The Legend of The Goat–riders

[Goswin_van_Eyck]

The Legend of The Goat–riders

http://www.kcst.be/e-legends/legendbelgium.htm

In the 18th century, the name "goat-riders" applied to all criminal
gangs that operated in the border region on both sides of the river
Maas (Meuse), both in the Netherlands (Kerkrade), Germany (Aachen)
and Belgium (Wellen). Great poverty caused these highwaymen to rob
churches, abbeys and monasteries. Soon, they started plundering
villages, robbing travellers and unprotected farms, particularly at
night.

We zijn met achten,

we stelen alle nachten.

Omdat we te lui zijn om te werken,

bestelen we de kerken

= There are eight of us,

We go out stealing every night.

Because we are too lazy to work,

We rob churches.


According to popular belief, the name of these robbers has two
origins. Firstly, the he-goat (or buck) was at the centre of their
meetings. To be accepted into a gang, newcomers had to undergo a
ritual. The candidate was required to sit on a wooden goat (which
was turned around until they fell off), drink gin and pronounce
several formulas. They committed sacrilege by spitting on the holy
cross and reading this oath: "I renounce God and the holy mother of
God and I acknowledge the devil. If I should be captured, I will
rather undergo torture to death above betraying one of them."

Moreover, the name is derived from the excellent organisation of
these gangs. During a single night, they were able to strike in
different places almost simultaneously, seeming to appear out of
nowhere. This probably gave rise to the myth that the members flew
through the air, sitting on he-goats. The he-goat was seen as the
symbol of Satan, which led people to believe these criminals (like
witches) had closed a pact with the devil. As this superstition
grew, these stories were believed to be true.

There is the story of a priest who was returning home from a far-
away visit late one night. It was a long trip, but luckily a coach
passed him and the driver, whom he knew to be from his own village,
offered him a ride: "Close your eyes, reverend, you need some
sleep." After a few minutes, the driver heard that the priest was
sound asleep and he pronounced the magic formula.

Over bos en struik

Door de wolken uit!


= Across woods and shrubs

All the way through the clouds!


The coach was then lifted into the air, so they reached their
destination within seconds. The reverend woke up and remembered
dreaming about flying. When he entered his house, he looked at the
time and realised it hadn't been a dream …

A common mode of operation for the goat-riders was the dun: by
putting down anonymous letters, they would urge farmers to pay them
large amounts of money. If their request wasn't met, the gang
threatened to burn down the farmstead. This usually meant the farm
would also be pillaged. This type of extortion was not always
successful, as appears from the many fires that were lit in those
days.

In our own area, the Belgian province of Limburg, the village of
Wellen suffered from these fires, caused by the gang of "captain"
Jan van Muysen.

On 11th November 1773 the farm of Jan Corfs was set alight, after he
had refused to meet the threats made in several letters. The house,
the stables and his cattle were all lost. All that was left for
Corfs, was his money. This news reached one of the goat-riders, so
the poor man again received a dun, along with others in the area.
People became increasingly upset and urged the authorities to take
action.

Jan van Muysen seemed to lead an inconspicuous life, spending most
of his time studying. Although he was never seen to be working, he
had a lavish lifestyle. This led the sheriff to follow his steps,
and he appeared to be more active at night. After he had been
caught, he initially refused to cooperate with the authorities. But
when torture was applied, he immediately gave in: he admitted to
being a goat-rider, which allowed the sheriff to arrest 5 other men.
Together they admitted that there were 200 in their gang, who
gathered by an oak on the verge of Wellen and Kortessem. It was the
point of departure for their nocturnal raids.

The goat-riders derived pleasure from the desecration of Christian
symbols. The wife of one of the arrested criminals was said to have
smuggled holy communion out of church in order to mix it with soup
and veal. These stories of sacrilege shocked ordinary civilians to
the extent that they showed no mercy for the goat-riders. In Wellen,
16 were burnt on a meadow called "Bonderkuil". Van Muysen was
decapitated and his head was exhibited on a post.

The goat-riders were feared because of their cruelty and their
Satanic belief and as a result they were prosecuted beyond measure.
Many criminals were tortured into saying they were goat-riders (even
though they were not) and were hanged, quartered or murdered. This
suddenly stopped when the French conquered the Southern Netherlands
in 1789.

One of the most famous stories tells of the execution of Arnold van
de Wal, also known as "Nolleke van Geleen", whose gang terrorised
the area of Bree. They were prosecuted by sheriff Clercx. When they
led him to the gallows, he was given the opportunity to convert. But
he bluntly refused and urged the executioner to hurry up so he
would "be on time for lunch with Lucifer." He was smoking a pipe and
after the cord broke, he stood up again and said: "With all this
going on, my pipe will extinguish!" As he still refused to convert,
they killed him off.

