Leonhardi trip
The Leonhardifahrt or Leonhardiritt is a procession on horseback, which is a tradition in old Bavaria and western Austria. It takes place in honor of St. Leonhard of Limoges (6th century) on his feast day , November 6th, or on a neighboring weekend. Some villages in Bavaria also celebrate Leonhardi in summer.
As the patron saint of agricultural animals, today horses in particular , pilgrimages with animal blessings are undertaken at Leonhardi . The motive for the blessing (often wrongly also called consecration ) of animals, especially horses, is their role as pack animals and work animals for the rural population.
As the largest and most important Leonhardifahrt, the Tölzer Leonhardifahrt was recognized as the intangible cultural heritage of Bavaria in July 2016 and added to the nationwide register of intangible cultural heritage by the German Commission for UNESCO in December 2016 .
history
The Leonhardiritt in Leonhardspfunzen is the largest in the Rosenheim district and has a long tradition. Records of this event can already be found in documents from 1436. The oldest documented ride to date, which was first mentioned in 1442, takes place in Kreuth on the Tegernsee. In 1809 a state order was issued that prohibited religious rides. When it was repealed by King Ludwig I (Bavaria) in 1833 , many Leonhardi trips and rides were so lost that they mostly had to be reintroduced many years later or were not carried out entirely.
As a secular supporting program, the Leonhardifest usually takes place with a beer tent, fair and dance events. In Bavarian there is no distinction between Leonhardifest and Leonhardifahrt. Both are called Lehardi (in some places also Lehards or Leachats ).
Places with Leonhard rides or rides
In the last few years some Leonhardiritte have been revived (e.g. in Leogang / Salzburg and in Meilenhofen ). Elsewhere, the tradition is only resumed for anniversaries (e.g. in Diepoldsberg near Obing ). Conversely, there are also relatively young Leonhardirittees, for example since 1993 on the Brandlberg (town of Bogen ) in the Bavarian Forest.
Chest trolley
The farmers and horse owners of the respective surroundings drive in teams, so-called chest wagons , to the pilgrimage destination, for example in:
- Bad Tölz to the Leonhardikapelle on the Kalvarienberg north in Bad Tölz.
- Benediktbeuern to the inner courtyard of the abbey .
- Grafing to the pilgrimage church of St. Leonhard, built around 1400.
- Kreuth , where after the service in the Leonhardi Church the teams drive three times through the town to the blessing.
- Rottenbuch to the Fohlenmarktwiese at the Leonhardibrunnen with holy mass and horse blessing.
Bad Tölz
The best known is the Leonhardifahrt in Bad Tölz , which always takes place on November 6th, unless it falls on a Sunday - then it is carried out on the Saturday before. In 2011 she found exceptionally on the following Monday, i. H. on November 7, 2011. With around 80 teams of four, numerous riders and around 25,000 visitors annually, it is probably the largest Leonhardi ride, dates back to the 17th century and has been taking place annually since 1855 (apart from a few exceptions, such as during times of war). The authenticity of the Tölzer Leonhardifahrt is also praised . For example, the wagons are not allowed to use rubber tires, as in some places, but only wheels shod with iron.
In Bad Tölz, the pilgrimage concludes with the Leonhardidreschen ( Goaßlschnalzen ) in the famous Tölzer Marktstrasse.
Austria
In Austria there are Leonhardiritte among others in:
- Desselbrunn (Upper Austria), for the first time in 1945 and since then annually on the Sunday after November 6th.
- Kundl (Tiroler Unterinntal ), revived in 1963 to finance the restoration of the Leonhardskirche. From the center of the village, on Sunday or after November 6th, an equestrian procession (around 80 to 100 riders in traditional costumes) in the direction of Leonhard's Church. There are also farmers and associations in the area. Behind the group of riders drives a carriage with the priest who is celebrating Holy Mass on the pilgrimage.
- Neukirchen an der Vöckla (Upper Austria), since 1951 and since then every Sunday after November 6th.
- Pettenbach (Upper Austria) : Every year, on the Sunday closest to November 6th, a Leonhardiritt takes place at the Heiligenleithen branch and pilgrimage church (about 2.5 km in the direction of Scharnstein). A special gem of this late Gothic hall church is a statue of St. Leonhard from the 15th century. An average of 100 to 150 riders and their horses take part in this ride.
- St. Leonhard bei Grödig (Land Salzburg): This Leonhardiritt has been taking place annually since 1975 on Sundays around November 6th. After the field fair with the blessing of the horses, there are horse demonstrations, a car competition and a wreath.
- Thiersee (Tyrol): This goes back to a vow in 1704 during the Bavarian hype and has been held every year on the penultimate Sunday in October since then. Up to 40 teams and 130 horses take part in this traditional ride. Horse owners come from many parts of Tyrol, Salzburg and Bavaria to celebrate their patron saint. The majority of the horses have the Noriker , who experience a rebirth as leisure and work horse .
- Weißenkirchen im Attergau (Upper Austria): The earliest reference was made in 1711 and since then annually on the Sunday after November 6th.
