This fountain was created in 1978/79 by the Osnabrück sculptor Hans Gerd Ruwe. The central bronze sculpture with the figure of a hobbyhorse rider is a reminder of the tradition of the annual hobbyhorse ride in Osnabrück. From 1980 to 2013, the fountain stood at the Osnabrück town hall. When it was remodelled, the fountain was dismantled and restored. In 2015, it was given its current location at the more than 700-year-old St. Catherine's Church.

The hobbyhorse ride

In memory of the proclamation of the Peace of Westphalia, the city has been organising the so-called hobbyhorse ride for children in Osnabrück's fourth grade every year around 25 October since the middle of the 20th century. This is associated with a children's festival in the centre of the old town. The first parade of children with their self-made hobbyhorses took place on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the peace treaty on 22 October 1948. This recurring tradition sends out a playful signal in favour of tolerance and peaceful coexistence. In schools, children are prepared for this special event with historical background information and instructions on how to build their hobbyhorse. The parade through the city leads the approximately 1,400 riders, led by city pipers, with their colourful paper hats to the town hall. There, each child is presented with a sugar pretzel by the head of Osnabrück. The hobbyhorse song is then sung together. A firework display on the square in front of the town hall concludes the festival.

The hobbyhorse song

In addition to a newer version by composer Stephan Rodefeld, there is the traditional hobbyhorse song by Anke Kiehl and Tilo Schwutke from 1994, which the children sing while riding their hobbyhorses:

We riders ride through Osnabrück and sing for peace.
We riders ride through Osnabrück, that's a strong song.
We shout loudly and ride fast as we please.
We riders ride through Osnabrück, that's a strong song.

There are so many people here who are all so different,
but that doesn't put us off our stride, we're not strangers at all!
I am green, you are yellow, she is red, he is blue, because this world is colourful.
We riders ride through Osnabrück, that's a strong piece.

I like the blue, you love the yellow, she is infatuated with violet,
and it's nice when we are many, then we are colourful!
I am green, you are yellow, she is red, he is blue, because this world is colourful.
We riders ride through Osnabrück, that's a strong piece.

Historical background to hobbyhorse riding

The historical background to hobbyhorse riding goes back to the legend of an event in Nuremberg in 1650. According to the legend, boys rode their hobbyhorses to the emperor's delegation and asked for a memento of peace. There is historical evidence of square coins from the imperial city of Nuremberg from this year. They show a boy on a hobbyhorse on one of the two sides.
The two Emsland poets Clara and Emmy von Dincklage took up the story in 1875 and transferred it to Osnabrück. Their story "The Hobbyhorse Riders" thus forms the basis of this Osnabrück custom.