St Martin's procession 2023

At 5.15 p.m. every year, up to 3,000 children from various schools meet at Berliner Platz for the big St. Martin's procession through Bocholt's city centre.

With lanterns they have made themselves or the traditional Runkel torches, the children follow Saint Martin on his horse, singing.

Countless volunteers, teachers and many music groups accompany the pupils on their way through the city centre.

The exact route of the St. Martin's procession will be announced in the press and in the schools.

You, as spectators, are cordially invited to see the shining children's eyes and to support the children singing along the way.

At the end, each child will receive a St. Martin's bag filled with fruit, biscuits and a small sweet in front of the historic town hall.

The Bocholt St. Martin's procession first took place in 1910, making it the oldest St. Martin's procession in Westphalia. The Verein für Heimatpflege e.V. is the organiser of the procession in cooperation with the Department of Culture and Education of the City of Bocholt.