THE
WINTER CARNIVAL LEGEND
KING
BOREAS
A
long, long time ago, Astraious, the god of Starlight, and Eos,
the goddess of the RosyFingered Morn, were wed. The union was
blessed with five sons: Boreas, Titan, Erous, Zephyrus and Notos.
As the eldest, Boreas was granted the title King of the Winds
and he assigned to each brother a permanent grant of great force
and power.
To
Titan was assigned the blustery North Wind. To Euros was granted
control of the irresponsible East Wind. To Zephyrus was given
custody of the bountiful West Wind. To Notos was presented the
balmy South Wind.
The
brothers cavorted gaily over the land and sea.
Boreas,
while on his extensive travels, came upon a winter paradise
known as Minnesota. He paused to behold the enchanting beauty
of a magnificent group of seven gently sloping hills in whose
embrace nestled a beautiful city. Boreas whistled in sheer ecstasy.
"Historic Saint Paul and her seven hills! An ideal place. I
will make Saint Paul the capital of all my domains. It will
henceforth be emblazoned to the world as the winter playground
of the realm of Boreas.
Meanwhile,
Vulcanus the god of Fire, and implacable enemy of Boreas, crackled
in defiant disdain. "By the great sword of Mars, I will temper
the blusterings of Boreas with the heat and roar of my forces."
He was tireless in his bitter resistance to all the festivities
of Boreas.
Undaunted,
Boreas proclaimed a celebration in the spirit of gay Carnival.
"So be it!" shouted Boreas. "There will be a Carnival in old
Saint Paul!" Preparations were made in all the Principalities,
Provinces, and Royal Houses within the Realm of Saint Paul.
And
so for ten glorious days there was a Carnival and joyous celebration
in Saint Paul, feasting, dancing, fun and frolic reigned over
by Boreas and his Queen of Snows, the fairest maiden of the
realm, along with the four Winds who were each accompanied by
a lovely Princess from the realm of Boreas. Klondike Kate a
lady of song and merriment, added her sassy but enchanting voice
to the festivities by singing songs of desire and sentiment.
Senior
King Winter, Queen of the Northlands, and their court contributed
good will and wisdom, while Junior King Frost and Queen of the
Snowflakes, with their court, add youthful exuberance to the
festival.
On the tenth day of celebration, Vulcanus Rex and his Krewe
stormed the Ice Palace. Upon the good council of his queen,
Boreas bade farewell to the people of his winter capital in
the interest of peace and goodwill and returned to dwell among
the gods of Olympus. Boreas and his Court looked forward to
the time when summer's warmth would once again relinquish its
hold on the realm and the frosty atmosphere of winter would
prevail.
ORDER
OF THE ROYAL GUARD
In
the mighty and majestic Realm of Boreas there exists an organization
so filled with history and heritage, and although young in years,
must be considered a tradition.
It
was just after World War II that the dominion found it was lacking
a proper army to defend against Vulcanus Rex and his Krewe of
dastardly deeds. Notwithstanding expense, Boreas sent word to
those returning servicemen that trained their commissions to
become Guards for the throne of Boreas.
Defend
the throne they did, in fact, several of these same men so pleased
the Royal Court that they too, were later on selected to be
Kings, Prime Ministers and Winds to rule the Kingdom. However,
good as they were, a few sought to desert the ranks of Boreas
and join forces with Vulcan. Some, even to this day, swear allegiance
to the organization known as Fire and Brimstone, a just reward
for those traitors.
It
was in the years 1950 through 1958, which became known as the
"Educational Era", that the Guard of Boreas was selected
from the three colleges in the Kingdom: Hamline, Macalester
and St. Thomas, with St. Thomas pleasing the Kingdom most as
they inherited the exclusive right the years 1950 through 1952.
Willing and stout Guardsmen they were, yet graduating to other
duties in the Realm.
With
that, Boreas looked to other areas in the Realm from which to
select his Royal Guard. He found in the St. Paul Junior Chamber
of Commerce a group willing to do honor to his Majesty. For
an entire decade these men served the throne and it was from
this time that was formed the Order of the Royal Guard, so that
all men who had served in the Guard of Boreas could be a willing
ally to the throne.
In
the mighty Realm of Boreas today there exists many willing to
do honor to his Majesty, however, Boreas selects only those
to whom he has the greatest esteem and utmost confidence in
their ability to do honor to the illustrious position. Only
to these does he give all the rights and responsibilities for
the title of King's Guard.
Yes, there are many associations in the right Royal Winter Capitol
which have been in existence for many years, but only one has
the history, tradition and heritage to be called the ORDER OF
THE ROYAL GUARD.
