On 9 March 1937, two young people would marry in Orihuela, at the time, somewhat insignificant, but in the future, they would become one of the most famous couples in both literary and cultural history.
The girl, Josefina Manresa, born in Quesada in Jaén, the daughter of a Guardia Civil officer, was to marry the son of a goatherder, an avid reader and writer, who would become a political prisoner, write about his wife, and the troubles of the day, resulting in his incarceration, and the most famous son of Orihuela, the poet, Miguel Hernández.
Without intentionally trivialising the history of his life, we fast forward to 2024, and the Association of Merchants and Hoteliers of the Municipality of Orihuela (ACMO), together with the Department of Commerce, with the assistance of the director of the Teatro de Expresion group and the director of the Cultural Foundation of Miguel Hernández, launched a commercial campaign to celebrate that wedding of the century, that will take place on March 9.
Miguel Hernández married Josefina Manresa in Orihuela on March 9, 1937. That is why the association will recreate their wedding. First, there will be a guided route at 11:30 a.m., where the theatre group will show the most important moments of the courtship until reaching the wedding. Later there will be a banquet at 1:00 p.m. with capacity for 100 people.
Attendees will be served rice and crust, just as Miguel Hernández offered on his wedding day. It will be prepared by the winner of the 2023 contest, Raggú, the winner of the 2022 contest, Davinia Martínez, and by this year’s two finalists, Bar Estanco and Restaurante San Pascual.
To encourage purchases, 5 double tickets will be raffled to be able to attend the banquet, among all the people who buy in the associated commerce and hospitality. In addition to holding a showcase contest where the winner will receive a check for 500 euro to redeem in the shops and hotels of Orihuela.
“Today we bring you a differential bet, where we value Orihuela, where we intend for all of Spain to find out about this unique event and for Orihuela to be the protagonist. We want things to happen in Orihuela, because in this way we will be giving life to the commerce and hospitality of our municipality,” explained Ascensio Pérez, president of the ACMO during the launch event.
