Blessed Mary Visits Pompeii, Italy in 1884

Join John Carpenter and Donald Hartley with the Deeper Truth research team as they review the details of this Marian apparition.

Bartolo Longo, who is also known as the “Man of the Madonna” and the “Apostle of the Rosary,” lived in Naples, Italy in the 19th century.  While he was raised Catholic, he fell away from the faith while in college and became a “priest of Satan.”  

Eventually Bartolo came back to the Catholic faith and with the help of his friend, a Dominican priest, Bartolo developed a devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Rosary.  After visiting Pompeii and seeing its poverty and lack of faith he heard a voice say to him “if you seek salvation, you must promote the rosary.”   

He listened and began to spread the Catholic faith in Pompeii by establishing a “Confraternity of the Rosary” and teaching people how to pray the Rosary.  Bartolo sought out a painting of Our Lady so that people could gather before it while praying.   He was given an old canvas with the image of Our Lady of the Rosary by a convent.  Bartolo had it restored due to its poor quality.    The image shows our Lady holding baby Jesus as they present rosaries to Saint Dominic and Saint Catherine of Siena.

After it was restored in 1875 (one of the many times) it was displayed to the public for veneration.  The same day it was displayed a 12-year old girl, Clorinda Lucarelli, received the first miracle through the intercession of Our Lady of Pompeii.  Then, in 1884, another miracle occurred where a terminally ill young girl named Fortunatina was healed.  The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to the young girl and said, “When you call Me by the name of the Queen of the Holy Rosary of Pompeii, which is closer to Me than all the others, I cannot reject you.”