquel Guasch, the delegate of the State Island Administration; and councillors from the Vila Town Council and other municipalities.
The mass, sung by the Amics de sa Música choir under the direction of Nélida Bonet, began with a prayer. One of the dancers from the colla also felt dizzy and was quickly attended to by several parishioners, who fanned her and offered her water. Although the heat was mitigated by the fans and the coolness of the stone, it was still noticeable, and more and more people took out their own fans.
In his homily, the bishop spoke of the value of the festival, but also of the present and the future. ‘Ibiza is a place of rest, a place of celebration, but also a place with deep Christian roots and traditions. And that is what we are celebrating today,’ he emphasised. He warned that ‘we are experiencing rapid processes of secularisation’. He also addressed the younger generations: ‘It is urgent that our young people grow up with hope, without fear of the future, and that they do not become trapped in a world full of doubts and extremism.’ He insisted that the Church has a duty to ‘be involved in the human community by tackling poverty, immigration, violence in families and abusive prices that cause unrest.’
The offertory was performed by two children and two young people from the colla. At the end of the Mass, the faithful began to leave. ‘We've come to the end, but it was nice to learn about some of the traditions here,’ said Laura, from Barcelona, accompanied by her boyfriend.
Flags, remembrance and cannon fire
After mass, the celebration continued in the streets. The procession began to descend along Major Street and Sant Ciriac Street, led by the 22 flags of the island's parishes. Behind them came the choir and the image of Sant Ciriac.
The procession made its first stop in front of the chapel of Sant Ciriac, where the Te Deum was sung, before moving on to the viewpoint in Plaza de España, where the monument to Guillem de Montgrí is located. There, dozens of people gathered to participate in the tribute. Vicent Marí and Rafa Triguero laid a wreath at the base of the statue, while the colla's sonadors played bagpipes.
The first bouquets were laid, followed by general applause that was interrupted by a volley of cannon fire.
Among those present were locals who are familiar with the tradition and tourists who were discovering it for the first time. "It's very special. We found ourselves in the middle of the procession and decided to stay here. We saw that there was something going on at the cathedral earlier, but we didn't know that today was a holiday here," said David, a British visitor.
Others, such as Clara and Luis, a couple from Madrid, had decided to follow the whole day from the very beginning. ‘The truth is that we didn't know much about this tradition. We read this morning that it was something important for the city, and since we had planned to come to Dalt Vila and saw the crowds, we stayed out of curiosity,’ explained Clara.
Once again, Vuit d'Agost was celebrated in memory of an important event for the tradition and identity of Ibiza.
Midnight firework
At midnight, the city of Ibiza experienced one of its busiest nights of the year with the fireworks display that closed the festivities of Vuit d'Agost, the day of Sant Ciríac, patron saint of the city. The pyrotechnic display, which brought the main events of the Festes de la Terra to a close, once again attracted thousands of people who gathered at various strategic points to watch the event from the best possible vantage points.