Festive Games in the Night Camp

Saturday evening at the tournament place

It is the eve of the wedding. After a long journey thousands of guests have arrived at their destination in Landshut. In the glare of bonfires the wedding guests‘ retinue, who have been whiling away their time in tents, wayside bars and baggage waggons in the camp and on the feasting-grounds, now gather in colourful formation. Jugglers and fire-eaters show their tricks. Mercenaries and horsemen perform battle scenes. Old equestrian games, such as tilting at the ring and aiming at a fireball, are re-enacted. In the midst of these activities the guilds‘ elders, who in the days of the original wedding had lined the streets as the bride passed by, gather for a solemn dance bearing torches in their hands. And to the sound of an authentic song in praise of Duke Ludwig the Rich some of them present a casket with a gift for the bride.

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