New Orleans Carnival Krewes

The History, Spirit & Secrets of Mardi Gras

Rosary O'Neill

• Publisher: The History Press
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781625846099
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

"The traditions, the secret societies and the history of how New Orleans and Mardi Gras came to be as integral to each other as red beans and rice" ( Blogcritics ). New Orleans is practically synonymous with Mardi Gras. Both evoke the parades, the beads, the costumes, the food—the pomp and circumstance. The carnival krewes are the backbone of this Big Easy tradition. Every year, different krewes put on extravagant parties and celebrations to commemorate the beginning of the Lenten season. Historic krewes like Comus, Rex, and Zulu that date back generations are intertwined with the greater history of New Orleans itself. Today, new krewes are inaugurated and widen a once exclusive part of New Orleans society. Through careful and detailed research of over three hundred sources, including fifty interviews with members of these organizations, author and New Orleans native Rosary O'Neill explores this storied institution, its antebellum roots and its effects in the twenty-first century. Includes photos! "[A] spirited and richly illustrated account." — New York Theatre Wire

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Foreword
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• 1. Birth of the Carnival Krewes
• 2. Entries and Masques: Theater of Royal Power
• 3. Events Before and During a New Orleans Carnival Parade and Ball
• 4. Hierarchy Dramatized by the Old-Line Parade
• 5. Hierarchy Dramatized by the Old-Line Ball
• 6. Nature of Carnival Organizations
• 7. History of Carnival in New Orleans
• 8. Structure of a Carnival Organization
• 9. Carnival Organizations’ Effect on the Social Structure of New Orleans
• 10. Secret Political Societies, 1857–1900
• 11. Old-Line Reformers versus the Ring Machine
• 12. Gentlemanly Indirect Power, 1900–70
• 13. Up the Downward Spiral
• 14. Profile of an Old-Line Carnival Organization Member
• 15. The Old-Line Carnival Mentality Today
• 16. Metamorphosis: A Changing Carnival
• 17. African American Carnival Societies
• 18. New Orleans and Carnival Today
• Appendix. Pseudonyms of Carnival Leaders
• Bibliography
• About the Author