At Pentecost there is always something going on in Wildeshausen! I can tell you! This is the highlight of the whole year! That's when the traditional guild festival takes place here! I can assure you that the guild festival in Wildeshausen is something very very special, because of being the traditional festival of the really ancient Wildeshausen Shooter's Guild. - And this guild has been closely interwoven with the citizens and the history of the city for many hundreds of years.
The history of the guild as a brotherhood goes back far into Middle Ages. When the ranged weapons like the crossbow came more into use, our city’s defense became more and more focused on shooting. Furthermore the citizens of the cities in this period pushed for self-government, and the institutions that played a central role in this process were the craftsmen associations and the guilds.
From the beginning, however, the guild had many more tasks than just shooting. It was also about social security and social interaction.
The members of the fraternity paid in for purposes for the community and were thus protected to some extent to some of life's perils. In addition, there was another fraternity in the early days that was largely the same in terms of personnel as the Shooter´s Guild. This was the so-called ‘Leichnamsbruderschaft‘, a furneral brotherhood, which ensured that the members were buried appropriately -a kind of guild that did not only exist in Wildeshausen and that developed particularly in times of the plague. Even the tradition of this old Leichnamsbruderschaft lives on with the continuous commemoration of the dead that is committed by the guild.
The manner in which the shootingchampion is awarded has remained unchanged for centuries. Even very old documents mention that the guild met at Pentecost for this purpose. An iron bird is attached to a 32m high pole, which must be shot down. Whoever succeeds is the new king and is equipped with a special insignia. This is the silver archer bird, the so-called "papagoy", a really amazing cultural-historically treasure that has been worn by the Wildeshausen archer kings for over 500 years.
The choice of the so-called "Schaffer" is of great importance too, because he has to take on important tasks in the organization of the next annual guild festival. He is also the next future member of the guild's officer corps. He has to host the traditional Schaffer's meal and
together with the archer king he reprensents the Shooter´s Guild for one year. Finally, after his period of office, he is moving up to the guild's officer corps.
The deep historical roots of the Shooter's Guildfestival can also be felt in other ways when the festival is celebrated every year according to a traditionally fixed schedule. Nevertheless, you can of course have very much fun at the festival, and how even! – Just try it out, next time, when it says again: Pentecost will be celebrated! Or, like the locals say: „Pingsten ward fiert!“