{"id":2414,"date":"2026-03-24T11:55:54","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T10:55:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/?p=2414"},"modified":"2026-03-24T13:48:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T12:48:46","slug":"walcourt-2026-military-march","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/walcourt-2026-military-march\/","title":{"rendered":"The Military March of Notre-Dame de Walcourt - 31 May 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every year, the Walcourt region vibrates to the rhythm of a tradition that is unique in Belgium: the Military March of Notre-Dame de Walcourt. In 2026, this not-to-be-missed event will take place on Sunday 31 May, on the Feast of the Trinity.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For visitors staying in Silenrieux or the surrounding area, this is an ideal way to discover a spectacular local tradition, steeped in history and emotion.<\/p>\n

A tradition recognised by UNESCO<\/h2>\n

The Marche Militaire de Notre-Dame de Walcourt is one of the great folk marches of the Entre-Sambre-et-Meuse region. It is now recognised as a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage, and is part of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity listed by UNESCO.<\/p>\n

This event combines faith, folklore and military tradition in a unique atmosphere found nowhere else.<\/p>\n

An impressive procession through the town of Walcourt<\/h2>\n

On Trinity Day, hundreds of marchers in traditional uniforms parade through the streets of Walcourt to the sound of fifes and drums. Hussars, grenadiers, zouaves, sappers and voltigeurs escort the statue of Notre-Dame in a grand procession known as the Grand Tour.<\/p>\n

The 7km route passes through the town and its surroundings, with several highlights to punctuate the day. From the heights, visitors can also admire the majestic Basilica of Saint-Materne, one of the region's most emblematic monuments.<\/p>\n

A tradition dating back to the Middle Ages<\/h2>\n

At the heart of this procession is the statue of Notre-Dame de Walcourt, housed in the basilica. According to tradition, this statue is one of the oldest Marian representations in the West and has been the subject of an annual procession for several centuries.<\/p>\n

Even today, the Marche de la Trinit\u00e9 remains a much-anticipated event for locals and visitors alike, who come to discover this living tradition deeply rooted in local history.<\/p>\n

An idea for an activity during your stay in our g\u00eete in Cerfontaine<\/h2>\n

If you're taking part in the Notre-Dame de Walcourt Military March on 31 May 2026, you can extend the experience by staying at La Saboterie, in Cerfontaine, near Walcourt. Our g\u00eete offers a peaceful, natural setting, ideal for relaxing after this festive day and making the most of your stay in the Lacs de l'Eau d'Heure region.<\/p>\n

If you wish to to book our g\u00eete in Cerfontaine, click here<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Chaque ann\u00e9e, la r\u00e9gion de Walcourt vibre au rythme d\u2019une tradition unique en Belgique : la Marche Militaire de Notre-Dame de Walcourt. En 2026, cet \u00e9v\u00e9nement incontournable aura lieu le dimanche 31 mai, \u00e0 l\u2019occasion de la f\u00eate de la Trinit\u00e9. Pour les visiteurs s\u00e9journant \u00e0 Silenrieux ou dans les environs, c\u2019est une sortie id\u00e9ale […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2426,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2414","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-actualites"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2414"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasaboterie-silenrieux.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}