VULCANUS
REX AND THE VULCAN KREWE
In
1886, the Saint Paul Winter Carnival was started. That
year the first Fire King was a part of the Winter Celebration.
Colonel Delos A. Monfort was the first of what would go
on to become the Vulcan Krewe we know today. He was known as
Fire King Coal - the king of Fire. The first nine
Fire King's battled alone without a Krewe against Boreas and
his royal family.
In
1940 E.R. Reiff was picked to be Vulcanus Rex VI, he changed
the program a little. He chose a Krewe of six to
help him chase Boreas and his Royal Family out of his town.
He gave the six Krewe members the names we still use
today. In 1970 Joe Rogers, Vulcanus Rex XXXIII added a seventh krewe
member named the Prince of Soot. We still use the
same names today.
Since
1886, approximately 400 people have officially worn the Vulcan
Running Suit, proudly representing the Vulcans of the Saint
Paul Winter Carnival. Presently the Fire & Brimstone
organization has more than 250 active former Fire King's and
Krewe members.
Vulcanus
Rex - The King of Fire. THE TRUE KING of the St.
Paul Winter Carnival. Vulcanus battles to end the cold of winter,
and seeks to bring the warmth of summer back to the beautiful
City of Saint Paul.
Baron
Hot Sparkus - Commander of the Lancer's Legion and the Stoker
of Emotions. Sparky is the "SPARK PLUG" of the Vulcan
Krewe.
Grand
Duke Fertilious - Minister of Propaganda. The Propagator
of Progeny. This Krewe member usually has the most offspring.
Count
of Ashes - The Raiser of Sleeping Spirits. The "SWINGER"
of the Vulcan Krewe.
Count
Embrious - Fire King's Chancellor of the Exchequer. The
young and romantic one. Embrious also known as EB is usually
the youngest member of the Krewe.
Duke
of Klinker - Fire King's Aide de Camp and the Herder of
the Flock. A Klinker is the longest burning ember, that just
never wants to go out.
General
Flameous - An Army Commander, the Administrator of Fire.
The Keeper of the Flame. The legend of Flameous: if the Flame
dies, the Fire King dies -- and it will be winter forever.
Prince
of Soot - The Recorder of Past Memories. The "LADIES
MAN." Sooty is usually the oldest member of the Krewe.
THE
ROYAL ORDER OF THE KLONDIKE KATES
She
had beauty, charm and a man who "done her wrong."
She was Kathleen Rockwell, and she made her way across the mountains
to Dawson City and gold fields around the Yukon and Klondike
Rivers, just as many others did during the Gold Rush of 1898.
When
the St. Paul Winter Carnival began, Klondike Kate could easily
have been the first to entertain at the Casino. Although it
is not known exactly when Carnival began hiring entertainers,
it is know that the last entertainer hired was in 1961, and
she was known as "Klondike Kate." She then disappeared
for a decade until 1971 when the St. Paul Jaycees decided to
bring Kate back to Carnival. Together with the Winter Carnival
Office, they initiated a competition to choose a new Kate each
year. The contest is held each January and the newly reigning
Klondike Kate becomes the hostess for the two subsequent weekends
of Casino night performances.
In
the early seventies and even into the eighties, the reigning
Klondike Kate performed alone. But as years went by, the character
of Kate became so flamboyant and dynamic that she became more
and more in demand. It then became a group effort so that many
more of the requested demands for appearances could be fulfilled.
Starting in 1996, the Casino became known as Klondike Kate Cabaret.
Former Klondike Kates who are members of the Royal Order of
Klondike Kates perform along with the new Kate and create memories
of the Gold Rush era in our country. Klondike Kate has become
St. Paul's mistress of fun, frivolity, and good fellowship!
Today,
the members of the Royal Order of the Klondike Kates make well
over 100 appearances a year. The current group of active members
will participate in approximately twenty parades over the summer
months where they sing live on the award-winning float. They
also perform at many senior citizen's homes, Meals on Wheels,
Chamber of Commerce shows, conventions, benefits, the Minnesota
State Fair, and many other engagements. For these very active
women, who all work at the own full time jobs, it can be quite
a demand on personal time. But the performances are so much
fun that the Kates look forward to each one. Their statement
of purpose for their organization reads "...to promote,
enhance, and maintain a positive image, reputation and public
perception of the legend of Klondike Kate." They are a
"sisterhood" of women who love to perform and, by
their very presence, provide and open-arm welcome to St. Paul
visitors and locals, alike.
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