Fatima August 1917

Fatima. Apparition of Our Lady. August 13, 1917

As August 13, 1917 was approaching, word of the Fatima apparitions spread throughout the country. The liberal Masonic press took a special interest in the matter, sparing no opportunity to denounce it and spread falsehoods concerning the three shepherd children. When these tactics could not sway the masses of pilgrims, who faithfully traveled great distances in order to be present when Our Lady appeared, the press declared in classic anticlerical fashion that the clergy were deceiving the people in order to draw profits. The press strongly encouraged the local authorities to take action.
Fatima’s local authority, Artur de Oliveira Santos, who was the Administrator of the district of Vila Nova de Ourem, was an anticlerical fanatic. Also known as "The Tinsmith," he was a Freemason who enjoyed much power through his position, and ruled his district in a tyrannical fashion, imposing restrictions on churches and religious services on his slightest whim. The Tinsmith decided to end the popular piety resulting from the apparitions at Fatima, through whatever means necessary.
On August 10, the fathers of the three seers of Fatima, Manuel Marto and Antonio dos Santos, received an order to appear with their children the following day at Vila Nova de Ourem. It was a journey of nine miles, of which the only available means of transportation were either to walk or ride a donkey. Manuel Marto refused to have his two young children make the journey or appear before a court, and decided to go alone. Antonio dos Santos, however, was determined that his daughter, Lucy, answer for herself. The Tinsmith was furious at the absence of Francisco and Jacinta.
Recalling her experience with the Tinsmith, Lucy writes:

At the Administration office, I was interrogated by the Administrator, in the presence of my father, my uncle, and several other gentlemen who were strangers to me. The Administrator was determined to force me to reveal the Secret and to promise him never again to return to the Cova da Iria. To attain his end, he spared neither promises, nor even threats. Seeing that he was getting nowhere, he dismissed me, protesting however that he would achieve his end, even if this meant that he had to take my life. ¹

On August 12, masses of people began arriving at the Cova da Iria, in anticipation of the apparition of the following day. On the morning of August 13, the Administrator arrived at the Marto home to see the children. He convinced the children’s fathers that he desired to "attend the miracle" with them, and together they first went to meet with the village priest. After being questioned, the Administrator had the children get into his carriage. The carriage at first made for the Cova da Iria, but suddenly turned and flew off in the other direction. The Administrator attempted to calm the children by saying that they were first going to meet with the priest at Ourem. To keep pilgrims on their way to the Cova from seeing the children, he wrapped them in a rug. Finally he arrived in triumph at his house, believing that by keeping the children from the Cova, nothing supernatural would happen and the business of the apparitions would be given up.

When they arrived at the Tinsmith’s house, the children were shut up in a room and told that they would not be let out until they had revealed the Secret. They were given lunch by the Tinsmith’s kind wife, who let them play with her children and saw that they lacked for nothing. The following day they were forced to undergo nine interrogations, but the children, strengthened by a special grace, remained steadfast.

The Tinsmith wanted to learn the Secret from them at any cost, but he could neither extract it nor trick the children into contradicting each other. He even called in a doctor to accuse the children of hallucinations and hysteria. The doctor’s conclusions have never been published. This fact speaks volumes, for had the doctor’s conclusion been that the children were hallucinating, the Administrator would have wasted no time in publishing the doctor’s testimony.

The Tinsmith then put the children into a prison cell full of other prisoners. They were then interrogated separately, after which the Tinsmith threatened to boil them in oil if they still refused to divulge the Secret of Fatima. In the presence of the children he ordered that a cauldron of oil be heated, and threatened to put the children in the cauldron if they did not cooperate. The children believed the Tinsmith’s threat. A man in the same prison cell tried to persuade Jacinta to give in, telling her that she could avoid being killed by simply telling the secret. Jacinta responded, "I’d rather die!"

The Tinsmith took Jacinta away first. Francisco and Lucy believed that she had gone to her death. The Tinsmith returned and told the children that Jacinta was dead. He again demanded that the secret be revealed, or Francisco and Lucy would also be boiled in oil. Francisco was next taken to his apparent death. The Tinsmith then threatened Lucy with the same fate if she did not cooperate. Lucy remained faithful, though she believed that her two cousins had been killed. However, none of the children were killed; the threat had been empty. Yet even after this final threat, the Tinsmith could not obtain the Secret. The next morning (August 15), after one last interrogation, having accomplished nothing he returned the children to Fatima.


This day Our Lady certainly had came to the immense crowd of the pilgrims (there were between eighteen and twenty thousand) to the Cova da Iria. All the unusual phenomena of Her apparition were noticed: the first thunderclap and lightning; small white cloud, which stopped for a few moments over the tree and then rose in the air and disappeared; the strange reflection of all the colours of the rainbow on the people and the tree.

Our Lady appeared to the children in Valinhos on Sunday, August 19, where they went to pasture their sheep. She asked them to continue praying the Rosary every day and to make sacrifices for sinners. Our Lady promised in the last month to work a miracle, so that all may believe.

From the Fourth Memoir (1941-12-08)

13 August 1917
As I have already said what happened on this day, I will not delay over it here, but pass on to the Apparition which in my opinion, took place on the 15th in the afternoon. As at that time I did not yet know how to reckon the days of the month, it could be that I am mistaken. But I still have an idea that it took place on the very day that we arrived back from Vila Nova de Ourém.

I was accompanied by Francisco and his brother John. We were with the sheep in a place called Valinhos, when we felt something supernatural approaching and enveloping us. Suspecting that Our Lady was about to appear to us, and feeling sorry lest Jacinta might miss seeing her, we asked her brother to go and call her. As he was unwilling to go, I offered him two small coins, and off he ran.
Meanwhile, Francisco and I saw the flash of light, which we called lightning. Jacinta arrived, and a moment later, we saw Our Lady on a holmoak tree.

“What do you want of me?”

“I want you to continue going to the Cova da Iria on the 13th, and to continue praying the Rosary every day. In the last month, I will perform a miracle so that all may believe.”

“What do you want done with the money that the people leave in the Cova da Iria?”

“Have two litters made. One is to be carried by you and Jacinta and two other girls dressed in white; the other one is to be carried by Francisco and three other boys. The money from the litters is for the “festa” of Our Lady of the Rosary, and what is left over will help towards the construction of a chapel that is to be built here.”

“I would like to ask you to cure some sick persons.”

“Yes, I will cure some of them during the year.”

Then, looking very sad, Our Lady said:
“Pray, pray very much, and make sacrifices for sinners; for many souls go to hell, because there are none to sacrifice themselves and to pray for them.”

And She began to ascend as usual towards the east.

Sister Lucia's Memoirs. [pdf]
Fourth Memoir. The Story of the Apparitions.