2023-08-09 16:00:00
As tradition dictates, the Meyboom was planted before 5 p.m.! A look back at this folkloric day which is in its 715th edition.
August 9 is Meyboom Day. The tree was cut in the Bois de la Cambre this morningat daybreak, by the Bûûmdroegers, the tree bearers.
It is in a truck, under an almost royal escort, that it was transported to Schaerbeek. This year, the tree is much heavier. It weighs between 600 and 800 kilosthe fault of the weather, according to Jean Vanderhaegen, the president of the Bûûmdroegers: “It has rained a lot, so it is quite heavy and we had to shorten it by almost five feet“.
The Meyboom tradition dates back to 13th century : “Cis the commemoration of a victory of the people of Brussels over the Louvanists for a dark history of beer tax 715 years ago“, recalls Jean-Pierre Vandenbroeck, president of the Gardevils. Louvan residents found it too expensive. In retaliation, they decide to attack a wedding in the center of Brussels, but they are received quite vigorously by the companions of Saint-Laurent.
Victorious, the latter received from Duke Jean de Brabant the honor of planting the Meyboom on August 9, the eve of Saint-Laurent. Only one condition:De plant it with 5 p.m.otherwise the people of Louvan recover the privilege of planting the Meyboom tree“, he continues.
No Meyboom without its procession
Like every year, the members of the brotherhood of Companions of Saint-Laurent and the various folk societies gathered around 1 p.m. at the corner of rue des Sables and rue du Marais to pay tribute to the deceased members. After stopping at the Place des Chasseurs Ardennais in Schaerbeek for a lunch break, the procession crossed the town of Saint-Josse, to music, towards the Grand-Place.
It is through the gate of the Town Hall that the Meyboom has entered the Grand-Place, carried by the strength of the arms of the Bûûmdroegers. “The tree arrives around 3 p.m. and is presented to the population and tourists. We go around the Grand-Place. Afterwards, the tree leaves the Grand-Place to go towards the rue des Sables and prepares to be planted“, explains Jean-Pierre Vandenbroeck once more.
This year once more, unsurprisingly, the tree was planted before 5 p.m.. The tradition has been well respected.
MD with Belga – Photo: BX1
■ Report by Camille Tang Quynh, Thibaut Rommens et Pierre Delmée with Bruzz
1691631563
#Meyboom #planted #p.m #day #busy #Bûûmdroegers
