English

Medieval festival takes place in western Belarus

An international medieval festival featuring mock knight tournaments and music concerts took place near the ruins of the Halshany Castle in the Hrodna region on August 21, BelaPAN reports.

The event, which was held on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald and also marked 400 years since the foundation of the famous castle, also involved various contests for the guests.

A knight fight between two 10-man sides was the centerpiece of the event.

In an interview with BelaPAN, Ales Kushner, director of a travel agency that had co-organized the festival, said that this was the second such event at the venue.

Dzmitry Sasnowski, the frontman of the Stary Olsa medieval music band which performed at the event, said that he was impressed with the scale of the festival.

"A lot of tourists have come here, we've counted some 2,000 in the afternoon," he said. "Unlike last year's event, this festival has a big number of participants. Its main difference, though, is four full-scale knight tournaments in the honor of beautiful ladies."