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Local Germany
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Local Germany
IN PICTURES: The wildest 'Rosenmontag' floats at this year's Carnival in Germany
Costume-clad revellers took to the streets in German cities to mark the end of the famous carnival season on Rosenmontag (Rose Monday). Rosenmontag, as its known in German speaking countries, is more often called Shrove Monday in English, and takes place ahead of Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent in the Christian tradition. It marks the most ecstatic celebrations in Germany's carnival season which starts months earlier on the 11th of November. Many German cities, especially those in the west side of the country, celebrate Rosenmontag with lavish parades. Düsseldorf and Cologne are both known for hosting bombastic parades filled with immaculately decorated floats. Here's a look at some of the wildest parade floats seen at the Rosenmontag parades this year: Revellers surround a float on wokeness during the parade to celebrate Rose Monday (Rosenmontag). Photo: Ina Fassbender / AFP One notable float this year anticipated the criticism some of the parade floats could be expected to receive: an eyeball labelled "wokeness" stares down a nervous-looking man wearing a hat labelled "satire". Many of the floats in Düsseldorf's parade depict politicians or recent events with sharp satire. Among the bigger targets of this year's political humour was US President Donald Trump. Trump was also joined by billionaire turned political force Elon Musk, who has been savaging US public services with cuts recently. Musk sparked controversy in Germany this year when he repeatedly weighed into the federal elections in support of the far-right AfD. Russian President Vladimir Putin was also a leading character this year, and he was seen with Trump in scenes depicting recent developments around Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A float portraying Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump forming a 'Hitler - Stalin - Pact 2.0' to squash Ukraine and its President Zelensky. Photo: Ina Fassbender / AFP Pro-Russian politicians in Germany, including Left Party defector Sahra Wagenknecht and AfD leader Alice Weidel, were also satirised in Cologne this year. The politicians were depicted on a float bearing the words, "From Moscow with love" and seen brandishing sunflowers with Putin's face on them, bursting out of a suitcase full of money. Of course, there were more than a few less-than-flattering depictions of the AfD to be seen at the carnival parades. A float portrays AfD co-leader Alice Weidel as the witch from the tale 'Hänsel and Gretel' trying to lure first voters into her house. Photo: Ina Fassbender / AFP AfD co-leader Alice Weidel was seen as the witch from the fairy tale Hansel and Gretel, trying to lure voters into her house. Meanwhile, conservative leader and soon-to-be German Chancellor Friedrich Merz was seen as a mule weighed down by a heavy pile of political burdens. A float portraying Friedrich Merz as donkey trying to pull a cart full of political problems such as 'migration', 'Trump', 'recession', 'debt-brake' and 'AfD'. Photo: Ina Fassbender / AFP Merz is currently in the process of trying to form a coalition with the centre-right SPD after his centre-right CDU/CSU alliance swept to victory in the federal elections on February 23rd. In Cologne, the right-wing politician was seen ripping through a red banner with the words "Chancellor Scholz" to turn the word Scholz into "Schmerz" - the German word for pain. Outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz was also seen on a ship labelled 'Abgesoffen' (sunken), depicting his Social Democrats Party's historically low results in the recent election. While politics dominated the carnival parades in both Rhineland cities, festival-goers also enjoyed some incisive commentary on wider societal issues. In a hilarious float that many commuters in Germany will no doubt relate to, the Cologne parade featured a skeleton with flowers and chocolates waiting for a delayed train to Cologne Central Station. Commentary on the frequency of delayed trains in Germany at Cologne Carnival. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Oliver Berg The float was capitioned "Liebes Entzug" - or the revocation of love - which plays on the German word 'Zug', meaning train. Deutsche Bahn, Germany's national rail operator, has become notorious for its frequent delays and cancellations in recent years. Artificial intelligence, which has soared to prominence with tools like ChatGPT in recent years, also made an appearance at Düsseldorf's parade in the form of a robot feasting on a human brain. A float portraying an Artificial Intelligence robot feeding on a brain. Photo: Ina Fassbender / AFP According to a report by t-online, around 700,000 were estimated to have attended the parade in Düsseldorf this year. Seated with a front row view of the procession were local politicians Lord Mayor Stephan Keller (CDU), Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP) and Mona Neubaur (Greens), among others. In Cologne, meanwhile, around 12,500 people took part in the Rose Monday parades alone, with around a million people travelling to the city to witness the vibrant spectacle.
