The Krewe of Proteus is the oldest name on the list of krewes that currently parade. The Krewe is Historically of Creole membership (although now this is not necessarily the case). The Mistick Krewe of Comus was first and was traditionally American/Episcopalian. The Knights of Momus was formed of young men awaiting membership in the Mistick Krewe, and thus would be expected to be of a similar demographic. The same year Momus first paraded, so did Rex, which was composed of a much less rigid demographic than the other groups of the time, or than what would later compose its makeup. The Creoles not wanting what had originally been their holiday to be completely hijacked by the Americans created a krewe of their own. This they named after the keeper of Poseidon’s seals, Proteus.

This krewe is widely known for not yielding their tradition to popular trends. The krewe also seems to me to be the one to have the longest stretch of uninterrupted revelry. They begin by having a few drinks on Lundi Gras morning, before their annual lunch. The Proteus lunch begins mid-day at Antoine’s, and the krewe eats and drinks until it is time to prepare for parading. It should be pretty obvious to anyone who has been to a parade that the parade is no respite from revelry. Finally, after the parade the Krewe has its ball in the late hours of the night.

My favorite tale of Proteus though, occurred in 1890. Due to financial hardship, Comus had been unable to stage a parade for a few years. In this interruption in Comus’s parading, the Proteus had claimed Carnival night as his own. When Comus return to parading in the 1890 season, Proteus refused to yield the night back to Comus.

Both Krewes set out on their routes that evening, doomed to cross paths. The location where the two Captains, each leading his krewe on horseback, met in opposition, could not have been more conspicuous; they met at the intersection of Bourbon and Canal. Each Captain refused to yield, cursing the other to stand aside. When the argument reached such a heated point where it seem violence was inevitable and man from the crowd grabbed eat of the horses by the bridle and told then men something. No one is entirely sure what exactly he said, but the Captain of Proteus stood aside, allowed Comus to pass, and solidified Comus’s place as the senior krewe for the rest of Carnival history.