History
The origins of the penitential Holy Week in Seville are to be found in the late Middle Ages (from 1350 onwards), but details are scarce.
By 1578 already over 30 brotherhoods performed penitential processions during the Holy Week.
By 1604 Cardinal Fernando Niño de Guevara, gave the first ordinances mandating all Sevillan confraries to make a stop in the Cathedral (and at St. Anna those of Triana) and assigning certain time frames for this (from Wednesday to Good Friday).
In 1777 flagellants and nightly processions were forbidden in Spain, although in Seville, the confrary of "el Silencio" was allowed to keep processioning at midnight of the Good Friday.
From 1798 onwards (first deamortization by Godoy, which hit the brotherhoods hard) started a very complex period for them, parallel to that of the Spanish society. Despite this, by the mid 19th century the Holy Week was a popular destination for travelers and had already acquired some of their actual characteristics (The Madrugá, Triana brotherhoods crossing the river, the pasos).
The 20th century has seen a progressive revival and fixing of the forms of Holy Week, despite two serious blows in between: the anticlerical period of the Second Spanish Republic, which culminated in the destruction of churches, images and goods around July 18, 1936, and the period immediately following the II Vatican Council, which coincided with the social changes in Spain around the death of Francisco Franco.
Read more about this topic: Holy Week In Seville
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