South China Morning Post
03-03-2025
- South China Morning Post
From Trump to Putin, Germany's Carnival puts politics on parade
Hundreds of thousands of costumed onlookers watched and cheered as Germany's beloved Carnival parades made their way through city centres on Shrove Monday, the highlight of festivities each year. Advertisement The biggest parade on Shrove Monday, known in Germany as Rose Monday, was held in the western city of Cologne with some 12,500 participants accompanying satirical – and sometimes explicit – floats and throwing some 300 tons of confectionery into the crowds celebrating along the route in bright sunshine. This year's festivities were marred by heightened security following a string of deadly attacks in Germany in recent months. Just as people were celebrating Carnival, at least two people were killed and several injured when a car drove into a crowd in the southwestern city of Mannheim , according to police. An investigation into the incident is in full swing, with police yet to determine whether the incident was due to an attack or an accident. Advertisement Speaking ahead of Monday's parade, Cologne police president Johannes Hermanns said he was not worried about security at the event, with a large police contingent deployed to ensure a peaceful celebration. Marc Michelske, head of Cologne's Shrove Monday parade, also said he felt 'very relaxed', adding that it was important to show resilience against intimidation, following calls on social media for attacks during Carnival.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
From Trump to Putin, Germany's Carnival puts politics on parade
Hundreds of thousands of costumed onlookers watched and cheered as Germany's beloved Carnival parades made their way through city centres on Shrove Monday, the highlight of festivities each year. The biggest parade on Shrove Monday, known in Germany as Rose Monday, was held in the western city of Cologne with some 12,500 participants accompanying satirical - and sometimes explicit - floats and throwing some 300 tons of sweets into the crowds celebrating along the route in bright sunshine. This year's festivities were marred by heightened security following a string of deadly attacks in Germany in recent months. Just as people were celebrating Carnival, at least two people were killed and several injured when a car drove into a crowd in the south-western city of Mannheim, according to police. An investigation into the incident is in full swing, with police yet to determine whether the incident was due to an attack or an accident. Speaking ahead of Monday's parade, Cologne police president Johannes Hermanns told dpa that he wasn't worried about security at the event, with a large police contingent deployed to ensure a peaceful celebration. Marc Michelske, head of Cologne's Shrove Monday parade, also said he felt "very relaxed," adding that it was important to show resilience against intimidation, following calls on social media for attacks during Carnival. Carnival celebrations in Germany kicked off on Thursday as huge costumed crowds began cutting loose, especially in the twin Carnival capitals of Cologne and Dusseldorf. Parties and parades continued through the weekend, culminating in the Shrove Monday parades before festivities come to an end on Ash Wednesday, which in the Christian calendar marks the beginning of the Lenten season of prayer, fasting and atonement. US President Donald Trump featured prominently on Carnival floats in Cologne and elsewhere this year, with Jacques Tilly, a float builder in Dusseldorf, telling dpa this was "due to his madness, we ... can hardly keep up with it." One of three floats depicting Trump in the Dusseldorf parade showed the US president making a "Hitler-Stalin-Pact 2.0" with Russian President Vladimir Putin while crushing Ukraine, a reference to the 1939 agreement that cleared the way for Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union to invade and divide Poland. Another float included nude versions of Trump, Putin and Chinese Xi Jinping. They have pudgy bellies and huge testicals, on which are inscribed "Make America Great Again," "Make Russia Great Again" and "Make China Great Again." In Cologne, a Trump float depicted the US president putting a leash on the Statue of Liberty and Lady Justice, while in the parade in Mainz, another Carnival stronghold in south-western Germany, he was shown drilling for oil. Carnival floats traditionally also take a dig at domestic politics, with far-right leader Alice Weidel of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) depicted on a seesaw with US billionaire Elon Musk. Musk had come out in support of the party, which is being monitored by domestic intelligence as a suspected far-right extremist group, ahead of Germany's parliamentary elections on February 23. Another Dusseldorf float showed AfD leader Weidel as an evil witch trying to lure young voters Hänsel and Gretel with a swastika-shaped gingerbread. "The float is intended to show that the AfD is very adept at using social media to lure young people into a radical world view," Tilly said, adding that he was subject to a flood of threats and abuse in response to the float, images of which had been released in advance.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Germany's biggest Carnival parade kicks off in Cologne
