The Landshuter Hochzeit 1475 restages the wedding of Duke Georg the Rich of Bavaria-Landshut and the Polish princess Hedwig (Jadwiga) Jagiellon, celebrated in Landshut in November 1475. First performed in 1903 by the citizens’ association Die Förderer e.V., it has been held every four years since 1981 and is widely described as Europe’s largest historical costume festival; it was added to Germany’s register of intangible cultural heritage in 2018.
Around 2,500 participants in more than 70 groups take part, all Landshut residents and members of Die Förderer, with strict rules on costume, hair and beards. The festival runs for three and a half weeks. Its centrepiece is the wedding procession (Hochzeitszug) through the old town on each of the four Sundays, with mounted knights, musicians, wagons and the bridal couple. Other fixed elements are the knights’ tournaments (Ritterspiele) in the tournament arena, the medieval camp life (Lagerleben) in the evenings, the historical play (Festspiel) in the town hall, the Mummenschanz masked evening and concerts of 15th-century music.
The 2023 edition (postponed from 2021) drew about 600,000 visitors. The next festival takes place 25 June–18 July 2027. Applications for roles are open to Landshut residents from 1 to 31 October 2026, and ticket sales start online on 9 January 2027 at 9:00.
Watching the procession from the streets of the Altstadt is free, but stand seats, the tournaments, the play and the camp evenings are ticketed and sell out quickly. Landshut is about 70 km north-east of Munich, roughly 45 minutes by regional train from Munich Hauptbahnhof.
