Festival : Cavalcata sarda

Every second last Sunday of May Sassari holds Sardinia's most important folkloristic music events called “Cavalcata Sarda”. The show is a precious occasion of magnificent coloured clothing and traditional jewelry from over almost of the island. Instead of religion being the focus, this profane ceremony places its attention on costumes, songs, music, dance and, above all, the knights with their spectacular acrobatics. 

Reaching its 107th year in 2006, the modern version of “La Cavalcata” (“The Ride”) celebrates the famous parade that was organized on April 20th in 1899 in honour of Umberto I of Savoy and his wife Margherita who came to the Northern capital to inaugurate the momument dedicated to Vittorio Emanuele. Enrico Costa, however, in his book “The History of Sassari”, writes that, already in 1711, the last years of Spanish domination, the town council organized a “ride” in honour of Phillip V where the town's nobility were proud to display their costumes and traditions. It has only been since the 1950's that the show has turned into more of a tourist attraction making it one of the most important folkloristic shows of the island together with Cagliari's Sant'Efisio and Nuoro's Redeemer. 

Groups from all over Sardinia come ready to participate in the festival's opening morning parade with thousands either walking in traditional clothing, sitting on the “traccas” (typical wooden carts decorated with flowers and everyday objects) or riding on horseback along a route that goes through the town to its outskirts and finally to Italy Square. On the afternoon of the festival, visitors are welcome to watch the knights, who in groups of two, are dared to throw themselves into acrobatics on horseback where Sardinian men show skill and force in a tradition that has been going on now for centuries. Finally, the evening brings all the groups together in Piazza Italia where musicians play the “launeddas” and accordions and accompany the dancers in typical Sardinian dances. 

A day filled with fun and entertainment. A day where the identity of the Sardinian people is seen on a palette of infinite colours, in its endless sounds, and in its daring acrobatics. There is an atmosphere of closeness and charm that is full of surprises every year and gives back timeless customs and traditions to a magical land.