The St. Augustine Pirate Gathering 2008

The St. Augustine Pirate Gathering 2008

ST. AUGUSTINE, FL - Avast, me Hearties! A pirate festival in the historic city, that first saw pirates walking their streets two hundred years before the founding of our country.

On November 14, 15 and 16, pirates will once again occupy the nation’s oldest city. This time, the pirates will be in a much more festive mood. It will be a "gathering" of pirates from around the country coming together to celebrate the Golden Age of Piracy, to share their pride and knowledge with the citizens and visitors of St. Augustine. So... don yer pirate garb and join us for a weekend of mischief, skullduggery, and merrymaking as St. Augustine celebrates…The St. Augustine Pirate Gathering 2008.

For our inaugural year the Gathering will feature a pirate parade in downtown St. Augustine. There will be pirate battles featuring historical re-enactors. At the Fountain of Youth there will be improvisational actors, pirate magic, sword fights, cannon firings, black powder demonstrations and pirates, pirates, pirates. There will be vendors in our "Thieves Market", selling a variety of plundered booty. Great food and drinks will also be available. For the adult pirate, the "Dropped Anchor Tavern" will be there to quench your thirst and toast your shipmates.

For the kids there will be games, pirate magic, pictures and storytelling that will include tales of real St. Augustine pirates (Drake and Searles). Saturday will begin at 10 am with a pirate parade along San Marco Avenue. Pirate ships and floats will make their way to Orange Street where a "pirate battle" will take place at the redoubt around 11 am. After the battle the band of pirates will march down St. George Street to the Plaza. There will no doubt be skirmishes and quarrelling along the way. Around 11:30 am the battle resumes in the plaza until a parley is called and the Captains come to an agreement. Pirates will be roaming downtown until about 1 pm. At that time most of the pirates will return to the Fountain of Youth.

The Fountain of Youth provides the perfect setting for the event. The scenic views of Matanzas Bay and the fort transport you back to the time of tall ships and black flags.

And to keep you there, a "pirate encampment" will be on the grounds where historic reenactors will accurately depict the life of travelers at the turn of the 18th century. With cannon firings on the hour, sword-fighting demonstrations, black powder musket firing, there will be great opportunities to learn about those historic weapons and their use, with a special emphasis on safety. Visitors will have fun learning the history of those that lived during piracy’s "Golden Age".

Saturday night is the "Buccaneer Bash". This is a time to lay down your arms and enjoy some great music and fine food and drinks. As the FOY is closed to the public at that hour, this is a ticket only event and is only open to pirates over the age of 21. Ticket information is available on our website: www.pirategathering.com

Sunday at 10:30 am is Pirate Court. Grievances are heard, disagreements are settled, and sentences are handed down in this comical court of Captains. Events for the kids and demonstrations will be held throughout the day.

It’s going to be a great weekend of swashbuckling fun for the whole family at……… "The St. Augustine Pirate Gathering 2008"

For more information or tickets…log on to the website- www.pirategathering.com