Sankt Martin

November 11th is St. Martin’s Day! It’s celebrated in parts of Belgium, Netherlands, Austria, Germany, France, Poland, Latvia and Estonia and it commemorates the day St. Martin was buried.

When St. Martin was a young man, he was a soldier. The legend has it that one day in the winter, while on horseback, he came upon a poor man, barely clothed. St. Martin took out his sword and cut his cloak in half. He gave one half to the poor man for warmth.

Today, the story is remembered by the tradition of children parading after dark, carrying lanterns and singing songs, following a person on horseback who pretends to be St. Martin. The parade is often ended with a bonfire.