Typically, when we think of pirates, images of Long John Silver with an eye patch and a parrot come to mind. This is, of course, fiction. There were some pirates in the Caribbean (although most of them were Jews displaced by the Spanish Reconquista) but by far most pirates hailed from ports in Asia and …
Category Archives: Ideas
Reinheitsgebot
The Reinheitsgebot, literally “purity order”, is a series of regulations limiting the ingredients in that can be used to make beer and how beer can be sold in the states of the former Holy Roman Empire. The best-known version of the law was adopted in Bavaria in 1516. According to the 1516 Bavarian law, the …
Huzzah for backward thinkers!
Huzzah for backward thinkers! Now that Brexit is complete, great morons like Boris Johnson (Britian’s Trump) want to bring back Imperial metrics and where do they want to start, well your beer glass. Beginning in 1698 British pint glasses intended for measuring and serving beer were marked with a crown stamp as a declaration that …
The “Third Rail” of Reenacting – The Regimental Brewmeister will attempt a First Person Presentation
Saturday, July 8thIndependence National Historical Parkby the Commodore Barry Statuein Philadelphia 11:00 – 4:00(Multiple presentations) The Regimental Brewmeister will try his hand at a 1st person impression – David Rittenhouse. In the world of Living History there are three distinct impressions people tend to assume when presenting people from the past. When we act as …
We’ve all heard of the Mason-Dixon Line but who were Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon
The colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania both claimed the land between the 39th and 40th parallels according to the charters granted to each colony. In 1632, King Charles I gave Cecilius Calvert a land grant for a colony in America to be named Maryland. The boundaries for Calvert’s land were: in the north the 40 degree north latitude line; …
Ask your Tavernkeeper
Perhaps its just that sort of week for me but its definitely 5:00 HERE so here are some terms to take with you to your local watering hole to show you understand the drinking habits of we merry 18th Century barmen… Bene Bowse — good beer, or other strong liquor Bingo — brandy or other …
Oh yeah, Metric Units Are Just Too Complicated
Lets just take a look at how simple the British Imperial System that everyone loves is: British Imperial and U.S. Customary systems of weights and measures Standard Measuresshort ton20 short hundredweight, or 2,000 poundslong ton20 long hundredweight, or 2,240 poundsshort hundredweight100 pounds, or 0.05 short tonlong hundredweight112 pounds, or 0.05 long tonpound16 ounces, or 7,000 …
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The Metric System is just “Too French”
If you are of a certain age, you were taught both the United States Customary System (USCS) for weights and measures (inches, pounds, and gallons) and the International System of Units (SI) or the Metric System (meters, grams, and liters) in elementary school. Much of this was focused not on using the metric units but …
Historical Tidbits — THE QUEBEC ACT
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. June 22, 1774 – THE QUEBEC ACT established the Royal Province of Quebec and expanded its territory into much of what is now southern Ontario, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, …
Weird Celtic Holidays? Maybe but Maybe not.
Summer (in the Northern Hemisphere, for those of you in the real south, this will be winter but the timing is the same) officially begins this year June 21, 2023 at 10:50 am. This is when the when the sun is at its zenith along the northernmost path in the sky. Of course, it’s felt …
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