Klausjagen

The Klausjagen ("Nicholas chase") festival takes place in the Swiss town of Küssnacht on the eve of St. Nicholas Day. The festival, attended each year by about 20,000 people, consists of a parade of around 1,500 participants, and lasts far into the night.

The procession is believed to have its roots in pre-Christian pagan traditions involving the chasing of wild spirits (compare Wild Hunt). The early forms of the Klausjagen involved much unruliness and noise, and were frowned upon by Church and authorities, and were officially outlawed in 1732, but could not be effectively suppressed. In the late 19th century, the custom was instead "Christianized", bishop's mitres appeared in the procession, and the church sanctioned the tradition as being in honour of Saint Nicholas. In the 1920s, the still rather rough procession was tamed by a committee of villagers who created the modern, clearly organized parade. Since 1928, the St. Nicholas Society of Küssnacht has been responsible for the continuation of the custom.