Who is nain rouge

It rubbed its bony knuckles expectantly when David Fisher paddled across the strait to see his love, Soulange Gaudet, in the only boat he could find—a wheel-barrow, namely—but was sobered when David made a safe landing.

It was twice seen on the roof of the stable where that sour-faced, evil-eyed old mumbler, Jean Beaugrand, kept his horse, Sans Souci—a beast that, spite of its hundred years or more, could and did leap every wall in Detroit, even the twelve-foot stockade of the fort, to steal corn and watermelons, and that had been seen in the same barn, sitting at a table, playing seven-up with his master, and drinking a liquor that looked like melted brass.

The Nain Rouge it was who claimed half of the old mill, on Presque Isle, that the sick and irritable Josette swore that she would leave to the devil when her brother Jean pestered her to make her will in his favor, giving him complete ownership. This man, succeeding her husband as director of the property, had developed such miserly traits that she and her children were literally starved to death, but her dying curse threw such ill luck on the place and set afloat such evil report about it that he took himself away.

It stopped that exercise on the night that Jacques hurled a font of holy water at it, but to keep it away the people of Grosse Pointe still mark their houses with the sign of a cross. It was lurking in the wood on the day that Captain Dalzell went against Pontiac, only to perish in an ambush, to the secret relief of his superior, Major Gladwyn, for the major hoped to win the betrothed of Dalzell; but when the girl heard that her lover had been killed at Bloody Run, and his head had been carried on a pike, she sank to the ground never to rise again in health, and in a few days she had followed the victims of the massacre.

There was a suspicion that the Nain Rouge had power to change his shape for one not less offensive. The brothers Tremblay had no luck in fishing through the straits and lakes until one of them agreed to share his catch with St.

His brother doubted if this benefit would last, and feared that they might be lured into the water and turned into fish, for had not St. Patrick eaten pork chops on a Friday, after dipping them into holy water and turning them into trout? Researcher of high strangeness, John E. Tenney has a different agenda when he attends the Marche Du Nain Rouge.

Check out these links to learn more about the other side of this legend and why it may not be what everyone thinks it is.

The concept of the parade is to push the little red dwarf out and bring back good fortune to the city. The Marche happens every year around the Spring Equinox and has become a celebration of the strange — a sort of Michigan Mardi Gras.

There are decorated floats, brass bands, and outlandish costumes. Many dress up like the Nain Rouge, making themselves look slightly demonic. The parade ends with a party at the Masonic Temple. Tenney was telling us past stories of getting spit on and almost punched by people. Oh well. If you love the strange and unusual, go to the parade. John E. Tenney showing his Nain Rouge love, keeping ahead of the parade with his hand-made signs.

The parade that is the March of the Nain Rouge is a revival of a similar event that was held each spring in Detroit during the 19th century where people would dress up in costumes and chase an important dressed like the devil out of the city. People believed it chased the evil spirit known as the Nain Rouge away. That event died down sometime after the turn of the century and was only revived in He played pipe organs The Fisher , others.

He thinks it's likely he first learned about the Nain Rouge around that time. Is it something we can use today in a positive way? That's the point of the parade. Grunow knows the parade has been perceived as negative by some critics, and says the event has evolved over the years in response. One example was the burning of the Nain Rouge effigy. Ultimately the other organizers decided to ditch it, and Grunow ceded.

He says part of the appeal of the event is that it changes slightly every year. Previous Marches have poked fun at current events in Detroit, like the city's Chapter 9 bankruptcy filing in This year, the parade will have a Star Wars theme.

We convey Tenney's complaints about the parade: that in Hamlin's tale, the fortune teller warns Cadillac to appease the Nain Rouge. Grunow's brow furrows. We ask about the other creative liberties the Marche organizers have taken, such as why their Nain isn't a dwarf. Grunow says it's simply because they don't have access to a little person to play the role. As for the Mad Max view of a Nain that rides on top of a mechanical cockroach, Grunow responds, "Because he's badass.

At a certain point, Grunow grows weary of spending so much energy debating a make-believe figure. His background, he says, is in urban planning — not art. But he thinks the most important thing the Marche does is that it gives Detroiters a chance to vent frustrations about real issues and to laugh.

This year, the parade is a bigger priority for Grunow. For the first time, he's being paid on retainer to organize it by Midtown Detroit Inc. Grunow says he hopes the neighborhoods use the money to make floats about issues in their communities, such as the group from Indian Village that showed up dressed like streetlight poles last year to raise awareness of their neighborhood's broken lights. Funding comes from more than 30 businesses and foundations, and will be used to pay for a police presence, a sound system, insurance, and portable toilets.

Grunow says that this year, organizers will offer a variety of official Nain Rouge merchandise, including coloring books. Janet Langlois is a retired associate professor from Wayne State University's folklore department. She has a particular interest in the Nain, due in part to her French ancestry. Of all the people interviewed for this story, Langlois is the only one who pronounces the word "Nain" as "nan" — everyone else pronounces it as rhyming with "pain.

Even though the Marche takes place right outside of her school's campus, Langlois was unaware of the tradition until we asked her about it: She stopped teaching in to take medical leave, and officially retired last year. She's pleasantly surprised to learn the legend has taken on a new life. We tell her about the man in the trenchcoat, and those who say the Marche is a misinterpretation of the original tale.

This doesn't surprise her. Depending on who is using the story, it may have different interpretations at different times. Langlois says folklore is by definition an "unofficial" account, and by nature is susceptible to being changed over time.

Nevertheless, she says folklore can give a rounded glimpse of groups that can be just as important as the official, institutional record. How long does it have to be shared to be a tradition? The Marche du Nain Rouge seemingly has all of the qualities of something that could continue to exist long after our time. It's a uniquely Detroit event, one that says a lot about where the city has been, and where it might possibly be heading.

Even if the story of the Nain Rouge has changed, Hamlin would probably be proud to see that while the French may be gone, their stories live on. As for the Nain, he might delight in the mischief he's caused.

The Marche du Nain Rouge is from 1 p. Canfield St. Support Local Journalism. Information is power. And we believe everyone deserves access to accurate independent coverage of their community and state. Our readers helped us continue this coverage in , and we are so grateful for the support. Help us keep this coverage going in Whether it's a one-time acknowledgement of this article or an ongoing membership pledge, your support goes to local-based reporting from our small but mighty team.

Revisit the past future with a screening of a dystopian cult classic 'Blade Runner' in Ann Arbor. You can ice skate this weekend before the rink officially opens in Campus Martius. Since the first two books of the young adult series have been published, with the third on the way, Bastian has decided to take a different approach to telling the same story — in an page, full color graphic novel. From there, Bastian hopes to expand the story into a film, which he expects will begin shooting in Detroit next year.

In the meantime, Bastian — who is currently in discussions with potential comic book publishers — will promote his project at the Marche du Nain Rouge event on March The parade begins at 1 p. Bastian says he will be there selling merchandise, along with Klebba, who will be signing autographs.