Procession of the Holy Blood Heilig Bloedprocessie
Procession of the Holy Blood, 2014
Status	Active
Genre	Procession
Date	Ascension Day
Frequency	Annual
Locations	Bruges, Belgium

TheProcession of the Holy Blood (Dutch:Heilig Bloedprocessie) is a large religious Catholicprocession, dating back to theMiddle Ages, which takes place eachAscension Day inBruges,Belgium. In 2009, it was included in theUNESCORepresentative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The Procession of the Holy Blood seems to have emerged as a civic ceremony by the late thirteenth century. By 1303, if not earlier, the ceremonial procession carried the holy blood relic around the perimeter of the city walls, completed in 1297.^[1] The procession commemorates the deliverance of the city, by the national heroesJan Breydel andPieter de Coninck, from French tyranny in May of the previous year. It takes place onAscension Day, as one of the great religious celebrations inBelgium. Residents of the area perform anhistorical reenactment of the phial's arrival together with similar dramatizations ofBiblical events. Thepassion playJeu du Saint Sang takes place every five years.^[2] Sixty to one hundred thousand spectators watch the procession, a parade of historical scenes and biblical stories. Choirs, dance groups (e.g., dance theatreAglaja), animals (ranging from geese to camels), horse-drawn floats and small plays with many actors pass by within a couple of hours.

The centerpiece is theRelic with the Precious Blood of Jesus. The traditional account holds thatJoseph of Arimathea wiped the blood-stained face of the dead Christ and carefully preserved the cloth, which was later, after the 12th centurySecond Crusade supposedly brought to the city byThierry, Count of Flanders, who had received it fromBaldwin III of Jerusalem in recognition of his bravery.^[3] However, an alternative view says after theSack of Constantinople in 1204, during theFourth Crusade,Baldwin, Count of Flanders was chosen emperor and sent looted relics to Flanders. His two daughters lived at Bruges. The earliest documentation of the Holy blood relic dates from 1256.^[3]

In 2015 the procession was cancelled, a few hours before it was scheduled to start, due to bad weather.^[4] In 2020 it was cancelled from health concerns due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.^[5]

More than 3,000 Bruges residents participate in the spectacle, which is also called "Brugges Schoonste Dag" (Dutch, "The Most Beautiful Day in Bruges"). Bruges residents used to decorate their facades with flags in the colours of the city and country. The event retains its formal spiritual aspect. Every year, the bishop and governor invite important diplomatic guests. Among the most famous guests were the archbishop of Krakow, CardinalWojtyła (later Pope John Paul II), in 1973 andCardinal Wiseman in 1849.Many bishops, priests and nuns from all over the world come to celebrate this famous procession. In the morning, a pontifical Mass is celebrated in the cathedral, and, in the afternoon, the procession takes place. Clergy carry the relic on their shoulders, guarded by the brotherhood. When the relic of the Holy Blood passes by, the crowd becomes still and silent in reverence. In 2009, the event was inscribed in theUNESCORepresentative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.^[6]

• 
  The conopeum, solemnly carried during the procession
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  Representation of theVirgin Mary during the procession, May 2010
• 
  The history of the relic is performed for thousands.
• 
  Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya on the official viewing stand
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  Mgr De Kesel receives his high guests.
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  Other relics are carried in the procession.
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  Saint Donatus of Reims, patron of the diocese

Wikimedia Commons has media related toProcession of the Precious Blood, Bruges.

• Heilig Bloedprocessie at the official website of the city of Bruges
• "200,000 people flock to old world city to see centuries old religious procession of the Holy Blood".British Pathé. 1925. (Digitised newsreel)
• "The Procession of the Holy Blood". British Pathé. 1933. (Digitised newsreel)

• History of Bruges
• Parades in Belgium
• Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
• Catholicism in Belgium
• Belgian folklore
• Religious festivals in Belgium
• Spring (season) in Belgium
• Christian processions

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