International Hanse Day Returns Hull City of Culture For 2017

International Hanse Day is to return to Hull’s Old Town for 2017, following a successful pilot event last year.

12,000 people flocked to the  High Street and Museums Quarter in for the 2016 event and on Saturday 13 May this year, the area will once again be transformed into a medieval market place.

Hanse Day celebrate’s Hull historic place in the Hanseatic Leage, an international commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns. 

Performers will use Hull’s  High Street for an  immersive theatre piece that members of the public will be able to meander through, watching how our characters go about their everyday business in a historic market setting. 

A series of re-enactors will bring to life trades that, last year, saw visitors try out making wattle and daub and hammering their own medieval coins. 

The Museum’s Quarter gardens will be home to modern Hanse with a staged area for performances of song, dance and crafts from our Hanseatic neighbours, with food stalls and children’s activities.

Also back by popular demand is the cheeky jester (picture attached) who performed fire breathing and stilt walking throughout the day.

Jon Pywell, City Culture & Place Manager said:“We’re really excited about celebrating our historical Hanse links and giving people the opportunity to find out more about our association with the League.

“High street will be fully immersive with the sounds, sights and smells of medieval Hull. The street will be dressed with stocks, hay bales and have modern signage covered so we can really get a feel for how people lived in these times.

“We were really pleased with 2016’s event and to see 12,000 people milling about the area was just fantastic. We are planning a great event for our year as UK City of Culture and we look forward to releasing more details in the coming weeks.”

This family-friendly event takes place 10am – 4pm and is free to enter.