100th Anniversary of the Denkzell Volunteer Fire Brigade

A Century of Fire Brigade History

In 1926, the first men in Denkzell, a district of the Konzell municipality in the Straubing-Bogen district, joined forces to form the Volunteer Fire Brigade. 100 years later, the association celebrates this anniversary with a four-day festival that is unparalleled in the Bavarian Forest region. The FF Denkzell is one of the four local fire brigades of the Konzell municipality and traditionally provides village fire protection and technical assistance.

Festival Tent and Festival Grounds

The entire festival takes place on the festival grounds at Denkzell 10, 94357 Konzell. A large festival tent with several hundred seats forms the heart of the festival area, alongside beer gardens, a festival restaurant with Lower Bavarian specialties, a children's carousel, and sales stands from friendly fire brigades. The festival restaurant serves beer from a local brewery and offers bratwurst, dumplings, roast pork, and pork knuckle.

Schedule of a Fire Brigade Anniversary

On Friday evening, the festival begins with a beer tapping and a disco night in the festival tent – usually with a live band or DJ – where young people in particular celebrate. Saturday morning features the official ceremony with awards for deserving members, and the evening offers a traditional folklore night with music bands from the region and more live music until late at night. Sunday's program includes the festive church service – traditionally with the consecration of a new club flag. This is followed by a grand parade through Denkzell with the club flags of all attending fire brigades and the morning pint in the festival tent. The festival concludes on Whit Monday with a family afternoon featuring a children's program and a closing festival evening.

Whitsun Weekend and Parade of Fire Brigades

The date on the Whitsun weekend 2026 (May 29 to June 1) is deliberately chosen: traditionally, most fire brigade anniversaries in the Bavarian Forest take place on Whitsun – the long holiday weekend also allows friendly fire brigades from the entire district and beyond to travel.

The Most Important Program Points

• Beer tapping and disco night on Friday
• Gala ceremony and folklore night on Saturday
• Festive church service and flag consecration on Sunday
• Parade with friendly fire brigades
• Morning pint with brass band
• Family afternoon on Whit Monday

Konzell is a village of 2,000 inhabitants on the western edge of the Bavarian Forest, about 15 kilometers northeast of Straubing. The anniversary festival makes Denkzell the center of the Lower Bavarian fire brigade world for a long weekend.