Celebrations in Honor of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga

The Saint Aloysius patronal feast in Presicce

The Celebrations in Honor of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga are one of the most cherished summer events in Presicce-Acquarica, a municipality in the Province of Lecce in the heart of Salento, recognized as one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy. The festival, which centers around the liturgical day of June 21st, combines religious devotion with a popular festival, drawing locals and visitors alike to the courtyards and squares of the historic center.

Saint Aloysius, the patron saint of youth

Saint Aloysius Gonzaga is known as the "saint of youth": the son of Marquis Ferrante Gonzaga, he renounced the privileges of nobility to join the Jesuits and dedicate himself to caring for the sick, dying at just 23 years old. His figure, dear to the Presicce community, sets the tone for a festival that alternates between moments of intense devotion and evenings of great popular participation.

Procession, brass band, and pizzica

The religious heart of the festivities is the procession with the statue of the saint, which winds through the illuminated streets of the town, accompanied by confraternities and the luigine—women dressed in black wearing the saint's medallion. Alongside the sacred program, Piazza del Popolo comes alive with brass band concerts in the bandstand and traditional Salento music: in recent years, the festival has hosted pizzica evenings that keep the whole village dancing until late at night.

The market, the underground mills, and the fireworks

During the festival days, the historic center hosts an artisan market with colorful stalls featuring local products and Salento handicrafts, while ancient workshops and alleys fill with visitors. A particularly evocative moment is the inauguration of the lighting of the underground oil mills, the ancient presses carved into the subsoil that have made Presicce famous as the "city of underground mills." To close the event, fireworks illuminate the town's sky with light and color.

A village to discover

The festival is also the perfect opportunity to visit Presicce-Acquarica: the underground oil mills, the Ducal Palace, the Museum of Peasant Civilization, the Baroque churches, and the 16th-century terraced courtyards. The event is promoted by the Pro Loco Presicce-Acquarica, which also organizes guided tours of the village's heritage during the festival days, in the heart of the Lecce Salento, just a few kilometers from Santa Maria di Leuca.