Germany's largest Carnival parade on Shrove Monday, known in Germany as Rose Monday, kicked off in the western German city of Cologne on Monday morning. This year's festivities come amid a tense security situation following a string of deadly attacks in recent months, but Cologne police president Johannes Hermanns told dpa ahead of the parade that he wasn't worried. Police would ensure a peaceful celebration with many colleagues on duty, he said. Despite a recent call for attacks on social media, the police chief said the authorities considered this to be scaremongering. Police have adjusted their security plans, with a significant number of officers present in the city, and all possible measures have been taken to ensure safety, Hermanns said. Marc Michelske, head of Cologne's Shrove Monday parade, also said he felt "very relaxed," adding that it was important to show resilience against intimidation. Carnival celebrations in Germany kicked off on Thursday as huge costumed crowds began cutting loose amid tightened security, especially in the twin Carnival capitals of Cologne and Dusseldorf. Parties and parades continued through the weekend, culminating in the Shrove Monday parades before festivities come to an end on Ash Wednesday, which in the Christian calendar marks the beginning of the Lenten season of prayer, fasting and atonement. The parade in Cologne covers a distance of 8.5 kilometres, with about 12,500 participants distributing about 300 tons of sweets to costumed revellers lining the route. The festivities kicked off to bright sunshine, with satirical carnival floats depicting US President Donald Trump putting a leash on democracy and the rule of law, and Elon Musk on a seesaw with German far-right leader Alice Weidel. In the south-western city of Mainz, another Carnival stronghold, the Shrove Monday parade set off with hundreds of thousands expected to line the 7.2-kilometre route through the city centre.
The Independent
26-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Anger over ‘tasteless' parade float linking Jesus to church sex abuse
A satirical parade float that links Jesus with the church abuse scandal has been criticised as 'tasteless' by church leaders. Germany's Catholic Church said the float, made for a street parade in the western city of Cologne, shows an altar boy in front of a confessional with an arm sticking out and an outstretched hand luring the boy inside. On the side of the confessional, bold letters read 'Jesus loves you.' The Cologne archdiocese condemned the float as 'tasteless.' 'The inscription on the confessional — 'Jesus loves you' — directly associates Jesus, the Son of God, with the abuse,' it wrote in a letter published Tuesday on its website. 'It is suggested that Jesus himself is sitting in the confessional and wants to pull the altar boy into it with a wave of his hand; at the very least, Jesus is being instrumentalised here,' the letter said. The floats for Cologne's annual Shrove Monday parade are famous for poking fun at the powerful and mockingly referring to controversies. But the church's reaction suggested that the city's carnival committee went too far this time. 'If one assumes that the Son of God is partly responsible for the terrible acts of abuse that have also and especially occurred in the Catholic Church, a line has been crossed that cannot be justified for any reason in the world,' the archdiocese's letter said. Several members of the centre-right Christian Democratic party, including a former Cologne mayor, also expressed anger over the float. In a letter they said the image, 'which cannot be surpassed in terms of embarrassment and tastelessness, should not belittle the Cologne Shrove Monday procession and carnival as a whole,' German news agency dpa reported. Cologne is a traditionally Catholic city, known for its iconic, double-domed cathedral. It was one of the most important European places of pilgrimage in the Middle Ages. However, many German Catholics, also in Cologne, have turned their backs on the church in recent years. Many say they felt betrayed by the scale of the sex abuse allegations and disappointed by what they describe as inadequate prosecution of perpetrators by the church. In 2018, a church-commissioned report concluded that at least 3,677 people were abused by clergy in Germany between 1946 and 2014. More than half of the victims were 13 or younger, and nearly a third served as altar boys. The head of the Cologne Carnival Committee, Christoph Kuckelhorn, rejected any criticism of the provocative float. 'It's not the depiction of abuse that is tasteless and embarrassing, but rather the abuse itself and how it is dealt with,' Kuckelkorn told dpa, adding that carnival is all about satire and to make people think.
