Redbeard

Arrr! Don't ee worry, Oi has a feeling that'ee will be seeing plenty of poiriates at that there event. Fer a start the arch and evil pubcat be'a coming!

Arrgh! Oi've got a beard an' it be red, nuff said!

Arr! If ye be looking for some European pirates, ye could do worse than contact PUBCAT. they be Britian's premier pirate re-enactment group and have access to black powder weapons and several cannon. Ye can find them at: www.pubcat.org.uk

Avast there ye swabs! Oi be from Scotland, we have a faily large pirate re-enactment group going up here. We've only been going for a few years but have been doing 17th and 18th century re-enactment for a lot longer. So far we have done two large pirate events and several smaller ones. So if there is anyone in the area who wants a crew to join, contact us at: www.pubcat.org.uk Yarr!

Yarr! Pirates be grouchy because of that there pirate accent, damn yer eyes! Saying Arrgh! all day long with the correct rattle to it can really hurt the back of yer throat. After a weekend of pirate re-enactment it be days before Oi can talk proper again! Arrrgh! cough, cough.

Yarr! Thank'ee kindly shipmates, Now me and me scurvy crew will be able to make a truly horrible din when we sings the roight words instead of just humming along to the tune. Thank'ee again.

Yarr! Avast there LadyBarbarossa, Ye do indeed be roight. We be always ready to welcome new members to our scurvy crew, so if ye knows of any swabs what as would loike to re-enact acts of piracy, then send'em over to us. we has a nice litte event lined up on a tall ship in Glasgow fer later this year.

Yarr! If ye be looking fer a good cutlass Oi've got a friend over here in Scotland what has his own sword making company, which makes swords sepecially for re-enactors. His blades are made from spring steel to combat standards, (ie, they won't splinter when clashed together) and can be orderd as sharp for display, or blunt for re-enactment. His website is: www.armourclass.co.uk He does not have a cutlass on his website at the moment but he has made some in the past (including 300 made for display on H.M.S. Victory). Also he can make swords to your own specifications given a photo or a drawing. Nearly all our swords in PUBCAT were made by Armourclass, and he sells quite a lot to the U.S. mainly for the Medieval period.

Avast there shipmates, Be there any of ye swabs out there what as knows all of the words to "Farewell and adiu to you fair Spanish Ladies". Cos Oi knows the tune and the first line, and it's been running around in me'ead for days, an it's driving me nuts as Oi dont know the rest of the words. Arrgh!

Arrgh! Looking fer British pirates are ye? Well take a look at this'ere website fer some genuine Scottish pirates, look'ee! www.pubcat.org.uk

Arr! From Fife Scotland, damn yer eyes!

Avast there ye swabs, If it be pirate info ye be seeking av a look at: www.pubcat.org.uk It's a while since Oi've had a chance to update the site, but there's plenty for'ee to look at including the near legendary "Encylopedia Pyratica" Arr! Keep the black flag flying!

Arr! If yer sword be rusting, then wot Oi says is let the bugger rust! How many pirates on board a damp, leaky sailing vessel could keep any steel totaly free from rust anyway. Their blades would be kept fairly clean by keeping them in an oiled scabbard. but as for the hilts they would usually be painted or russeted (a type of controlled rusting). Oi find the best way to do this is not to buff the rust off, but just rub oil into it, you will end up with a nice brown finish which is quit resistant to further rusting.

Arr! Oi can't be helping you with the dialect, but as for the actual words and slang, check out the "Encyclopedia Piratica" on the PUBCAT site: www.pubcat.org.uk And remember the most inportant thing about talking loike a pirate "Pirates always speaks in the present tense does pirates!"

I've heard that in England during the 17th century many people wore a gold coin around their neck as a good luck piece, also very handy when you're down on your luck! The coin most used for this seems to have been the "angel" so called because it had the figure of an angel on the front. At the time it was woth 10 shillings.

Ye moight loike to ave a look at PUBCAT's website: www.pubcat.org.uk It's just bin revamped.

Talking about multiple firing weapons, there was a type of gun avaliable from the late 17th century onwards called a cascade gun. it was loaded with up to ten balls loaded with a chage of powder between them e.g. powder ball, powder ball, ect along the length of the barrel. each ball was drilled through the centre and filled with a slow burning fuse composition. the lock either flint or matchlock was positioned half way up the gun and would fire the charge behind the first ball, the flame from the first charge would start the fuse for the second, and so on. This type of gun had several disadvantages, for one it took less time to load and fire ten balls from an ordinary musket than it took to load and fire ten balls in a cascade gun. Also if the balls were not all a tight fit the flame from the first charge would "leak" to the other charges and cause a breech explosion. however these guns were often used in the defence of fortifications, as several barrels could be laid side by sde on a gun carrage. Once fired they would continue to spit out musket balls for some time, unlike a cannon firing case shot which fired it's load all at once.

Arrgh! ye stinking swabs! No doubt ye will av'e been wondering where Redbeard as been to these last few months? Well I'll tell'ee ye filthy dogs! I've ben writing the greatest wort of literature known to manking since that swab Shakspeare wrote 'Is load of tripe. OI be speaking of the Encyclopeadia Pyratica, all'ee ever wanted to know about pirates. My thanks go to Booga as Oi've pinched some of his ideas, but thats what piracy is all about! You can see it on the PUBCAT website at www.pubcat.org.uk Sorry about the spelling on this'ere message but Oi've bin on the rum! Arrgh!

Avast ye scurvy bilge rats! Cap'n Redbeard still be ere, but not so often these days, as it the the season fer pirate events. Time to replenish the ole treasure chest. It's bin getting rather empty over the winter, when me ships bin laid up with a foul bottom. Arr!

Avast ye Swab, If'ee be loking for a good non-firing replica flintlock, there is a Spanish company called Denix that make a good range of display pistols from various periods. Their website is at: www.casiberia.com/denix.html Or if you put "Denix" into a search engine you should find some suppliers in the US. Happy shooting, or non-shooting in your case.

Arrr! Well Oi was last time Oi looked!

Arrgh! Swiss pirates would plunder chocolate (milk of course) and cookcoo clocks, of course they would not blow all their loot in the first bar, they would invest it in a Swiss bank account.

Avast there ye scurvy bilge rats, PUBCAT have finally got their website on line, www.pubcat.org.uk OK so it don't be too fancy just now, but keep an eye on it (not the one wiht a patch), it should get more interesting as we do more events and get more photos. don't be fooled by thr photies though, there are more than three of us.

Thames barges always have dull red or brown sails, it's supposed to protect the canvass from the effects of sunlight.

Aarrgh! Oi think the way you tell a Swiss pirate is that he has wheels on the bottom of his ship. Or in the case of "One eyed Black Jake" ee has his legs sticking out of the bottom of is ship. (we're quite worried about him actually).