St. Hubert's Days start in Hrodna (photo)

04/11/2011 - 07:39

Young actors made a theatrical performance basing on this story. Yauhenia Ramanovich wrote a short play specially for the St. Hubert's Days. The band "Stary Olsa", which plays ancient folk music, played for the city dwellers in the evening.

An international scientific conference "Hrodna: personality, society, state" will take place in the framework of the civil Hrodna days on November 5-6. Historians from Belarus, Poland and Russia will present their researches of the unknown Hrodna of XIX-XX centuries and the times of the Great Duchy of Lithuania.

The holiday in honour of the holy guardian of the city was invented by the members of the local "Belarusian Language Association" and the publishing program "Hrodna Library" three years ago. In the opinion of head of the Hrodna branch of the "Belarusian Language Association" Tatsiana Kanopkina, the St. Hubert theme underlines the European essence of the city:

"I think that this is a trademark of Hrodna, - Tatsiana Kanopkina has commented to Euroradio. - St. Hubert is something which belongs exclusively to us. It's like in San Francisco - you can find St. Francisc everywhere, from souvenirs to cup cakes and different events. They respect his memory. We need to think seriously of this".

According to the legend, Belgian duke Hubert saw a deer with a golden cross. He thought that this unusual animal was a sign from Heaven, gave all his wealth to the poor and became a righteous man. The Catholic Church canonized Hubert after his death. According to the Catholic calendar, St. Hubert's Day is celebrated on November 3. In 1540, Queen Bona Sforca gave Hrodna a coat-of-arms with a deer and a golden cross.