Discover Europe’s biggest historical pageant
Wedding bells are ringing! That the bride and groom are over 500 years old doesn’t stifle the enthusiasm in the least. In fact, fervor for the “Landshuter Hochzeit” of 1475 has been mounting for more than one hundred years, ever since the town began reenacting the legendary wedding of Polish Princess Hedwig and Duke Georg of Landshut.
During the festival, history springs to life as the townspeople re-create a bygone era. Lavish costumes swoosh to ancient music played on wooden flutes and skin-strung drums. Vibrant banners wave proudly and jesters tease as knights keep a watchful eye over flower-crowned maidens. Festooned horses parade the nobility through cobble-stoned streets. The air is charged. Jubilation is palpable.
The Landshuter Hochzeit is reputed to be the largest and most elaborate historical pageant in Europe. Staged every four years, festivities involve more than 2,300 costumed players and accurately document the week-long wedding celebrations of 1475. Reenactments are repeated throughout the festival with a program of more than 80 events. This summer the Landshuter Hochzeit will be held from June 25 to July 17.
Festival highlights are the Bridal Procession (Hochzeitszug) and the Knight Games (Reiter und Ritterspiele), which begin with an elaborate parade through the Old Town. Players act out historical roles, including visiting royalty and their entourages, counts, bishops, ambassadors, knights, town elders, noble maidens, children and even beggars. The procession proceeds to the tournament grounds, where the bride is presented to her future husband for the first time. Seated at a raised banquet table, the bride, groom and guests of honor preside over a jousting tournament between the local and visiting nobility. The Festive Games in the Night Camp (Festliche Spiele im nächtlichen Lager) show how wedding guests from abroad, numbering in the thousands, were entertained by bonfire light in their temporary camp. Fire eaters, minstrels and jugglers perform while mercenaries and horsemen play medieval equestrian games. Other events include the performance of 15th-century music, medieval dancing and burlesque shows. The performances tell the tales of intrigue surrounding the marriage negotiations, which began in Kraków some three years prior to the wedding.
The planning and preparation of the pageant has its roots in recent Landshut history and is today an important part of civic and social life in the region. The sizeable association “Die Förderer,” which organizes the pageant, was founded in 1902 after townspeople were inspired by murals of the 1475 celebration, painted inside the state room of the City Hall (Rathaus Prunksaal). In 1904 the first pageant was staged and local passion for the festival has been growing ever since. Today participating as a costumed “Hochzeiter” is considered an honor and is limited to those who apply early, live in or near Landshut, and are accepted by the “Die Förderer.” Particularly coveted are the roles of bride and groom, the actors of which are selected according to a wide range of criteria, beginning with age and appearance and extending to a lengthy personal and family track record of previous festival participation. This year’s bride and groom, 18-year-old Kathrin Stahleder and 20-year-old Florian Eller, were chosen after having participated in virtually every Hochzeit since they were born.
Heralded as “a union of divine ordinance for the benefit of Christendom and the Empire,” the pairing of Hedwig and Georg was to secure a stable political future for both their homelands. Bavarian Duke Ludwig “the Rich” sought a royal bride for his son, in order to produce a male heir. Polish King Kashmir required financial assistance for the costly defense of Poland’s eastern border—a frontier that was considered the edge of civilization and suffered under constant siege from Asian tribes. Duke Ludwig’s promise of much needed financial compensation to King Kashmir justified Princess Hedwig’s marriage to a lowly duke, a rare step down the social hierarchy for a princess.
After the wedding celebration of the millennia, one can’t help but wonder whether the pair lived happily every after. The answer depends on whom you ask. Some locals will tell you that Georg and Hedwig detested one another and that the young duke quickly banished his bride to a second residence, at Burghausen. Others point out that the couple managed to have five children together, suggesting relations could not have been too strained. Tragically, all three sons born to the couple died before reaching adulthood, leaving Lower Bavaria without the required male heir and ultimately forcing the reunification of Upper and Lower Bavaria.
The Bridal Procession, which begins each festival Sunday at 2 pm, accommodates approximately 100,000 spectators along the parade route and is one of the best opportunities to experience festivities in full swing. Also on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings, festival players participate in the Altstadt-Treff, where players perform in musical ensembles, dance and play games along the pedestrian zone of the Old Town. Acting as hosts during the Altstadt-Treff, the costumed players are available for questions and photos. Another option is a stroll through the Lagerleben, fairgrounds open to visitors on Friday and Saturday evenings. For a modest entrance fee of € 2, visitors may wander through the reconstructed camp that housed visiting wedding guests. At this lively medieval fair, players participate in games, story telling, dancing and general merrymaking. For those wanting to attend one of the more performance-oriented events, such as a jousting match at the Knight Games, there is a ticket exchange before and during the festival, where last-minute tickets can often be acquired. The ticket exchange (Tauschbörse) is organized by the Verkehrsverein Landshut and can be found in the City Hall.
Overlooking the Old Town is Burg Trausnitz, a fortified medieval castle that seems to have sprung from a fairy tale. Immaculately preserved, the castle’s interior can be visited by joining a guided tour. Resident in the castle is a newly opened branch of the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, the Kunst and Wunderkammer Burg Trausnitz, which is a collection of 16th-century curiosities. Such collections were once fashionable among nobility who could afford to indulge in extravagant taste. Also in the castle is the Burgschänke, a restaurant that serves traditional Bavarian fare in a contemporary dining room or on a terrace overlooking either the Old Town or the Bavarian landscape. Another option is the Ristorante Rossini, which is tucked away in the stairs leading up to the castle. Even if you aren’t a church fanatic, it’s worth peeking in St. Martin’s, which, with its 130-meter-high brick steeple, is difficult to miss at the center of town. In fact, the brick steeple is the tallest in the world. World War II bombing destroyed much of the church’s stained-glass windows, which have been replaced with clear glass. The extra light does wonders for the interior, creating an airy atmosphere uncommon in churches of St. Martin’s size.
Less than an hour northeast of Munich, Landshut is a comfortable day trip for Münchner. Whether you come to join the medieval festivities or simply want to get away for the weekend, exploring the heart of Lower Bavaria is both enriching and enjoyable. <<<
