The subject of this monograph is early modern European festival culture. The eleven contributions describe aspects of festivities or ceremonies organized by individuals or groups whose power base was threatened or non-existent: refugees, confessional groups, minorities and women. A central question is the complexity of the term „defeated“. The contributions investigate the cultural strategies which minorities exploited in order to underpin their claims to legitimacy and retain their identity in the face of a hostile or indifferent environment. Table of contents: (11 contributions) D. Briesemeister, The New World on Display. French Pageantry and the Dramatic Incorporation of Indigenous Brazilians in the 16th century P. Davidson, The Solemnity of the Madonna Vulnerata, Valladolid, 1600 J. Todorovic´, Spectacles in the Shadow − The Festive Greeting to Mojsej Putnik as a Semi-Official Propagation of Orthodox Power in the Habsburg Empire J. Stevenson, Oppositional Triumphs: The Exequies of Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia J. E. Moore, Obsequies for James II in S. Lorenzo in Lucina, Rome P. C. Brückmann, The Triumphs of Maria Clementina M. Keblusek, Entertainment in Exile: Theatrical Performances at the Courts of Margaret Cavendish, Mary Stuart and Elizabeth of Bohemia