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Oct 14, 2021 · The good-humoured ceremony plays an integral role in creating a sense of community and camaraderie among a ship's company. Crossing the Line is a rite of passage that has evolved over four centuries, and one which the Royal Navy still continues to perform today and it does not look like it is stopping anytime soon.
Sep 5, 2019 · The Line Crossing Ceremony might just be the most interesting of today’s naval traditions. Crewmen aboard the destroyer USS ARTHUR W. RADFORD (DD-968) participate in the traditional shellback initiation ceremony during exercise Unitas XXI. The shellback initiation takes place anytime a U.S. Navy ship crosses the equator.
Dec 19, 2022 · Perhaps one of the best known and longest enduring traditions is the initiation ceremony of ‘Crossing the line’ or ‘Sea Baptism’, which takes place when a ship crosses the equator. The first recorded descriptions are from around 400 years ago and its origins remain hazy.
Modern ceremonies usually take place when a ship crosses the equator during an overseas deployment. The ceremonies foster a sense of belonging among junior members of a ship’s company. Crossing the line is a much-anticipated and fondly-remembered milestone in sea-going careers.
Sep 25, 2021 · U.S. NAVY'S CROSSING THE LINE CEREMONIES. Crossing the equator, or the imaginary line drawn around the Earth that separates the Northern and Southern hemispheres, might not seem like much...
In naval culture ‘crossing the line’ refers to crossing the equator – marked by a lively and rough ceremony initiating every novice (those who have not yet crossed the equator) on board. The event, steeped in tradition with set rituals, grandiose speeches, and elaborate costumes and props, dates back to the 1700s.
The crossing-the-line ceremony is a naval tradition that occurs when a ship crosses the equator. Ancient mariners chose the equator as the site for the ceremony because they did not think the waters in the Southern Hemisphere were navigable.