- Leogang (State of Salzburg). The Leogang Leonhardiritt takes place on November 6th. After the morning mass at 9 a.m., the holy office for cattle and stable people follows. From 2 p.m. the participants gather for the corridor ride: the pioneer, the band in miners' uniforms, then the high clergy follow. The pastor, "Saint Leonhard" and "Saint Barbara", ride on horses. A delegation of miners follows. Neighboring rider and schnalzer groups also ride along. The move is organized by the nostalgia association "Anno 1900" .
- Klein-Harras (Lower Austria). The Klein-Harraser Leonhardiritt is the youngest Leonhardiritt and has been held on a Sunday between November 3rd and 9th since 2010. It is a star ride or a rally, with a horse blessing at the final destination of the ride in Klein-Harras. Originally the goal of the ride was the Grundackerkreuz about 1.5 km outside the village, since 2014 the horse farm of the Reiter-Goth family in Klein-Harras has been the destination of the Leonhardiritt. There is also the Leonhardikreuz, which was blessed on November 9, 2014 as part of the Leonhardiritt. The Leonhardiritt is organized by the horse friends Klein-Harras.
- Eidenberg (Upper Austria) since 1978
Varia
Numerous traditional costumes can be seen during the pilgrimage with the blessing of horses. The carriages and horses are festively decorated. In some places figures and relics of St. Leonhard are carried along.
Sometimes an attempt is made to make the difference between Leonhardiritt and Leonhardifahrt by the fact that during the ride only men ride the horses (so that women were excluded and on some rides also are), while during the ride mainly the peasant women, maids and Children are driven.
Similar festivals
- Other communities honor the saint with the Leonhardifest.
- There were lost Leonhardi pilgrimages that existed at the end of the 15th century to the Upper Palatinate towns of Velburg and Berngau .
- Further processions on horseback are the Kötztinger Whitsun ride , various Georgi rides , the blood ride in Weingarten , the Willibald ride in Jesenwang with a ride through the church and the Easter ride .
- A new monarch's ceremony was the royal ride .
literature
- Franz Paul Zauner: Siegertsbrunn, its Leonhardi pilgrimage church and the Leonhardifahrt. Leonhardi-Verein, Siegertsbrunn 1909 (reprint. Parish St. Peter, Siegertsbrunn 1995).
- Georg Schierghofer: Old Bavaria's rides and Leonhardi rides . Bayerland-Verlag, Munich 1913.
- Rudolf Hindringer: Weiheross and Rossweihe. A religious-historical-folklore representation of the rides, horse blessings and Leonhardi rides in the Germanic cultural area. Lentner'sche Buchhandlung, Munich 1932.
- Heinz Böhnisch: The Leonhardiritt in Tölz. Reich Office for Educational Films, Berlin 1938.
- Marin Oswald: Chronicle of the Leonhardifahrt in Grafing. 1708–1966 (= Grafinger Heimatkundliche Schriften 4, ZDB -ID 2295729-7 ). Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Heimatkunde, among others, Grafing b. Munich 1967.
- Günther Kapfhammer: Leonhardifahrt in Murnau. Institute for Scientific Film, Göttingen 1973.
- Gabriele Stangl: Leonhardifahrt in Bad Tölz. Aehlig, Bad Tölz 1977.
- Günther Kapfhammer: In honor of St. Leonhard. From the patron saint of horses. Of miracles and adoration. From Leonhardi trips and chain churches . Rosenheimer Verlag, Rosenheim 1977, ISBN 3-475-52196-2 .
- German Fischer: Leonhardsverehrung and Leonhardiritt since 1803. In: Wilhelm Liebhart (Hrsg.): Inchenhofen. Pilgrimage, Cistercians and market. Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1992, ISBN 3-7995-4169-1 , pp. 83-105.
- Wunibald Iser: The mileshofen Leonhardiritt. A report on the revival of a custom. In: More beautiful home. 81, 2, 1992, ISSN 0177-4492 , pp. 105-106.
- 375 years of Leonhardiritt in Guntersberg. Festschrift for the anniversary ride on November 9, 1997. sn, Guntersberg 1997.
- Christoph Schnitzer: The Tölzer Leonhardifahrt. cs Press and Print, Bad Tölz 2005, ISBN 3-00-016788-9 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ 200 horses and 2000 spectators at the Leonhardiritt in Leonhardspfunzen. Retrieved November 17, 2014 .
- ↑ Hans Halmbacher: The Tegernsee valley in historic pictures. Fuchs-Druck, Hausham 1980, p. 69 f.
- ↑ Leonhardiritte: In honor of a very special saint. Retrieved November 17, 2014 .
- ↑ Leonhardiritt and Leonhardifahrt 2014 - the dates around Munich. Retrieved November 17, 2014 .
- ↑ Leonhardi tradition on horseback. Retrieved November 17, 2014 .
- ↑ Much about the Döberitzer Heide. Retrieved November 17, 2014 .
- ↑ VI. Special edition of the Tiroler Bauernzeitung - October 3, 2012, p. 9
- ↑ Leonhardiritt. Retrieved March 26, 2020 (Austrian German).
- ↑ City council resolution of December 2010; Report in the Tölzer Kurier on December 22, 2010: “Leonhardifahrt 2011 moved to Monday”.