Ermita de la Limpia y Pura

In calle Pérez Galdós, we can find this small hermitage named ‘Limpia y Pura’ (Clean and Pure). This road was once known as Calle Alcolea, before changing its name to El Santo, in honour of Fernando III. Interestingly, in 1676, the birth of Fray (Brother) Manuel of Jaén, Capuchin priest who is considered a saint, further justifies the new name of this street.

On that day in 1808, the Spanish troops paraded by its side until reaching the place from where they defended themselves from French attacks. A French general, known as Dupré, was fatally injured during the battle when he attacked the Spanish army with his Cuirassiers. He was buried in this chapel due to its proximity to the battlefield. It was a small, poor, rustic and whitewashed hermitage that had been built at the end of the 15th century. Its name alluded to the image of the Immaculate Conception that it housed inside.
In 1947, the Rentero Tello family donated it to the San Juan Evangelista (St John the Evangelist) Brotherhood and it was restored in 1985. Nowadays, it is home to the image that refers to that congregation, in addition to the ‘la Virgen de la Amargura’ (the Virgin of Bitterness) and ‘Nuestro Padre Jesús de la Sentencia’ (Our Father Jesus of the Pronouncement).