Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama Biloxi became the second capital of Louisiana, and also celebrated French customs. Due to fear of tides and hurricanes, in 1723, the capital was moved to New Orleans, founded in 1718. That city also later started a Mardi Gras celebration. In 1763, Mobile came under British control. Its restrictions on free blacks and racial segregation caused many Creoles to leave Mobile and move west towards New Orleans. In 1780, Spain took control of the Mobile area in the aftermath of the American Revolution. The Carnival celebration incorporated the Spanish custom of torch-lit parades on Twelfth Night (January 6, also known
Battle of Milazzo (1718) Battle of Milazzo (1718) The Battle of Milazzo was fought on October 15, 1718 near the city of Milazzo in Sicily, Italy between Spain and Austria as part of the War of the Quadruple Alliance. Frustrated by the loss of his Italian possessions after the War of the Spanish Succession, King Philip V of Spain had invaded Sardinia, now in Austrian possession in August 1717 and Sicily, which had been awarded to the Duke of Savoy, in July 1718. He was taking advantage of the power vacuum in France after the death of Louis XIV, and the fact that Austria