Complex sentence: The women of Atocha knew that most of the people in the jails could not survive under such conditions.They were praying before the statue of Our Lady of Atocha, they pleaded for the Blessed Virgin Mary to ask her Jesus christ for help.
Split into simpler sentences: The women of Atocha knew that most of the people in the jails could not survive under such conditions. Praying before the statue of Our Lady of Atocha, they pleaded for the Blessed Virgin Mary to ask her Son for help.