Kattenstut (nid. Kattenstoet) — The Cat Festival (or Cat Festival) — takes place in the Belgian city of Ypres every three years on the second Sunday of May.
During the celebration, a large number of artificial cats are thrown from the central bell tower of the city directly into the crowd of people, and a colorful parade dedicated to cats takes place.
This festival has been known since 1955, and is a tribute to the medieval Ypres tradition of throwing live cats from the bell tower of the House of Clothworkers of Ypres onto the city square located underneath. Then these animals were considered a symbol of evil and witchcraft, and their death (which inevitably happened when falling from a height) — was the redemption of human sins and the destruction of evil spirits.
According to chronicles, the last mention of an event of this kind dates back to the early 19th century, but the Cat Festival itself, and in particular the — symbolic shedding of cats, have been preserved as an old Belgian tradition and, of course, as a reason for citywide fun.
According to tradition, during the festival parade, a man dressed as a jester throws a cat toy from the Clothworkers' Chamber bell tower down into a crowd that is looking forward to catching the toy. And the participants of the holiday dress in costumes of « heroes of the occasion», witches, mice and medieval townspeople.
Throwing cats from the bell tower is accompanied by the burning of a toy effigy of a witch, and then the holiday continues with a solemn parade with the participation of theater groups, brass bands and everyone. Traditionally, the Cat Festival is a popular tourist event in Belgium.