Ducasse de Mons

The Ducasse de Mons or Doudou is a popular feast that happens every year during the Trinity Sunday (57 days after Easter) in the town of Mons in Belgium. It is recognized as a Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity since November 2005.

The feast is composed of two important parts:

The procession, the descent and the uprising of the Waltrude’s Shrine.
The combat of Saint George named Lumeçon;

History

File:050522 Mons Car d'Or MCL01.jpg

The Car d'Or sur arrives at the Grand-Place

The Doudou take his origin in the Middle Ages. In 1349, because the city of Mons was touched by the plague, the authorities decided to organise a procession with the shrine of Waltrude. The shrine was driven to Casteau (A little village located between Mons and Soignies that is the actual location of the SHAPE since 1967). At the same time, the shrine of Vincent Madelgarus (husband of Waltrude) that is based in Soignies was also driven at the same place. A miracle happened and the plague disappeared after this Procession. In 1352, the date was fixed on the Trinity Sunday. After 1380, the fraternity of Saint George has appeared in the procession. The reconstitution of the combat between Saint George and a Dragon took his place in the feast. Because of the ’’less religious’’ origin, the combat was excluded of the procession in the 19th century. The separation between the religious parts of the feast and the non religious begins at this time.

The procession was not made during the French revolution, in 1803 and during the two world wars.

Planning

The feast begins from the Saturday before the Trinity Sunday to the next Sunday. An eight-day festival with a specific liturgy is called octave.

The game of Waltrude

The descent of the shrine happens the Saturday evening. During a religious ceremony, the shrine is taken down from his Altar. The Priest gives the shrine (placed all the year in the collegiate) to the town authorities for all the duration of the feast. After this moment, a procession with torches begins in the streets of the town.

In the Trinity Sunday morning, the shrine is placed on the Car d’or, which is a gilded dray, and the procession begins. The car d’or is pulled through the streets by draft horses. The dray is accompanied by several guilds that represent the history of the region. At the end of the trail, the car d’or has to climb a steep, cobblestoned street made named Rampe Sainte-Waudru. To help the horses with the immense weight, hundreds of peoples push the dray. Legend says that if the dray doesn’t climb the street, the city will have great misfortune. This happened in 1803, due to the French Revolution, and in 1914 and 1940, due to the First and Second World Wars.

After one week of festivities, the authorities of the town give back the shrine to the priest of the collegiate. The shrine is replaced on its Altar, which is why it is called the ascent of the shrine.

The game of Saint George

19th century engraving showing the combat of Saint George and the dragon.

This game is played the Trinity Sunday between 0.30 pm and 1.00 pm. It represents the fight between Saint George (the good) and the dragon (the evil). The fight is called Lumeçon. This name comes from the old French name Limaçon (old French name meaning a spectacle with horses that made circulars movements.) The combat happens on the central square of Mons. The length of the dragon is about 10 meters. The end of his tail is covered with horses’ hairs (mane). The dragon is displaced with the help of the white men (fr:Hommes blancs). Saint George is protected by the Chinchins who represent dogs. The dragon is helped by the devils (fr:Les diables). Each devil is armed with a cow bladder full of air (the balloon in the past when the plastic was not yet developed). With this weapon, they knock the Chinchins and the public that are placed all around the arena. The dragon fights Saint George by giving Tail attacks. The dragon gives also tail attacks in the public. So, the public is also an important actor of the fight! People try to take the mane of the tail because it gives luck for one year long. Finally, there are also the Leafs men (fr:Hommes de feuilles) that are covered with real leafs of Ivy. They help the dragon by defending and supporting his tail. The combat is a high precision choreography. Saint George on his horse turns on the same direction than the clock. And the dragon turns in the other direction… (It is a reference between the good against the evil). Saint George tries to kill the dragon with his lance but the lance always broke on the contact of the dragon’s skin… Saint George uses a pistol and finally kills the dragon on the third try… It is 1 p.m., the actors leave the square, peoples rush in the arena to find the last lucky manes felt on the ground. And the carillon of Mons bells…

Other information

A big concert is organised the Friday evening before Trinity on the central square of Mons.
Military bands from all over the world play concerts every day in Mons.
A braderie (street clearance sale) is organized on Monday.
Another combat is organized on Wednesday. The combat is reserved for the children (Public and actors). The dragon is lighter than the original.
The streets of the center of the town are a Car-free zone during the festivities. These streets are full of peoples that are listening music, eating Belgian fries, barbecue, and drinking a lot of Belgian beer and soda.