Like a lot of non-Germans, I have a pretty hazy idea of Oktoberfest ― I’m vaguely aware it has something to do with beer and pretzels, and it seems to involve a lot of plaits.

But the festival, which is taking place from September 20 to October 5 this year, has a much deeper history than I realised.

The event, it turns out, actually started off with a royal wedding, a horse race, some poems, and a fairground.

And, the City of Munich Department of Labour and Economic Development (CMDLED) explained, it wasn’t originally called Oktoberfest.

Why did Oktoberfest begin?

The holiday actually began in Bavaria, a state in the south-east of Germany.

Bavaria used to be a sovereign kingdom. Four years after it became a kingdom (in 1810) CMDLED said, Bavaria’s Crown Prince Ludwig married Prin

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