No one is really sure when or how the line crossing ceremony, order of neptune, came about. King neptune is in the center of the photograph holding a trident, and amphitrite, the goddess queen of the sea, stands to his left. We have several photos throughout the site taken from various crossing the line ceremonies on many ships. In the boisterous ceremonies that accompany a ships crossing, the pollywogs, those on board who have never crossed the line. Marine corps, russian navy, and other navies that commemorates a sailors first crossing of the equator. Photograph of a crossing the line ceremony, uss william p. Since the time of ships with sails guarded the sea lanes linecrossing ceremonies for the equator and others have been observed aboard both naval and commercial vessels. Crossing the equator the script of the ceremony in hmcs stettler 1957 february 26, 1957 at 106 east longitude name of original author not recorded 1957 note to reader. The certificate refers to a maritime ceremony called crossing the line. Jun 26, 2016 the ceremony of crossing the line is an initiation rite in the british merchant navy, dutch merchant navy, royal navy, u. This is a timehonored tradition to mark crossing the equator in initiation with a series of tests and trials until sailors are accepted by king neptune as one of his trusty shellbacks. Crossing the line is as eternal as the sea proceedings.
Naval culture, and seafaring culture in general, are rife with tradition and ritual, and the crossing the line ceremony. Today, shellbacks still initiate pollywogs with many of the old traditionsbut with a little less mess. Line crossing ceremony photographs world war ii database. On passenger liners such as the canberra, the line crossing ceremony was not just novelty shipboard entertainment for the passengers, it was the continuation of a centuries old tradition, based upon sailors superstitions and riddled with myth and legend. Carnival in the naval tradition abstract the line crossing ceremony. Photos and details of the ceremony of crossing the line on naval ships. Crossing the line is nearly as old as seafaring itself. Media in category line crossing ceremonies the following 69 files are in this category, out of 69 total. The purpose of a retirement ceremony includes all of the following except. To commemorate the occasion, i wanted to explore an intriguing and historic navy tradition that is frequently discussed in veterans history project collections. The crossing of the line ceremony was already well established by 1938 when these series of photos were taken, and continued though wwii on some surface ships, though submarines could not risk being on surface for long enough to do this. The crossing the line ceremony was common place on british merchant ships and many of the worlds premier naval forces uk, usa, canada, etc.
A shellback, or a son of neptune, is a mariner who has sailed across the equator and taken part in the crossing the line ceremony. The art of crossing the line cfb esquimalt naval and. The linecrossing ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a persons first crossing of the equator. Equatorcrossing ceremonies, typically featuring king neptune, are also sometimes carried out for passengers entertainment on civilian ocean liners and cruise ships. The tradition may have originated with ceremonies when passing headlands, and become a folly sanctioned as a boost to morale, or have been created as a test for seasoned sailors to ensure the. The rich tradition of the crossing the line ceremonies often involved varied events throughout which pollywogs, the term given to those who have. Catalog of 6 crossing the line ceremonies from blue ridge cruise books. Although crossing the equator may seem like a routine event for any modernday naval vessel, navies have celebrated the timehonored tradition for centuries. I loved the first book in this series so have been so looking forward to elis story.
Lincoln is a gorgeous character, with some major family issues of his own, and his and lilas history. Crossing the equator the script of the ceremony in hmcs stettler 1957 february 26, 1957 at 106 east longitude note to reader. The ritual dates back at least 400 years in western seafaring. The navy is chock full of myth and tradition, and what happens at sea even affects our language. The rich tradition of the crossing the line ceremonies often involved varied events throughout.
Zi xuan meets yu hao, a pe trainee in his school whos seductive, who always gets what he wants but whos also 9 years younger than him. No two ceremonies were the same but most followed a typical pattern. Crossing the line group in their fancy dress 6508776185. Equatorial frolics crossing the line ceremony onboard submarine hms oswald in 1937. The tradition may have originated with ceremonies when passing headlands, and become a folly sanctioned as a boost to morale, or have been created as a test for seasoned sailors to ensure their new shipmates were capable of handling long rough times at sea. History of hampshire county and the crossings at the great cacapon compiled by darline demott. Crossing of the line ceremony which took place on h. In the first book of this series, crossing hearts, we met the middle brother, hunter cross. Royal navy submarine museum royal navy submarine, royal.
