Only those who have experienced the European gatherings held every July in Provence can truly grasp their essence.
For anyone who hasn’t been there, any attempt at imagining it—no matter how vivid—remains abstract, peripheral, and rational. In other words: they simply have no idea.
Even comparisons with other events, such as the beautiful yet entirely different one-day Ghibelline festivals, fall short.
Perhaps it’s the magic of the place, or the shared spirit, but something happens:
People of all ages—from eight to eighty (and we’ve had some from two to ninety)—recognize one another, even if they’ve never met.
They speak the same language, even when eight or more different ones are in use and polyglots are rare.
They follow rules joyfully. They engage wholeheartedly.
They manage to express themselves and engage in deep discussions without hostility.
They never lead with divisive opinions or convictions—because they find themselves in perfect harmony, as if they had always known each other, even if only minutes have passed since their first meeting.
Freed from the daily hypnosis and bitter frustrations of modern life, they rediscover themselves.
They undertake a swift spiritual journey—from the camel (discipline and effort), through the lion (assertiveness and pride), to the child (innocence and renewal).
In a matter of minutes, they reach the summits from which all-too-human dramas—both comedies and tragedies—appear distant and almost amusing.
For these reasons, writing a report on the tenth edition cannot possibly convey the true experience.
It may offer a faint impression—perhaps—if we start from the text we distributed in all languages upon arrival:
The Landsknechts of Europe gather each year in Provence.
What may seem to many like a simple celebration is, for us, also a moment of sowing.
Over the past ten years, this annual gathering has given rise—both directly and indirectly—to many significant initiatives.
It has fostered connections that led to the expansion of study centers and cultural institutions across Europe, and to the creation of websites and radio networks that overcame group rivalries and sparked genuine collaboration.
Solid human bonds have been formed—sometimes strengthened by shared professional interests, but above all, by the emergence of a European esprit de corps.
On the educational front, alongside the texts and courses we have promoted, a real cultural and ideological turning point has taken root in several European contexts—a turning point that has reversed many of the distortions introduced by hostile cultural influences.
As clearly stated in our materials, the Landsknechts are not a movement, a political party, a study center, a group, or a sect.
They are something more organic and profound: a force that does not act to gain credit or recognition, but to ensure that what is built becomes a shared legacy, the result of natural synergy and a shared sense of purpose.
Because of this foundational choice, much of our work is not easily visible. Many of our results are indirect—second-order outcomes—because we do not aim for public victories, but to shape an environment.
The world turns, quietly, around those who silently renew values.
To truly perceive the depth and solidity of what we build, one must be fully immersed in our “engine.”
And if others sometimes appropriate what we’ve conceived, nurtured, and built—and boast of it—it’s of little concern.
We have no barriers, apart from those set by ethics and principle.
We have always preferred the compass that points North over partisan alignments—whether national, international, or geopolitical.
We believe the Essential must prevail over the Contingent: when the essential is clear, the contingent cannot truly divide.
And even if it does, it will never do so in a hostile or destructive way—as so often happens in a world devoid of principle.
The guiding principles of the Landsknechts of Europe are set out in our collective documents and in the book Challenge to the Future.
On an ideal level, they are grounded in:
The primacy of ethical and existential values above all else
The recovery and modern application of foundational ideals
A united, imperial vision of Europe—resisting all centrifugal or fragmenting tendencies
The promotion of synergy within full autonomy
The study and testing of innovative, effective methodologies
A forward-looking, constructive, and creative orientation—rejecting defeatism, simplistic slogans, or victimhood
The annual gathering of the Landsknechts is not an end in itself—it is a means: the glue that allows everything else to live, grow, and flourish across the year, in many places, and in many hearts.
The Tenth Edition
This year’s edition unfolded across four theoretical sessions, in which we reviewed past actions and outcomes; four physical demonstrations (two of Tai Chi, one of Italian fencing, and one of Qi Gong); and seven competitions between four mixed-age, mixed-language teams.
As always, the teams brought spirit and energy to the gathering.
This year, the teams were named after movements that, between the 19th and 20th centuries, revolutionized youth imagination:
New Greeks (grey)
Wandervögel (blue)
Jóvenes Requetés (white)
Fiumani (red)
The Fiumani dominated the competitions—but that’s not the point.
The events included:
Petanques
Axe throwing
Italian fencing
Trivial Pursuit
Football (soccer)
Arm wrestling
Table football
Two of the four theoretical sessions were devoted to reports on established initiatives in various countries: Italy, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Argentina.
These were only glimpses of the broader, ongoing work that continues to yield structures and initiatives across borders.
Contacts with the last two nations were made remotely, and—whether by fate or chance—the session with Argentina took place on the anniversary of Evita’s ascent to the heavens.
We also formed two working commissions: one focused on enhancing international coordination, the other on improving communication.
Even with all this summarized, the true spirit of the event cannot be conveyed.
It cannot—because the energy that animates every moment of those days is beyond description.
No comparison with other formats or events holds up—it inevitably misses the mark.
Just as the nature and function of the Lanzichenecchi of Europe do not fit into conventional models, the role of each participant is likewise unique—without equivalent in other experiences.
Everyone is active
They are active through disciplined participation—including shared cleaning duties; physically, through the competitions; emotionally, through the joyful evenings—but most of all, they are engaged mentally and operationally.
There is no indoctrination—only interactive growth, where everyone learns and teaches at once.
People of all ages come together—elders and youth, leaders of movements, members of rooted associations and cultural institutes, alongside free individuals.
They act together, with no arrogance from the experienced, and no loss of humility or respect from the younger.
It’s no small thing—not at all.
What follows from this—whether planned or as spontaneous “side effects”—is undoubtedly important.
But nothing compares to what gives rise to it all: the pure essence of what must be, which would act even without acting—certainly without agitation.
