The Ypres Times.
101
HISTORY WITHOUT TEARS.
Interesting Historical Facts about Ypres.
[From Sister Marguerite, of Ypres.)
1.—THE MASSACRE OF MAGISTRATES IN YPRES IN 1303.
We read in'the book Histoire de la Chatellaine d'Ypres," by Warnkeenig Goldhof,
that on the night of the 29/30 November, 1303, there was a riot of the people of Ypres
and as a result of this the common people of the town declare that some sheriffs and
councillors and people of the town whom they accuse must pay for this with their lives.
The story goes on that nine sheriffs were taken to the Cloth Hall tower and there
massacred and tortured, their bodies being afterwards thrown from the tower. In the
town museum before the war the big tongs with which they were killed and which were
made réd-hot were on view. After this cruel deed most of the ringleaders were taken
prisoner and condemned and to commemorate the dead sheriffs a public funeral procession
was held every year on the 30th November, the day of the feast of St. André. On these
occasions a catafalque covered with a pall was erected.
During the bombardment of the war this pall was saved and is now in the temporary
St. Martin's Church. The pall is of white silk now yellow with age, with a large cross
in red silk in the centre, the wood is covered with red silk and on the two sides are the names
and the arms of the dead sheriffs with a skull and crossbones worked in silk in the four
corners. At one end the arms of Ypres with the words OBIERUNT 1303 and
REPARATUM 1604," on the other end are the arms of Flanders.
For the first time since the war the custom again took place last year and will in future
be carried on.
2.—WHY YPRIANS ARE CALLED "YPRES CHILDREN."
In the year 1500 the Emperor Charles 5th came to pay a visit to the magistrates of Ypres
and as a souvenir of his visit asked them to make him a present of the Cloth Hall.
The magistrates were very perturbed at this request and consulted amongst them
selves as to what was the best thing to do to satisfy the Emperor, but they could come to
no decision and went home to bed hoping that the next morning would bring them a
good idea.
One especially could not sleep and was very nervous in bed so that his wife asked
him what was the reason of his nervousness and on his telling her she exclaimed, And
is that all; well, let him have the Cloth Hall if he can take it with him, but we shall still
have the ground and can soon build another." Next day all the other magistrates agreed
to this proposal and the Emperor agreed too, but he could not believe that this idea came
from the brains of the magistrates and asked them who had given them this advice. When
he knew that it came from a woman he commanded the magistrates to wear a Leadband
on their clothes to remind them that they were led by a woman in the same way as children
are taught to walk.
3.—A FEW WORDS ON THE KATTEFEEST HELD AT YPRES.
There are two feasts in Ypres during the year, one in March called the Kattefeest
and the other in August called the Thuendag."
The Kattefeest is sometimes called the Cold Feast on account of its being
held early in the year when the weather is usually cold, but more generally the "Kattefeest"
or Feast of the Cats. It derives its name of Feast of the Cats from an old and curious
custom now done away with, which was that on the first Wednesday of the feast a cat
was thrown from the' Cloth Hall tied up with different coloured ribbons, and prizes were
given to the persons who recovered these ribbons according to their colours.