Easter and its celebrations are fast approaching, heralding the end of Lent for believers, the renewal of nature and the beginning of the rattle in our streets and alleys. This tradition has deep roots in Lorraine, particularly in Sarreguemines Confluences! Share a little history....
The essential accessory
The rattle
The rattler’s musical instrument
A rattle is a wooden musical instrument dating back to the Middle Ages. There are several types of rattle with different mechanisms, but the main thing is always the same: to make noise! In Lorraine, we are most familiar with the notched model, which raises a blade of soft wood and is operated by the wrist (the model pictured in this article); and the boxed rattle hung from the neck, where hammers are alternately raised before falling back down.
The use of the rattle through the ages and history
In the Middle Ages, lepers were obliged to use a rattle to signal their arrival in town and keep “healthy” people away.
Even in the Middle Ages, the rattle was used in churches, not only to replace bells but also to signify the ominous sound of Darkness.
In contemporary history, the rattle was used by British soldiers in the trenches to signal a gas alert, the advantage of the rattle being that it did not produce sparks when used. It was also used by firefighters to clear the way before sirens were invented.
The religious tradition of
Rattles
in Lorraine
On the evening of Maundy Thursday, the Thursday before Easter Sunday, the bells fly to Rome to receive the papal blessing. Our towns and villages are then silenced as a sign of mourning. They return on Easter Sunday, bringing the eggs back to the children (in our region, it’s traditionally the Easter bunny 🐰 who brings the eggs backcheck out our blog post on the legend of the Easter bunny!).
To replace the absence of the bells, which can no longer announce the Angelus and the services, the rattleers go on tour, travelling the streets from Maundy Thursday evening until Holy Saturday morning, armed with their rattle. Traditionally, the choirboys take on the role of rattle players.
Each round of rattles is accompanied by ditties, and each round has its own. For example, here is the one sung by the choirboys of the village of Zetting on Maundy Thursday evening:
Rutsche, rutsche Hase, Der wu nitt rutsche kann soll lafe, Der wu nitt lafe kann soll ritte, Der wu nitt ritte kann soll dehem bliewe, Nacht Clock !
“Slide, slide hare, He who cannot glide must run, He who cannot run, let him ride, He who cannot ride, let him stay home, Evening bells!“
The rattle tours usually end with a quest from house to house: the children collect money, chocolate and eggs, with the spoils always shared between everyone at the end!
The meaning and traditions of Easter & Renewal 🥚
Easter always takes place on the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring. Easter celebrations are therefore closely linked to this season: we celebrate Renewal, a rebirth at the very moment when nature is reborn after that barren time of winter.
We all know at least one person in our circle who does their spring cleaning, or as we say here, Oschderbutz (Easter cleaning)!
In fact, the German and English words for Easter, “Ostern” and “Easter” respectively, clearly refer to the East and to sunrise: a sign of renewal, of a new day… Poetics 😊
We’d like to thank Damien Schuhler from Patrimoine Vivant, who is passionate about local heritage, both tangible and intangible, and the cultural roots of the people who live in our beautiful region. He was a great help in writing this blog article! If you’re interested in the subject, you can find out more in his book Le temps du Renouveau en Lorraine, on sale at the Tourist Office for €20.00 (in French only).
© Sarreguemines Tourisme© SVStudioArt / Freepik
© Patrimoine Vivant
© Sarreguemines Tourisme