Behind the strange and controversial ritual when you cross the. Crossing the line the baltimore banners book 1 one shot and love conquers all 4. A timehonored tradition line crossing ceremonies have been a part of naval tradition for at least 400 years. The crossing the line ceremony has been portrayed both in the pbs documentary series carrier, as well as being the plot point. Aug 06, 2015 the crossing the line ceremony was common place on british merchant ships and many of the worlds premier naval forces uk, usa, canada, etc. The rich tradition of the crossing the line ceremonies often involved varied events throughout which pollywogs, the term given to those who have not crossed. The details of the ceremony below are from hms ajax on its cruise of 1935 1937, on the occasion of crossing the equator off the west coast of south america, 1st september 1936. So ancient, in fact, that the origins of these early line crossing rites are hard to trace. The navy ceremony of crossing the line is a tradition which originated over four hundred years ago, and which continues in strong form today. Way back in the enlightened days of the worlds history when the greek civilization was in its prime. Equator crossing ceremonies, typically featuring king neptune, are common in the navy and are also sometimes carried out for passengers entertainment on civilian ocean liners and cruise ships. He was in the battles of midway and okinawa and the sinking of his ship, the carrier uss hornet at guadalcanal. His first hand telling of the horrors and triumphs. Crossing the equator for the first time used to be a harrowing experience for those who endured the royal baby and the rest of the royal court.
Navy, royal navy, and other britishdescended navies for a ship to hoist the old pirate flag, the jolly roger, while king neptune is aboard. The line crossing ceremony might just be the most interesting of todays naval traditions. Crossing the line should be read after pushing the limits. Sailors and marines participate in a crossing the line ceremony. Line crossing ceremony aboard uss coral sea, 15 nov 1943 equator crossing ceremonies on west virginia, 1944 captain thomas l sprague of the uss intrepid offering remarks of welcome to he ruler of the raging main, neptunus rex, and his escort just before for the line crossing ceremonies, 22 jan 1944. Since judi and i have previously crossed the equator, aboard ships, we are deemed as shellbacks. Neptunes band of brothers naval history magazine december. Officers rebelled and did it anyway, which ultimately led to court martials.
One naval theatrical tradition i wanted to learn more about was crossing the line. Vintage sailor vintage men antique photos vintage photos submarine museum royal navy submarine human oddities pix art calisthenics workout. Crossing the line navy history and heritage command navy. Graduations, chiefs initiations, crossing the line ceremonies, and others are only meant to celebrate and recognize the achievements of individual sailors or marines or those of entire units. Search the history of over 424 billion web pages on the internet. Jan 08, 2011 crossing the line, 1972, uss blue ridge. All written from the perspective of an enlisted man. These are weird navy traditions and their meanings. Linecrossing ceremony aboard meduse on the first of july 1816.
This book is available with additional data at biodiversity heritage library. The details of the ceremony below are from hms ajax on its cruise of 1935 1937, on the occasion of crossing the equator off the west coast of south america, 1st. Naval culture, and seafaring culture in general, are rife with tradition and ritual, and the crossing the line ceremony is just one example of this. The crossing the line ceremony still holds to many of the same mythological archetypes as its historical parentage. Captain robert fitzroy of hms beagle suggested the practice had developed from earlier ceremonies in spanish, portuguese, and italian vessels passing notable headlands.
Included is a large selection of eyewitness accounts of the ceremony including captain james cook, charles darwin, a number of us navy personnel, and american merchant seamen. A new virginia county the formation of hampshire county was authorized by an act of the general assembly of virginia, passed on december, 1753, effective may 1, 1754. New york, new york public library, 1957 ocolc5775453. Christopher, service number jx324358, whose details are listed below for participation in the naval tradition of crossing. Uss blue ridges second crossing the line ceremony while crossing the. Pictures of prince andrew being ritually humiliated in the. Search the worlds most comprehensive index of fulltext books. Hazing incidents have led to few military court cases because serious injury rarely occurs during hazing, and because when injury does occur it is typically handled on an administrative level. By sarah penny, phd researcher, university of warwick. Sailors who have not yet participated in the ceremony slimy pollywogs must do so in order to become trusty shellbacks. Coast guard, united states marine corps, royal australian navy, russian navy, and other navies that commemorate a sailors first crossing of the equator. In the book the golden bough, sir james frazer discusses the. Rapunzel makes one last attempt to make amends with cassandra, but theres no turning back for cass. Oct 23, 2015 behind the strange and controversial ritual when you cross the equator at sea copy link facebook twitter reddit flipboard pocket u.
