The festival commemorates an episode that took place between 1408 and 1412 , when the residents of the Llanera council, subject to the jurisdictional lordship of the clergy of Oviedo, rose up against the grievances they attributed to the representatives of the bishop, Don Guillén de Monteverde or Verdemonte. That conflict, which may have begun with a specific abuse—the forced appropriation of an ox belonging to the nobleman Gonzalo Rodríguez de Posada, according to some accounts—emerged into a popular insurrection. The residents decided to disobey, and in the Middle Ages, disobeying the lord, especially when that lord was also a bishop, was tantamount to losing the keys to heaven.
The excommunicated of Llanera
The response was terrible: excommunication for the inhabitants of the council . The churches closed their doors, the bells fell silent, religious services were suspended, and the principal sacraments ceased to be celebrated. This meant being born without a blessing, marrying without protection, dying without a canonical burial, and living under a permanent suspicion that would last for eternity.
What was extraordinary about these events was not only the condemnation, but the resistance mounted for four years by the entire council: noblemen, commoners, good men, families, and parishes. This is why the festival of Los Exconxuraos has something of a civic epic about it, the steadfastness of a small Asturian community that refused to accept the abuse as natural. Reconciliation would only come after the death of Don Guillén, when the new bishop, Diego Ramírez de Guzmán, opened a path to peace.
On July 27, 1412, the council representatives met in Posada to declare their return to obedience and request the lifting of the excommunication. But the pardon required an extra spectacle: thirty men—twenty nobles and ten commoners—had to go to the Church of San Salvador in Oviedo, barefoot, dressed in sackcloth or doublets, bound with ropes, and carrying lit candles. They had to participate in the procession and the Mass before receiving absolution. This is the dramatic core of the celebration: the penitential march to Oviedo . Thirty men walking like vanquished so that the entire council could once again receive communion.
The great medieval festival of Asturias
Since 2000 , Llanera has transformed these events into a popular festival, and over time, Los Exconxuraos has become established as one of Asturias's major historical celebrations , recognized as a Festival of Regional Tourist Interest . But the appeal of Los Exconxuraos lies not only in the medieval costumes or historical reenactments, but in its true essence, in the fact that Llanera recognizes itself in these events.
In this way, memory is not sustained solely by documents, nor by the names of bishops, nor by the solemnity of absolution, but above all by the participation of the residents , who transform the memory into a celebration. The inhabitants of Llanera prepare their own costumes, parade, perform, contribute to the atmosphere, and turn the festival into a symbolic extension of the old rebellious council.
The main events form a kind of secular liturgy. The medieval market and encampment transform the fairgrounds into a fortified village, populated by artisans, minstrels, jesters, troubadours, dancers, men-at-arms, falconers, and practitioners of ancient trades. The atmosphere of the Middle Ages is all-encompassing: iron, leather, fire, wood, music, shouts, stalls, smoke, and that picturesque disorder so appealing to today's audiences, perhaps because daily life has become too orderly.
The Exconxuraos parade is the most unique event of the celebration. The figures dressed in sacks, bound with ropes, and evoked as ancient penitents stand in stark contrast to the scene of the open-air mass , which reminds us once again that the conflict was not only political or local, but also religious.
The medieval dinner occupies another central place. The banquet, with its abundance and theatricality, represents the other side of penance: after the sack, the tablecloth and the wine; after excommunication, the lamb (on the spit). Hundreds of diners in period costumes gather around the dinner, and the jousting tournament adds the clamor of epic to the evening: lances, duels, honor, and live spectacle.
There's also a very recognizable Asturian dimension to this event. The Exconxuraos are both a historical celebration and a village festival . They have solemnity and culture, but no pretentiousness. The town council dresses up, parades, and follows all the official ceremonies, but in the end, it all culminates in a lively street party.
Information:
You can find more information about this festival at exconxuraos.es.
On this same website you will find a complete film that narrates the events that took place in Llanera at the beginning of the 15th century.
Photographs: © Llanera Town Hall
