Easter Riders’ Procession Wittichenau–RalbitzOsterreiten Wittichenau–Ralbitz

The Wittichenau Easter Riders’ Procession (Kreuzreiter-Prozession) is an ancient Catholic tradition held every Easter Sunday in Wittichenau (German: Wittichenau; Sorbian: Kulow), Saxony. Since 1541, hundreds of local men in white shirts, black tailcoats and top hats ride on festively decorated horses with a crucifix from Wittichenau to the neighboring village of Ralbitz (12 km away) proclaiming “Halleluja, Jesus lebt!” and spreading the message of Christ’s resurrection 1. The procession is unique among the nine Oberlausitz Easter rides because it is bilingual (German and Upper Sorbian) during church services and songs 2. Preparations start early on Easter morning with a 5:00 am communal Mass at the St. Mariae Himmelfahrt church, which anchors the riders’ blessing and liturgy before departure. After a festive Mass (Hochamt) in the morning, the riders depart from the town church’s Kirchplatz at about 09:20, arriving at Ralbitz around noon, where they pause before the return journey at 15:00 back to Wittichenau (arriving ~18:00) 3 4. The entire event is a deeply felt community ritual rather than a tourist spectacle, and it also involves music bands and prayers at stops along the route. Visitors can line the procession route in Wittichenau (especially at the Marktplatz) to see the decorated horses and riders or attend the early morning and high Mass in the church. This tradition persisted even through secularization (e.g., in the former GDR only Wittichenau and other Sorbian villages maintained Easter riding) 5. It remains a strong symbol of local Sorbian Catholic identity, integrating liturgy and folklore. The procession calendar is based on Easter Sunday (1st Sunday after the Paschal full moon) each year. If Easter 2026 falls on April 5, 2026, the next procession would be on 2026-04-05 (times as above).

A central event of Upper Lusatian Sorbian Easter traditions, this procession exemplifies the living heritage of the Sorb minority in Saxony, merging Christian faith with centuries-old customs 1 2. Men sing hymns in both German and Sorbian along the route, and the villages celebrate with decorated Easter trees and church services 1 3. The custom dates back to the 16th century and continues to be a defining ritual in the community 4 5.