Kötztinger Pfingstritt

A pilgrimage for over 600 years

The Kötztinger Pfingstritt is the oldest continuously celebrated custom of its kind in the German-speaking world. Its origins date back to the year 1412: According to legend, young men from Kötzting accompanied a clergyman with the last rites to Steinbühl, seven kilometers away, and vowed to repeat this ride annually if they returned safely. The vow was kept — and is still fulfilled today.

Between Tradition and Eucharistic Procession

Until 1869, the Pfingstritt was an official Eucharistic procession; afterwards, it was downgraded by church law to the status of a horse blessing. In 2004, a bishop participated for the first time in over 130 years — the Pfingstritt regained its sacred character. In 2015, the custom was included in the Bavarian Register of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The Ride

The Pentecost procession starts on Whit Monday at 8:00 AM from the market square of Bad Kötzting. Over 700 riders — in recent years, over 900 have been counted at times — form up in a strictly regulated order: cross bearers, lantern bearers, trumpeters, clergy, the Pentecost Bride with her bridesmaids, followed by the individual clubs and private riders. Horses and riders proceed through the Zellertal valley to Steinbühl, where a festive church service is held around the pilgrimage church of St. Nicholas.

Pentecost Bride Couple and Pentecost Festival Week

A special feature of Kötzting is the Pentecost Bride: A young, unmarried rider may choose a Pentecost Bride on Whit Monday, who leads the procession with him and her bridesmaids. The official Pentecost Bride couple become "ambassadors" for Kötzting and represent the town throughout the year. The ride is embedded in the Pentecost Festival Week, which begins on Whit Saturday with the tapping of the first beer keg in the festival grounds and is associated with a folk and costume evening, a historical festival play ("Pfingstritt-Festspiel" in the festival hall), and the classic folk festival (Volksfest).

Bad Kötzting and the Bavarian Forest

Bad Kötzting is a spa town with around 7,500 inhabitants in the district of Cham, in the state of Bavaria. Located in the southern Bavarian Forest, the town is primarily known as a Kneipp spa resort and for its equestrian tradition — an aspect that the Pfingstritt embodies in a unique way. The Chinese TCM Hospital "Clinic for Traditional Chinese Medicine" is also known throughout Europe.