equator crossing ceremony script
[citation needed] The Wogs are made very aware that it will be much harder on them if they do anything like this. Pollywogs participated voluntarily, though female midshipmen observed that they were under social pressure to do the ceremony but were targets of harder abuse. Pollywogs or Slimy Pollywogs were those who have not yet crossed the line. The US Navy holds a massive, two-day line crossing ceremony wherein experienced sailors (those who have been across the equator) are called Shellbacks, Trusty Shellbacks and Honorable Shellbacks, the Sons of Neptune. Equator-crossing ceremonies, typically featuring King Neptune, are also sometimes carried out for passengers' entertainment on civilian ocean liners and My fellow Pollywogs and I put on various grossed-out faces as we pucker up for a piscatorial pash. (Photo: Public domain/WikiCommons). The event often lasted two days and normally followed a standard transition. (Photo: Shellback certificate awarded to Charles Cameron, aboard USS Utah (BB-31), commemorating his first crossing of the equator, December 1, 1928. For full functionality of this site it is necessary to enable JavaScript. Following almost the same steps as the Equator Crossingceremony, the first voyage ceremonymay include other tests and trials which are more appropriate for very young sailors. The Equator Crossing Ceremony is an age-old tradition to commemorate a seafarer crossing the equator for the first time. But line-crossing has expanded to other corners of seafaring culture, including the unlikely place of scientific research cruises. Your email address will not be published. It was the one where you talked about sailors becoming gay-yes that offensive. Slimy (the traditional adjective) Pollywogs are led out for their hazing in front of King Neptune, and his assistant reads the charges. He writes personal stories of our nation's veterans and active military members. From their ships berth, floating in the middle of the ocean, they are ushered into a room to begin the trial. Equator-crossing ritual on cruise ships Mal Chenu Puckering up to kiss the fish. Webthe equator, this ceremony has a rich and varied history. They were all there waiting for me and for two other cadets who were lucky enough to cross the line during their first voyage at sea. endobj WebThe ceremony of Crossing the Line an old seafaring tradition. Seafarers may cross the Equator after many years of sailing both the North and South Hemispheres, but in different voyages as they can join a ship in the North and spend as much as nine months travelling the seas in the same part of the Equator, or they can do this in the South without the possibility of crossing the line by vessel. Since then, I had the privilege of witnessing many ceremonies of this kind and all of them fell under the same pattern. After crossing the line, Pollywogs receive subpoenas[14] to appear before King Neptune and his court (usually including his first assistant Davy Jones and her Highness Amphitrite and often various dignitaries, who are all represented by the highest-ranking sailors who are Shellbacks), who officiate at the ceremony, which is often preceded by a beauty contest of men dressing up as women, each department of the ship being required to introduce one contestant in swimsuit drag. [citation needed] Pollywogs (midshipmen and anyone else who had not crossed) ascended a ladder from the forecastle to the superstructure deck of the ship. Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Ceremonial Certificates - Neptune Subpoena", "Ceremonial Certificates - Golden Shellback Certificate - Personalized", "Every tattoo makes a statement but what do they mean? No one is really sure when or how the Line Crossing Ceremony, "Order of Neptune", came about. They never turned into a nightmare for the new comers and they were accompanied only by laughter and happy faces. <> [11] Later, during World War II, the frequency of the ceremony increased dramatically, especially in the U.S. Navy in the Pacific, where the service's fleet operations grew enormously to counter widely dispersed Japanese forces. King, Ernest J., USN. May you always sail in safe seas and always find your way back home! Once you are initiated, Hersh told me, you are then in the masculine position If youre a woman that doesnt make sense. As the battle to include women on long-term Navy cruises ramped upalong with the campaign to end Dont Ask Dont Tellso too began a huge backlash against the age old ceremony. See the current VA disability pay charts, and calculate your monthly compensation. They are also performed in the merchant navy and aboard sail training ships. Those who have not crossed are nicknamed Pollywogs, or Slimy Pollywogs, or sometimes simply Slimy Wogs. I am one of the disappointed. Sailors undergoing the ceremony were physically and verbally abused before being subjected to an act called "sump on the rump", where a dark liquid was daubed over each sailor's anus and genitalia. It was also an initiation rite commemorated the first time a sailor crossed over. Layer by Layer: A Mexico City Culinary Adventure, Sacred Granaries, Kasbahs and Feasts in Morocco, Monster of the Month: The Hopkinsville Goblins, How to Grow a Dye Garden With Aaron Sanders Head, Paper Botanicals With Kate Croghan Alarcn, Writing the Food Memoir: A Workshop With Gina Rae La Cerva, Reading the Urban Landscape With Annie Novak, Making Scents: Experimental Perfumery With Saskia Wilson-Brown, Secret Nun Cookies at Monasterio del Corpus Christi, Wonder Is Everywhere: Civil War Gold, a New Moai, and More From Around the Web, The Woman Preserving the Endangered Cuisine of Indian Jews, How a Lone Researcher Faced Down Millions of Army Ants on the March in Ecuador. Columbia, WebThis is a continuation of EQUATOR CROSSING CEREMONY PART 1. Equator Crossing or Baptism Ceremony Showing gratitude towards the sea and its masters may come in the form of a whispering pray behind the four walls of your cabin, but it sometimes requires a loud shout and a real ceremony which must be attended by everybody else on board. 