By the beginning of the 19th century, the goat-rider gangs were
largely exterminated. But long afterwards, people kept staring to
the nightly sky. One never knew when Satan's allies would return …

The legend of the goat-riders lives on in popular culture through
the story of "Villa Volta" ("The Flying House". This haunted house
can be found in "De Efteling", a theme park in the south of the
Netherlands.

While Hugo van den Loonsche Duynen and his allies are robbing the
Abbey of Postel, he sees a mysterious woman floating in the air,
dressed in immaculate white. She says:

"Thou shalt not steal,

never carry anything beyond this Holy Cross ...

Or else thou shalt be banned in thy own house,

and shalt never find peace of mind anymore!"

He pushes the woman aside and walks out carrying the bag with silver
past the Holy Cross on the wall. When he reaches his house, Villa
Volta, he is overcome with fear. The mysterious white lady is
standing on top of the roof, waving her arms:

"Nowhere in your own house, you will find peace

now that you have violated God's house.

Only when a noble person, pure at heart, will enter this house,

the curse will be removed."

Hugo locks the door and settles into an easy chair. Then he realizes
the meaning of the curse: everything around him starts moving, walls
move towards him and the house is literally turned upside down. Even
worse, Hugo cannot leave the villa! He has to wait forever for the
visitor with the purest mind and heart to lift the curse. Maybe you
are the one Hugo is waiting for …

[Goswin_van_Eyck]

Facts and Legends

In the 18the century a gang of robbers threatened Limburg, an area
on the border of Belgium and the Netherlands. They were called "the
Bokkerijders", translated to English: "the Goat Riders".

Lots of farms, churches and vicarages became plundered and countless
nightly robberies were committed, mostly attended with ill-treatment
of the inhabitants. The
Goat Riders were associated with the super naturalness. Stories
turned up everywhere about elusive robbers, flying in the air with
magical powers as a result of a pact with the devil…

source:
http://pssvoeren.smartschool.be/webs...6mtw/6mtwb_jb/


Historical Background

If we want to know more about the objectives of the Goat Riders, we
have to go back to the 17the century. There was a lot going on in
Limburg at that time. The instability of the state in the 16the and
17the century and the following peace-treaties of Westphalia (which
put in 1648 an end to the Thirty-year-old War) had led to a
geographical mix-up in Limburg: beside 33 territories of the State,
there were also 12 duchies and 5 properties of sovereign lords.
Limburg stayed divided this way for the most part till the French
Revolution. After 1648 the
Republic of the United Netherlands became implicated in war against
French for 5 times. A lot of foreign bands of soldiers were passing
trough Limburg. Quartering, demands and unpaid transportation-
services were the order of the day and the crops failed more than
once. The population impoverished and led often hunger.

Soldiers who had enough of war, deserted, went into hiding in the
forests and formed little gangs, together with the local inhabitants
who were also dissatisfied. These gangs lived on robbing and
plundering.
Another
theory says that the Goat Riders operated to take away the surplus
of the well-to-do classes, for giving it to the poor.

Goat Riders were actually normal people who were part of the
society. At least, they seemed to be by day. When the State had
finally found one Goat Rider, there was no certainty to find the
whole gang and that's why they could continue for so long. Another
problem was that the State only punished and not listened. Yes, also
the Goat Riders had something to tell. They wanted more justice in
their society (see above). They fought for a social revolution. The
task of the State was finding as plenty as possible rioters, but the
cause was never taken away, so the evil grew further…

In 1794 the last Goat Rider was hanged and this was also the
definitive end of the organisation. In total there were about 600
gang-members (suspects and innocents included) sentenced.

The Area



In the literature there is talk of three large gangs (divided in
smaller ones) that had made Limburg
unsafe:

The first was set up by Matthias Ponts in 1734 in Dutch Limburg. It
included about 145 members. They were caught in 1748, but the gang
continued until 1756.

From 1762 until 1776 a second gang was active, also in Dutch
Limburg. Their leader was Joseph Kirchhoffs.

A third period started in 1970 in Belgian Limburg, until 1794, when
the last Goat Rider was hanged.



Some places where the Goat Riders were active:

Dutch Limburg:


Merkstein, 's Hertogenrade, Kerkrade, Ubach, Schaesberg, Hoensbroek,
Schinnen, Nuth, Oirsbeek, Heerlen, Nieuwstadt, Echt, Heijden,
Geilenkirchen, Geleen, Simpelveld, Welz, Rurdorf, Hoengen, Alsdorf,
Rimburg, Stein, Thorn, Elsloo, Geulle, Valkenburg, Beek, Klimmen,
Meerssen, Brunssum, Gulpen, Margraten, Berg, Maastricht

Belgian Limburg:


Lummen, Beringen, Tessenderloo, Oostham, Rekem, Mechelen aan de
Maas, Wellen, Ulbeek, Alken, Kortessem, Munster-Bilzen, Stevoort,
Sint-Truiden, Zepperen, Graesen Rummen, Bocholt, Bree, Stockem,
Dilsen, Lanklaar, Neeroeteren, Opoeteren, Maaseik, Ophoven, Eel