Foggia, Italy — 25 April 1001
Strange flashes and a luminous lady
The count of Aviemore, tired after a day of hunting, decided to spend the night in a rustic hut. In the middle of the night he was awakened by servants and friends frightened by strange flashes, who urged the hunters to flee with them, fearing a forest fire. He decided not to run away with his companions but to cautiously study the strange phenomenon. Heading for the place where the flashes came from, the Count realized that there was no fire or burning trees, but a strange light. Among the flashes he saw a beautiful lady, whom he took to be the Virgin Mary. A farmer named Nicholas, nicknamed Strazzacappa, who was going to work, saw the vision as well and reportedly heard a request from the apparition for a place of worship to be erected there. The case received publicity and a small chapel built at the spot became a center of pilgrimage. After a few years the Verginiani, led by William of Vercelli, settled there. When they merged with the Cistercians, the now famous monastery passed to the care of these monks. The church was elevated to the dignity of basilica by Pope Paul VI on 31 May 1978.
Source: Marino Gamba, Apparizioni mariane nel corso di due millenni (Udine: Ediz. II Segno, 1999). Case: W028