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The (lit. 'Festival of the Cats') is a parade in
Symbolically reviving this practice for the parade festivities, a jester tosses plush children's-toy cats from the Cloth Hall belfry down to the crowd, which awaits with outstretched arms to catch one. The throwing of the cats from the belfry is followed by a mock witch burning. Participants in the festivities often dress as cats, witches, mice, or townspeople from ages past, and the festival also features brass bands and people riding on horseback. Around 2,000 people participated in the 2012 parade. The festival is a popular tourist event in Belgium and has helped strengthen the local tourist economy around Ypres. 8,000 people visited the event in 2000.
Official festival website
- City of Ieper Animal cruelty incidents Cats in popular culture Parades in Belgium Tourist attractions in West Flanders Ypres Belgian folklore Spring (season) in Belgium Triennial events Cat folklore Observances in Belgium
Ypres
Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though
the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...
, Belgium, devoted to the cat. It has been running regularly since 1955 and is usually held triennially on the second Sunday of May. The parade commemorates an Ypres tradition from the Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
in which cats were allegedly thrown from the belfry tower of the Cloth Hall to the town square below.
Background
There are various legends about how the story of the throwing of cats originated. One possibility is that cats were connected towitchcraft
Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...
, and the throwing of the cats symbolised the killing of evil spirits. Another story suggests that the cats were brought into the Cloth Hall (''Lakenhallen'') to control vermin. Before modern heating and storage methods, when it got cold the wool was stored in the upper floors of the Cloth Hall. At the start of the spring warm-up, after the wool had been sold, the cats were tossed out of the bell tower
A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...
.
Modern festival
Symbolically reviving this practice for the parade festivities, a jester tosses plush children's-toy cats from the Cloth Hall belfry down to the crowd, which awaits with outstretched arms to catch one. The throwing of the cats from the belfry is followed by a mock witch burning. Participants in the festivities often dress as cats, witches, mice, or townspeople from ages past, and the festival also features brass bands and people riding on horseback. Around 2,000 people participated in the 2012 parade. The festival is a popular tourist event in Belgium and has helped strengthen the local tourist economy around Ypres. 8,000 people visited the event in 2000.
See also
* Cat-burning *'' Hae Nang Maew,'' cat procession in Southeast AsiaReferences
External links
{{commonsOfficial festival website
- City of Ieper Animal cruelty incidents Cats in popular culture Parades in Belgium Tourist attractions in West Flanders Ypres Belgian folklore Spring (season) in Belgium Triennial events Cat folklore Observances in Belgium