Once a year, the streets of Annecy light up for a gathering of mystery and lust: the Venetian carnival. This tradition, which dates back to the 10th century, brings people together under sumptuously decorated masks, with the aim of absolving social classes and differences in background. Dressed in colourful costumes, the story goes that rich and poor danced together euphorically. Napoleon banned carnival and the wearing of masks at the end of the 1700s, due to abuses and the flourishing of libertinism among citizens. In the late 1800s, carnival as we know it today was revived. In March each year, the streets of Annecy's old town make way for parades and costumes. It's a spectacle that enhances the capital of Haute-Savoie.
Carnival in Venice dates back to the 10th century. This period of celebration and games was created to break down barriers and allow people to enjoy themselves together. Rich and poor danced together in the streets of Venice. What's more, the colourful and exuberant carnival is a way of asserting the city's power.
Masks began to appear in the 13th century. Behind the gilding and the colours, you can no longer tell the peasant from the bourgeois. This anonymity gave carnival a somewhat unusual and seductive atmosphere. History has it that anything went, rules were broken and even monks and nuns from the church joined the euphoric crowd. Carnival inspired a masked fashion that spread among the townsfolk outside the festive periods. Carnival reached its apogee in the 18th century. The libertine movement flourished within these carnal representations. Seeing all the freedoms and abuses that the mask allowed, Bonaparte banned it in 1797. From 1849 onwards, carnival was gradually reinstated, but unfortunately it was presented as a bourgeois event and lost its authenticity.
Le carnaval est un événement symbole de partage et de non discimination.
- © Pajor Pawel / ShutterstockIt was the Biennale and the Municipality of Venice that re-established Carnival as we know it today, back in 1979.
The flight of the angel precedes the festivities and heralds the start of 10 days of carnival, until Ash Wednesday. Originally known as the "flight of the Turk", the story goes that every year a Turkish tightrope walker would balance on a wire to reach San Marco. One year, a man fell off the wire and the tradition was replaced by a wooden dove. This is known as the "flight of the angel". Today, since 2001, the tradition of the flight of the angel once again has a person suspended in the air. This time, it's a woman hanging by a thread as she descends towards San Marco.
Every Carnival on 2 February, 12 of the poorest and prettiest girls were chosen and married off. The dowry was paid by the Venetian government. One day, brigands burst in and stole the brides. Today, the Festival of the Brides celebrates their liberation with a grand parade.
For 10 days, thousands of costumes, each more sumptuous than the last, invade the town, the most famous being the "bauta" and the "Moretta". Other disguises are often borrowed from characters from the "Commedia dell'arte".
The bauta is the iconic carnival mask. It's a white mask with a long nose, framed by a black hat with three points, all protected by a black cloak that reaches halfway down the torso. It's a mask much used by the Venetians during Carnival.
The moretta is a small, round, black mask, very popular with women. This mask is mute, as a small button is placed in the mouth to hold it in place.
La bauta est le masque le plus connu de Venise.
- © kaetana / ShutterstockWith its magnificent architecture and the canals that run through the town, Annecy is nicknamed the Venice of the Alps. In fact, the tradition of the Venice carnival has been carried on in Annecy since 1997. The Italian association ARIA is responsible for bringing a little bit of Italy to France.
Le carnaval d’Annecy s’inspire de celui de Venise.
- © COLOMBO NICOLA / ShutterstockThe carnival takes place freely in the streets of old Annecy. Masks pose and parade. On Sunday, festival-goers gather on the podium in the Jardins de l'Europe to show off their costumes.
Photographers flock to the Gardens of Europe, the Pâquier, the canals of the old town and the shores of the lake to find the most colourful and refined costume.
The Annecy carnival is :
Find all the information you need about the carnival on the Lake Annecy website.
