541 years on, San Bernabé still reigns over the streets of Marbella

The commemoration recalls Thursday 11 June 1485, when Marbella passed into the Crown of Castile, an anniversary that this year fell on the same day of the week as the original event.

As tradition dictates, the procession ended at the Cruz del Humilladero, the site associated with the handover of the town's keys by the Moorish governor Mohammad Abuneza to Ferdinand II of Aragon. The moment followed the Castilian advance through the region, which had included the capture of Ronda just 22 days earlier.

Ferdinand arrived without Isabel of Castile, who had remained in Cordoba managing the logistics of the ongoing war against the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada. She was also pregnant at the time with the future Catherine of Aragon, who would go on to marry Henry VIII and become Queen of England.

This year's procession departed from an unusual starting point. Building works have left the town hall closed until at least August, so the march began instead at Calle Salinas, headquarters of the town hall's Festivals department. The historic municipal building was originally commissioned by magistrate Juan de Pisa and constructed in 1568, nearly a century after the conquest.

The Banner of Marbella, a replica of the emblem granted by the Catholic Monarchs in 1493 and recreated during the reign of Philip V, was carried by Partido Popular (PP) councillor Alejandro González, alongside municipal authorities led by mayor Ángeles Muñoz.

The procession set off to the sound of the Marbella municipal band, accompanied by members of the Brotherhood of Pilgrims of San Bernabé, before pausing at the Iglesia de La Encarnación. The building is believed to have been constructed over a former mosque and was formally established as a church in 1505, some 20 years after the conquest. Parish priest José Antonio Sánchez Herrera joined the march there.

The route continued through Calles Caridad and Misericordia to Plaza Altamirano and Puente Málaga, where the Local Police Cavalry Squadron waited in ceremonial dress, before the procession turned back along Calle Málaga towards the Cruz del Humilladero.

At the historic site, orthopaedic surgeon and athlete Ana María Cerván de la Haba was received the Marbella de Honor distinction from the Huerto Porral Neighbourhood Association. She said receiving the award in her own neighbourhood felt "very special", and dedicated it to her "family, neighbours and patients, who make this neighbourhood a wonderful place".

The procession then returned to the Iglesia de La Encarnación for a solemn mass in honour of San Bernabé. A final procession of the patron saint of Marbella brought the morning's commemorations to a close.