Winter is driven out in the Harz Mountains: numerous people dressed up as witches and devils celebrate an old custom there on Sunday, the Walpurgis Night. There are many events both in the part of the Harz Mountains that belongs to Saxony-Anhalt and on the Lower Saxony side – the Walpurgis Night is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the Harz Mountains.
It is named after Saint Walburga. Born in England in 710, the Benedictine is said to have healed the sick and was canonized on May 1st.
Witch fires, processions and theater performances are planned in Braunlage, St. Andreasberg, Bad Grund and Hahnenklee, among others. Thousands of disguised people also meet in Schierke, Wernigerode, Rübeland and Thale. Scary figures will also be found on the Brocken, the highest Harz mountain, many of them preparing their costumes for weeks.
In Braunlage, the Walpurgis family traditionally presents a modification of Goethe’s “Faust” in the Kurpark. Goethe laid the literary foundation for the wild festivals – after climbing the Brocken in 1777, he recorded the devilish goings-on in “Faust”.
This year, the Wolfshäger Hexenbrut group, which is well-known in the region, will perform in Goslar. And in Bad Grund, 15 girls and boys of primary school age want to show the play “The Little Witch”, later in the evening adult actors will also be on stage.
In some places there were already events on Saturday, elsewhere the celebrations continued on Monday. In the Samson pit, for example, a tour of the decorated former mine is planned for Monday.
