History of Mardi Gras

• Mardi Gras got its name from a man called Jean Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville, in 1699. The French-Canadian explorer landed on the shore of Louisiana 60 miles south of New Orleans. He called the location "Pointe due Mardi Gras." Four years later, a small settlement that was established nearby by French-Canadians held a festival and called it Mardi Gras. The ceremony continued to occur without its quintessential markers of purple, green and gold for almost 200 years.
  
  

Significance of Colors

• The color purple as used in Mardi Gras ceremonies symbolizes justice. Green indicates faith and gold represents power.
  
  

Selection

• In 1892, the Grand Duke of Russia, Alexis Romanoff, paid a visit to New Orleans. The duke was said to be visiting to win the heart of the American actress Lydia Thompson. The people of New Orleans were honored to host Russian nobility and granted Duke Alexis Romanoff the privilege of selecting the colors that would characterize the Mardi Gras festival. Purple, green and gold officially became the colors of Mardi Gras during a parade held in 1892 in honor of the duke. The parade was called the "Symbolism of Colors." The duke's role in naming the Mardi Gras colors earned him the nickname of Rex, the King of Carnival.
  
  

Louisiana State and Tulane University

• The colors of Mardi Gras have influenced another aspect of Louisiana culture. In 1893, Louisiana State University selected purple and gold for its school color, and purchased much of the fabric available in New Orleans stores, which were stocking up on the material in preparation for Mardi Gras. As a result, Tulane University, Louisiana State's rival school, was left with the option of green and white for its colors, since LSU had already left stores dry of gold and purple fabric.