The Individual Processions

Ralbicy - Kulow / Ralbitz - Wittichenau. These two parishes produce the largest processions. The riders assemble early in the morning, for they have the longest ride before them. In recent years Ralbitz has mustered between 200 and 300 riders, Wittichenau as many as 300 to 400. The two linguistically distinct sections of the Wittichenau procession are of approximately equal size. Before 1541 the Wittichenau riders (who in German prefer to be called Kreuzreiter - "Riders of the Cross") used to ride to Hoyerswerda. Then the Hoyerswerda parish became Protestant and prohibited the processions, so ever since Wittichenau and Ralbitz have visited each other. Ralbitz is also interesting for reasons other than its large number of Easter Riders. The churchyard with its plain white wooden crosses - said to be the only one of its kind in Europe - has many visitors throughout the year. The uniformity of the crosses symbolizes the equality of all human beings before God. Everyone buried here, whether highly regarded or a simple person, gets a plain white wooden cross.

In 1997 there were 302 riders from Ralbitz and 430 from Wittichenau.

Chróscicy - Pančicy-Kukow / Crostwitz - Panschwitz-Kuckau. the village of Panschwitz-Kuckau. In 1790 the parish priest prohibited the procession and would not hand over the church banners, but that did deter the Easter Riders, who had their own banners made specially, and the procession took place. Later the old church banners were used again, in addition to those that had been specially made, and since then the Crostwitz riders have two pairs of banners. At that time the riders from Panschwitz used to ride in the Crostwitz procession. It is only since 1894 that they have had their own procession, which rides to Crostwitz. Another feature in Panschwitz, which attracts many visitors, is the St. Marienstern Nunnery with its beautiful courtyard and garden.

In 1997 there were 187 Easter Riders from Crostwitz and 82 from Panschwitz-Kuckau.

The Easter Riders have two requests: Please remember that a horse is not a machine, but a living creature. Please, in your own interest and ours, keep well away from the horses to avoid accidents. We would take it as a sign of your respect for our activities, if you would maintain silence and decorum, while we are praying and singing.

Njebjelčicy - Wotrow / Nebelschütz - Ostro. In area Nebelschütz is the smallest Sorbian parish. It consists of only three villages. The Baroque church, built in 1741-1743, was completely restored in 1993 and is now once more a remarkable house of God. The Easter Ride in Nebelschütz was revived in 1769 after an interval brought about by the Thirty Years War. The parish of Ostro was founded in 1758; but it was not until 1814 that Bishop Franc Jurij Lok, himself a Sorb, granted this parish the right to have its own procession of Easter Riders. And so its partnership with Nebelschütz was established.

A special feature in Ostro is that early in the morning of Easter Day men ride round the fields of the parish and pray for God's blessing and a good harvest. The Easter Ride then begins at noon.

In 1997there were 106 Easter Riders from Nebelschütz and 112 from Ostro.

Radwor - Baćoń / Radibor - Storcha. On Easter Sunday 1623 Christoph von Minkwitz, lord of the manor of Radibor, prohibited the Easter Riders from entering the churchyard. With the intention of establishing the Lutheran doctrine in the parish, he had banned Catholic processions. This was not to the liking of the Radibor villagers. There were scuffles between the riders and the landowner's representatives. Later, for unkown reasons, the Easter Ride was in abeyance in Radibor for 120 years, but in 1882 it was revived. For ten years the procession rode to Sdier. But in 1892 a procession was formed in Storcha, and since then the Easter Riders of Radibor and Storcha ride to each other's villages.

After the compulsory collectivization of agriculture had severely reduced the number of local horses, there was a period from 1973 to 1977 when the Storcha procession had to be abandoned. But since 1978 the men of Storcha ride again. These two processions meet in Strohschütz. The churches of Radibor and Storcha are both worth seeing. The church in Radibor, built in 1896, is unusually large for a small village. The Storcha church was consecrated in 1887, after 13 years of effort collecting funds for its construction.

In 1997 there were 112 Easter Riders from Radibor and 73 from Storcha.

Budyšin / Bautzen. Until the end of the 18th century there was a continuous tradition of Easter Riders from Bautzen, riding to Radibor to proclaim the resurrection of Jesus Christ. After a long break the procession was revived in 1927, when seven riders rode to the neighbouring parish of Radibor. A year later the procession from Bautzen was officially reinstated, but 1969 it was abandoned again owing to lack of interest and a shortage of horses. After a further break of 23 years, however, in November 1992 at a meeting of Easter Riders it was decided to revive the Bautzen procession for the second time in the twentieth century, and since 1993 Easter Riders have once again ridden from Bautzen to Radibor.

In 1997 there were 68 riders from Bautzen.