Carnival of Binche

The Carnival of Binche is an event that takes place each year in the Belgian town of Binche. Each year, it is renowned for attracting an increasing number of people to Binche and Belgium itself, but it, in particular, attracts many visitors from France. As such, it provides an important tourism source for Belgium and specifically the town of Binche.

The carnival is religious in several ways, for it ends just one day before Ash Wednesday, and a collection is taken on the last day of the Carnival, so it is a quite Catholic religious event.

History

There is a definite history behind the Carnival of Binche, but many legends have also spawned that may not represent truth.It is said that the carnival goes back to 1549, but others claim that the tradition of the carnival is older than this, and indeed evidence has been found of a similar sort of event occurring close to the dawning of the 15th century, which was then known as Quaresmiaux, or Caresmiaux. Cite web|url=http://www.carnavaldebinche.be/page.php?lang=fr&menu=3&sousmenu=2|title=Carnival of Binche Official Website - Origins Page|accessmonthday=7 April|accessyear=2007] However, it has been considered most likely that it stretches back further still, because of the religious traditions that it has always been linked to - Lent, and the Catholic and Christian religion.

The festivities

The carnival can be visibly divided into two parts or section; first there is the 49 days approaching Lent and before the actual carnival, which are still considered to be part of the carnival. On each of the Sundays of these 7 weeks, a certain ritualistic ceremony, dance, act or some preparation for the carnival can be expected to occur. After this, the 'fatty' days occur, of which there are 3. The main event occurs in the centre of the town, and this performance mostly consists of the principal performers, the Gilles, who are clown-like performers, dancing to the sound of drums. There are also several other companies of performers, including the Harlequin, the children of the city's high schools, the Peasant and the Pierrots. There is also the Sailor, but he has not performed in recent carnivals.

First part of the Carnival

On the sixth and fifth Sunday before the carnival, Gilles and other such people march through the streets, heralded by the sound of the drums. However, these people are without their costumes at this time.

During the fourth and third Sunday preceding the carnival, the performers and company dance to the sound of drums all through the day. They are fitted with several characteristic garments, including shoes of wood.

When it is but two Sundays away from the main event of the carnival, copper instruments mix with the drums, playing the twenty-six traditional airs of the carnival. The performers are dressed in the clothes they wore to the previous Fat Sunday.

However, instead of something occurring on the Sunday before the carnival, it is on Monday (six days preceding the main festivities) that the people of Binche are 'traditionally' able to walk around in the public while garbed in their disguises. People who do not wear disguises effective enough to conceal their identity during this masquerade must pay the person who uncovered them, but honour is granted to those who are able to disguise themselves successfully.

The main festivities

Fat Sunday

This is the day where the actual performers can be seen wearing their costumes, which are inspired by several things which can be animals, stereotyped people and characters, among others. A whole company of performers can occasionally be seen to be dressed completely uniformly, but this is rare. At a certain time during the day, the various companies are reconstituted around the station where a procession is oriented, to the rhythm of the twenty-six airs of the Carnival. It is truly a wonderful day to witness for both fun and educational purposes! It is very exciting to have a kind of "sneak peek" of the festival.

Fat Monday

On the morning of the Monday, Gilles dance in the streets to the sound of barrel organs, while people meet all around the town for what is known as 'the battle of confetti'. Later, a political affair is held, where people make various speeches concerning a variety of subjects and matters. Then people will head towards the statue of the 'Lady of Binche' at around 7:00pm, where a display of fireworks will be released.

Fat Tuesday

The very last day of the carnival, but which many argue is the best.The day begins for many at around 4 am, where a collection will be taken. The Gilles will go to have a breakfast of oysters and champagne, as is the tradition. When the morning ends, the performers move towards the town square where they will do their acts and performances.The Harlequins will proceed to the town hall to receive medals based on their age grouping. At around 3 or 4 pm, the companies will come together once more for a last procession past the statue of the Peasant to the town square. During this procession, certain Gilles wear a hat of feathers of ostrich, and “oranges of Gille”, small blood oranges, are thrown to (and sometimes at) the crowd.

The population mill around the streets until the fireworks display occurs, which happens after a final performance by the companies. The carnival is then formally completed, but the festivities continue long into the night. However, all of this must cease before sunrise on Ash Wednesday.

Notes

External links

* [http://www.belgium.be/eportal/application?languageParameter=en&pageid=contentPage&docId=25272 The 'Gilles' of Binche. (On the Belgian federal portal site)]
* [http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=6073 Binche: from the conquistadores to the ‘Gilles’. (On the European online magazine cafebabel.com published by the non-governmental association Babel International)]
*fr icon [http://www.carnavaldebinche.be/page.php?lang=fr&menu=1 Official site of the Carnival of Binche] :"This article is based on a translation of the corresponding article in the French Wikipedia.