The Inventory Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) in the Netherlands contains ICH of which the communities, groups or individuals involved have written a safeguarding plan. Those plans are reviewed by an independent review committee. Every three years an evaluation of the safeguarding takes place.

Description

The Popular Festival Winterswijk is held during the last weekend of August. There is a fair every day. The fair begins on Thursday, for handicapped children. In the evening one of the fanfares plays during the ‘Corso in Concert’ (corso = flower parade). On Friday the banners are picked up at the home of the president of the Vereeniging Volksfeest Winterswijk (Popular Festival Winterswijk Association), by the management board in a carriage and three flag-bearers on horseback. After playing the Dutch national anthem the flower parade starts, consisting of some fifty large and small flower floats. The parade is enlivened by the six local showbands and often guest-bands too. After the parade the children’s games begin and around a thousand children participate. Their party ends with the Children’s Ball. After the end signal to the board the bird shooting starts, and especially for the kings of the hamlets: the emperor shooting. On Friday night the prize ceremony takes place for the parade winners in the various categories. Subsequently there is a party night. This ends at 1 AM with a tour behind a showband, through the centre of Winterswijk. On Saturday the parade once more passes through Winterswijk. Then again there are children’s games. On Sunday there is still a fair.

Community

As of 1888 the Popular Festival Winterswijk has been organised by the Vereeniging Volksfeest Winterswijk, which collects money to finance the festival. Over and over thousands of volunteers and ten thousands of visitors make a success of the Popular Festival every year. Many people are involved through the showbands, the construction of one of the floats or another activity. 

 

History

From the sixteenth century onwards annual fairs have already been celebrated, but in the nineteenth century things run that much out of hand, that a ban was introduced on such festivities. This made the people in Winterswijk decide to set up an association to ensure a smooth operation of the annual festival. After more than 125 years of Popular Festival Winterswijk, a number of aspects have remained largely the same. The management board still takes part in the parade with their blue sashes, just like the music committee in tailcoat and top hat, all of them clearly recognisable. The children’s games, the bird shooting and the big festival have basically remained unchanged, although they have moved with the times and been modernised. The flower parade has developed into a parade with large and technically complicated floats over the years and partly as a result of this, the parade route was changed. Moreover, the whole programme has been extended with extra elements, to keep people of all ages attracted to the festival. Of great importance is the sense of community that is stirred by the festival. That also is undiminished after more than 125 years.

 

Contact

Vereeniging Volksfeest Winterswijk
Bankastraat, 1
7101BP
WINTERSWIJK
Selecteer een gebied, staat of provincie a.u.b.
Netherlands
Website