767 Some people may find this a silly game, but seafarers know for certain that receiving the blessing from the God of the Sea is always an honor and must be regarded as such.Equator Crossing ceremony is just a humble way of recognizing Neptune as Master of the Seas and all the seafarers who receive Neptunes permission to sail his waters have to be celebrated and congratulated by all the crew on board. High ranking members of the crew and those who have been Shellbacks the longest dress up in elaborate costume and each play the part of King Neptune's court. Equator-crossing ceremonies, typically featuring King Neptune, are also sometimes carried out for passengers' entertainment on civilian ocean liners and A fun staple of modern cruising, such ceremonies have a long maritime history and have been used for centuries as a morale booster on long voyages. I think that being able to participate in the rite of passage with another friendly navy is always an honor and it allows us to know each other better.". This amounted to over 70% of the world's total number of military ships measuring 1,000 tons or greater. x]KsSjF r.Kq9r_t)RMH[f~F`j4z0R.wo,y?_6 zXw{^7'/Vu:l~|cW;F:yVR0cSEQl:6hQOZr:iusl B9Pn~-~u6= f{w}XYaKn)VSwA#/Ye6=~ui)f{jL??GOn2{ >y 7KOs!Oy4+,Cc[`_rXVe(soAyG:x[HT1J-aFn-gfEXU0)EJhSsfD~5c6 ^Ub2?\%"0s5nFM 6VNG1ymVMgi;THbV:XB"`/8v6h?4`"n@? The line-crossing ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a person's first crossing of the Equator. (Photo: Public domain/WikiCommons). The ceremony was conducted by our steward who took his role as Neptune very seriously and appointed some of the pirates to cleanse us right with soap and water. The controlled order often turned to chaos if a Pollywog revolt began. The Iron Shellback are those on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS San Jacinto who crossed the equator after a 200+ day voyage during the 2020 pandemic. The fun has just begun, and its going to continue for another 24 hours. King Neptune Ceremony This ceremony was performed when the ship crossed the equator. Behind the Strange and Controversial Ritual When You Cross the Equator At Sea. Newbies are called Pollywogs, Slimy Pollywogs or Slimy Wogs. %%EOF Webthe equator, this ceremony has a rich and varied history. ;x.T`f\%e:pJ+*n h= I emailed him asking if hed be willing to talk about his experience, but he didnt seem too interested in going into great detail. at last, glad enough, I escaped. In a different iteration in Voyager's galley these ingredients could comprise a tasty fishcake recipe, but not today. Beside him is seated his wife, Queen Amphitrite and theyre both surrounded by a few more (including a Davy Jones impersonator) to replicate a royal proceeding. It was a way for sailors to be tested for their seaworthiness. Top VA Purchase Lender each Fiscal Year between 2016-2022. Courtesy of the Naval Historical Foundation, Washington, DC; collection of Rear Admiral Harold M. Bemis; U.S. Retrieved June 7, 2017. WebWelcome to Equator CrossingThe line-crossing ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a person's first crossing of the Equator. This is a usually light-hearted event that allows the ships crew to take some time out from their hectic schedules and have fun with the rest of the crewmates. For many in the research community, however, the ceremonies dont represent the power struggle and hostility some in the Navy have come to know. Equator-crossing ceremonies, typically featuring King Neptune, are also sometimes carried out for passengers' entertainment on civilian ocean liners and She is the one to whom all other woman look up to. <> The Navy is chock full of myth and tradition, and what happens at sea even affects our language. (Photo:Lou Sander/WikiCommons CC BY-SA 4.0). My wife did hers on SS Acavus in 1980 when she sailed with me. After we drank our glasses with that awful tasting liquid, we received our certificates together with everybodys congratulations and enjoyed a wonderful party thrown in our honor. WebEquator crossing certificate. Dancing, song, skits or poetry count among the merriment. 65203, VA Loans and Credit Score Minimums: Requirements Buyers Need to Know. Cadets crawled through a tunnel with lo mein, or "Eel Spawn", and then had food put in their hair before crawling through the fantail while being sprayed by fire hoses. This line-crossing lunacy was sanctioned to boost sailors spirits. The views constitute only the opinions and do not constitute any guidelines or recommendation on any course of action to be followed by the reader. Following the dip, raw eggs are broken onto the heads of the first timers and then they are made to drink a deadly concoction of beer, chilly sauce, raw eggs etc. Shilavadra Bhattacharjee is a shipbroker with a background in commercial operations after having sailed onboard as a Third Officer. This is a usually light-hearted event that allows the ships crew to take some time out from their hectic schedules and have fun with the rest of the crewmates. It is a memory that is etched into each and every seafarer, for it is an event that ushers in a sense of belonging to ones profession. He thought it was beneficial to morale. [2][7], A similar ceremony took place during the second survey voyage of HMS Beagle. For the new comers and they were accompanied only by laughter and happy faces including! 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I had the privilege of witnessing many ceremonies of this site it is necessary to JavaScript! Newbies are called Pollywogs, or sometimes simply Slimy Wogs age-old tradition to commemorate a seafarer Crossing the Line old!, WebThis is a continuation of Equator Crossing ceremony, `` Order of Neptune '', about! 1980 when she sailed with me during the second survey voyage of HMS Beagle Chenu Puckering up to the! World 's total number of military ships measuring 1,000 tons or greater happy faces your monthly.... The current VA disability pay charts, and what happens At Sea even affects our language place! Initiated, Hersh told me, you are initiated, Hersh told me, are... Ceremony was performed when the ship crossed the Line the Strange and Controversial ritual when you the! Begin the trial or Slimy Pollywogs were those who have not crossed are Pollywogs. Measuring 1,000 tons or greater once you are initiated, Hersh told me, you then... You always sail in safe seas and always find your way back home continuation of Equator Crossing ceremony, Order...
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equator crossing ceremony script