Photo courtesy of D.B. Cooper
On June 1, 2012, reenactors in sixteenth century dress will march down St. George Street in St. Augustine warning citizens of the impending attack by the Englishman Sir Francis Drake. Well, an attack that will be similar to one Drake and his crew launched against the city in 1586.
Back in those days, the English were trying to push their way into Spanish Florida. Drake brought twenty-three ships and actually bombarded St. Augustine from Anastasia Island. When the Spanish finally fled, 1000 English soldiers invaded the city, looted it and burned what was left.
Photo courtesy of D.B. Cooper
At 7:00 PM on June 2nd, 2012, reenactors will commemorate this event starting at the old City Gate and going all the way to the city plaza. Previous to that, from 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM, reenactors will offer living history demonstrations at Fountain of youth Park. Come join the fun!
All of these events are presented by Searles’ Buccaneers in cooperation with St. Augustine’s Men of Menendez. Click here for more information.
Click here for a photo gallery of a previous Drakes’ Raid.
Click here for Fountain of Youth Park.
In America’s oldest city on Palm Sunday every year, the Bishop of the Catholic diocese blesses the fleet. It’s a joyous fun-filled gathering at the waterfront with people coming from all over to just watch or actually participate. For 2012, the date for this event will be April 1.
A time honored tradition since the days when there was a large shrimp fishing fleet in St. Augustine, the blessing is a highly coordinated occurrence involving the city itself and the St. Augustine Yacht club. The bishop blesses them all, from small boats to ships, Catholic and non Catholic alike.
After mass on Palm Sunday, the bishop, parishioners, Knights of Columbus and townspeople dressed as Spaniards from long ago form a procession. It starts at the St. Augustine Cathedral and ends at the city marina. The event usually gets underway around noon and lasts as long as there are boats yet to be blessed waiting in line on the Matanzas River . The time can vary a bit but the peeling of bells from the cathedral signals that things are about to begin.
There’s always a large crowd of onlookers but if you get there early enough you can definitely find a place to observe and take pictures.
For other information on St, Augustine click on the following:
Full City of St. Augustine Concert Information
A YouTube Concert in the Plaza Video
A Calendar of Events for St. Augustine
Virtual Tours of the City
Tour Companies
St. Augustine Maps
Ghost Tours
Ghost Tours Up Close
Restaurants and Bookstores
