Something strange lies at the heart of the Belgian psyche; expressed through the art of the surrealists, the strength of the beer, or the taxpayer-funded soap opera of the political crisis, there is a subversion of form and content in this tiny country. But while Belgium has only existed since 1830, some of the traditions that contribute to the wonderful weirdness have been around much longer. That’s why, every year, grown men cover themselves in leaves and beat each other with pig’s bladders in the southern city of Mons.
The Ducasse de Mons — popularly known as the Doudou — is an eight-day festival which combines the sacred, secular and silly outfits, and which has existed in various forms since 1349. It includes pushing a golden coach carrying the holy relics of Saint Waudru up a steep hill, re-enacting the battle of Saint George and the dragon with lances, swords and the aforementioned pork offal, and copious amounts of extremely strong Belgian beer.
“It’s incredible,” Elio di Rupo, the city’s mayor, told Real Time Brussels when your correspondent bumped into him by the city’s cathedral, wearing his trademark bow tie. Mr di Rupo is currently fighting the much less colorful battle of leading negotiations to form a coalition government in Belgium; if he succeeds, he’ll be the first French-speaking Prime Minister in 32 years.
The spectacle itself was recognized in 2005 by UNESCO as part of humanity’s cultural heritage. In the city’s medieval main square, bright yellow sand is spread over the cobblestones to make an arena for the Lumeçon, or combat between Saint George and the dragon. The sporadic bursts of heavy rain – Belgian weather at its finest — fail to deter dozens of young men from taking their shirts off and grappling in the ring, before policemen in old-fashioned helmets put them outside the barrier as the acteurs, or combatants, arrive in a procession with a band playing the doudou, a traditional folk song from the region.
Like Belgium after the election — a year ago now — things only get crazier. The dragon, a huge metal construction carried by 11 men dressed in white, has a giant tail with a horsehair plume which is swung out over the crowd at various points in the fight by the hommes sauvages, eight men wearing costumes covered in thousands of sewn-on leaves. The horsehair is lucky, and as the tail swings out, a surge of arms reaches skywards as crowdsurfers try to grab clumps of them.
Meanwhile, St. George, riding a 900kg horse named Rio, attempts to kill the dragon with various lances and a sword before resorting to shooting it with a pistol. The saint is assisted by the chinchins, a dozen pantomime-horse type creatures covered in cowhide and phenomenally garish tartan, who do battle with the pig-bladder wielding devils. The devils — in who are on the same side as the dragon – evil, hence their anticlockwise procession around the arena.
What ensues can only be described as UNESCO-protected fancy dress Wallonian tomfoolery, and is only set to grow in profile when Mons is European City of Culture in 2015. As the crowd tries to pull the dragon into it, 21-gun salutes are fired, devils are pulled around in the sand, and flame-haired maidens pass lances to the protagonists, until, as always, St George triumphs. With centuries of history behind it, each outfit, move and weapon is imbued with a deeper meaning, even if they look like complete chaos to the first-time viewer. Suddenly, Belgium’s political situation makes a lot more sense.