History Of Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest begins in 12 days.  Here is some information on the history of the Munich celebration...

The first "Oktoberfest" took place on October 12^th 1810 to celebrate the marriage on that date of Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese of Sachsen-Hildburghausen.  The general public was invited to share in his celebration which was not typical of this time.  At this time in history, nobles rarely associated themselves with the general public.  Recognizing this rare opportunity, 40,000 Bavarians attended the celebration in Munich on what is now called Theresienwiese (the Teresa Meadow).  Almost 200 years later, the celebration is still held at the same location.  Although major amounts of beer were consumed at the very first Oktoberfest, the event was initially built around a horse race and a state agricultural show that was added in 1811. The horse race is no longer a part of the celebration, however the agricultural show continues and the festival has added many carnival like activities.  

In the year 1813, the Oktoberfest was called off as Bavaria was involved in the Napoleonic war. In 1816, carnival booths made their first appearance and included main prizes such as silver, porcelain, and jewelry. In 1819, the town fathers of Munich took over the management of the festival to ensure that Oktoberfest was celebrated every year without exception. 

In later years Oktoberfest was lengthened and the start date was pushed earlier into Septemeber to take advantage of the good weather typical to Bavaria that time of the year. The high temperature in the first week of Oktoberfest often nears 85 degrees F which helps to stimulate the thirst of the visitors. Despite the change in dates, the last week of Oktoberfest still falls in October. 

Coming up next...details on the Oktoberfest beer style.

Comments

[Tammy]

Great website. Keep it up!!!