Trinidad is the home of Carnival in the Caribbean. While Carnival is found elsewhere--St. Lucia, Grenada, Antigua, Nevis, the Virgin Islands, and Haiti--Trinidad's fete is considered the Caribbean's greatest, its most spectacular, its trendsetter. The Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, plays this preeminent role in Latin America.

The modern Trinidadian Carnival is a product of the conflict between two great cultures European and African. After 1498 they met, one as master, the other as slave; one sought dominance, the other liberation.

Discovered by Columbus in 1498, Trinidad was part of the Spanish Empire until 1797, when it was captured by