We would like to wish all of our fellow Bahamians, on island and those living abroad a
Happy 40th Independence!
One minute after midnight On July 10th, 1973, 40 years ago a crowd of 50,000+ witnessed the black, aqua-marine, and gold flag of The Bahamas being raised instead of the Union Jack. What a feeling that must have been! It was the end of over 300 years of British rule.
Below is a picture of the brave men that have governed The Bahamas for the past 40 years.
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| From left to right: The Right Honorable Perry G. Christie, the current Prime Minister of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas, The Right Honorable Sir Lynden O. Pindling, Former Prime Minister (1967-1992), and The Right Honorable Hubert A. Ingraham, Former Prime Minister (1992-2002, 2007-2012) |
Last evening Bahamians came together on the eve of our Independence on the historic grounds of Clifford Park (where the initial ceremony of Independence occurred) for an event to recognize 40 years of Independence. As apart of the celebrations we enjoyed an event called the Tattoo.
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| At the Tattoo, the gentleman in the front is the Governor General, Sir Arthur Foulkes, courtesy of bahamasweekly.com |
For those of you like me who have been wondering why it is called a Tattoo, here is the popular definition!
The term military tattoo, referring to a military drum performance, dates from the seventeenth century when the British Army were fighting in the Low Countries (Belgium and The Netherlands). Drummers from the garrison were sent out into the towns at 21:30 hrs (9:30PM) each evening to inform the soldiers that it was time to return to barracks. The process was known as Doe den tap toe and encouraged the inn keepers to "turn off the taps", stop serving beer and send the soldiers home for the night. The drummers continued to play until the curfew at 22:00 hrs (10:00PM).
Over the years, the process became more of a show and often included the playing of the first post at 21:30 hrs and the last post at 22:00. Bands and displays were included and shows were often conducted by floodlight or searchlight. Tattoos were commonplace in the late 1800s with most military and garrison towns putting on some kind of show, hence the name Tattoo came for the show.
Now we know!
The journey still continues to becoming a great nation!
Signed,
MWMs Management
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