Parade

Lore & Background

The first parades date back to ancient times for religious or military purposes. The Babylonians celebrated Akitu by parading their deities and performing rituals. The oldest parade in the world is the Lord Mayor's Show, which takes place in London the day after a new mayor is inaugurated and was established in 1215. To celebrate the federal government's victory in the American Civil War, 145,000 Union soldiers marched in a two-day Grand Review of the Armies in Washington, D.C., passing before the President, the Cabinet, and senior officers from May 23–24, 1865.

During the Allied liberation of Europe towards the end of WWII in 1944–45, victory parades were common. For example, on 3 September 1944, the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division marched through Dieppe, France, to commemorate the liberation of the city and the loss of over 900 soldiers from that formation during the Dieppe Raid two years earlier. On the Moscow Victory Parade of 1945 in Moscow, the Red Army commemorated Victory in Europe with a parade and the ceremonial destruction of captured Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS standards.

Reader's Guide

The name parade float has sometimes been attributed to the first floats, which were decorated barges towed along canals with ropes held by parade marchers on the shore. Floats were occasionally propelled from within by concealed oarsmen, but the practice was abandoned because of the high incidence of drowning when the lightweight and unstable frames capsized. Among the first uses of grounded floats—towed by horses—was a ceremony in memory of recently drowned parade oarsmen.

Today, parade floats are traditionally pulled by motor vehicles or are powered themselves. Multiple grand marshals may often be designated for an iteration of the parade, and may or may not be in actual attendance due to circumstances (including death). A community grand marshal or other designations may be selected alongside a grand marshal to lead the front or other parts of the parade. Since the advent of such technology, it became possible for aircraft and boats to parade.

A flypast is an aerial parade of anything from one to dozens of aircraft, both in commercial context at airshows and also to mark important dates. They are particularly common in the United Kingdom, where they are often associated with Royal occasions. For ships, there may be a sail-past of tall ships or other sailing vessels.

Did You Know?

• The longest parade in the world is the Hanover Schützenfest that takes place in Hanover every year during the Schützenfest.
• The flower parade in the Netherlands is 42 km and runs over 13 hours from Noordwijk to Haarlem.
• The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in Manhattan is the world's largest parade.