I have a collection of over 100 yards of nonfiction books on my shelves, i think this book, crossing the line may be the best. Reading this book reminds me of taking a core engineering courses in collegethe spiritual equivalent of, say, computer science 225 data structures. Our modern practice is believed to have evolved from viking rituals, executed upon crossing the 30th parallel, a tradition. Performed when a ship crosses the equator, this ceremony has a rich and varied history. The tradition may have originated with ceremonies when passing headlands, and become a folly. As hms protector and her ships company crossed the equator earlier this month, it was time for everybody to be presented to neptunes court during the infamous crossing the line ceremony. Fleet conducted the massive crossing the line ceremony on 20 may 1936. In the boisterous ceremonies that accompany a ships crossing, the pollywogs, those on. The custom of marking a sailors first passage across important geographical parallels with a special ceremony is ancient. Nobody knows exactly when the crossing the line ceremony started, but the first documented instances can be found in the accounts of french sailors from the. The rich tradition of the crossing the line ceremonies often involved varied events throughout which pollywogs, the term given to those who have not crossed the equator before. The line crossing ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a persons first crossing of the equator. The disagreeable practice alluded to has been permitted in most ships, because sanctioned by time. The line crossing ceremony is a ritual practiced by sailors while crossing the equator.
Shellbacks definition and history shellback club toronto. This is a rare certificate issued to able seaman edward g. Crossing the line is book two in the cross creek series by kimberly kincaid. The young officer took part in a crossing the line ceremony to mark the first time he passed the equator as a seaman in 1982. Hazing is often a part of military ceremonies, such as the crossing the line ceremony, and it contributes to the secrecy of the ceremony. This is a typical script for a crossing the line ceremony. Given its long history, the ritual has changed over the years, but it. Oct 19, 2016 the crossing of the line ceremony on navy ships is a received tradition, believed to date back to the viking days although their parallel was almost certainly something north of the equator. Why does this have to be so short i would have enjoyed reading a full book on lila. While doing some research for a page i intend to add to seaflags on the ceremony of crossing the line i. Throughout history, linecrossing ceremonies have sometimes become dangerous hazing rituals. So just how has the ceremony changed over the years. Linecrossing ceremony wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. Final opportunity to harass the retiree only the crossing the line ceremony is exempt from secretary of.
It generally entails a bunch of gross things done to the pollywogs by the shellbacks. Passed on by them the angles, thence to the anglosaxons, thence to the royal navy and then to us. Behind the strange and controversial ritual when you cross. Day 76 crossing the line ceremony august 5th,2015 andy. Service members must be able to work together, buildingup, encouraging, and supporting their shipmates. Although the crossing the line ceremonies changed somewhat over time, many of the. Back in the days of wooden ships, crossing the line ceremonies were designed to test young sailors on their first cruise out in the open sea. The tradition may have originated with ceremonies when passing headlands, and become a folly sanctioned as a boost to morale, 2 or have been created as a test for seasoned sailors to ensure their new shipmates were capable of handling long rough times at sea. The navy has spent decades trying to rein in on hazing. Watch rapunzels tangled adventures on disney channel.
Crossing the line certificate, hms kent, 31 march 1939 pamphlet pba3730, caird library tales from the 20th century the following anecdotes and photographs of crossing the line have been generously shared by people who responded to my call in march. Details of the ceremonies that take place on naval ships when they cross the equator, or cross the line. For a while, said hersh, some boats tried to stop the ceremonies from even happening. No one is really sure when or how the line crossing ceremony. Dec 29, 2011 join the crew of the uss francis hammond ff1067 as they partake in the seafaring ritual known as the solemn mysteries of the ancient order of shellback. This is a timehonored tradition to mark crossing the equator in initiation. Perhaps the most wellknown is the order of the shellback, given to those sailors who have crossed the equator. S dauntless on 21 st october 1932 during her south america and the straits tour of duty 1932 1935. The ceremony observes a mariners transformation from slimy pollywog, a seaman who hasnt crossed the equator, to trusty shellback, also called a son or daughter of neptune. His books on naval history include, destined for glory, all the factors of. The crossing the line ceremony, one of the oldest customs at sea, is a rite of passage. The ceremony of crossing the line is an initiation rite in the british merchant navy, dutch merchant navy, royal navy, united states navy, u. The ceremony of crossing the line is an initiation rite in the british merchant navy, dutch merchant navy, royal navy, u. Marine corps,royal australian navy, russian navy, and other navies that commemorate a sailors first crossing of the equator.
Since the time of ships with sails guarded the sea lanes line crossing ceremonies for the equator and others have been observed aboard both naval and commercial vessels. History discover an ancient greek potter makes clay figurines in corinth. The crossing of the line is a ceremony undergone by sailors who are crossing the equator. After watching right or wrong, this series comes the way but i didnt expect something from this series. She wasnt a huge part of pushing the limits and having read the synopsis for crossing the line, i think a full book on her would be awesome. The tradition of the line crossing ceremony lived on into the ww2 era, and for. The tradition may have originated with ceremonies when passing headlands, and become a folly sanctioned as a boost to morale, or have. The ceremony of crossing the line is an initiation rite that commemorates a sailors first crossing of the equator. Eli is the youngest of the three cross brothers and i cant wait to tell you about him. Charles bradwell collection, veterans history project.
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