What an amazing time we had at Fort Brockhurst today. When we got there, we were welcomed by Victorian soldiers. That was an interesting change of pace, normally the uniforms we see are purple ones or Scout ones.
When we got inside, the first thing we did was to head over to where the volunteers were encouraging people to paint bases from bottles red so the fort can use them as poppies for their upcoming display.
After a little time painting, we wandered across the site to find where they were demonstrating firing their firearms. It was noisy, it was smelly, but it was brilliant to watch! Afterwards they brought their guns over to show us and we could really smell the whiff of the gunpowder. Samuel pointed out it smelled like fried eggs, and he's not all that wrong!
Once the demonstration was over, it was time to have our picnic. While we were sat down, Kyron was tasked with making sure everyone signed a special thank you card for the volunteers. At the same time, the Mayor of Gosport came over to say hi to us and it was really lovely to see him. Annalise was particularly keen that he should visit her school so he gave us a card for her to give to her headteacher so they can invite him.
Lunch over, it was time to sign up for soldier school. We were each given a number, just as Victorian Soldiers were. Once numbered, we went up for our uniform (a tabard and a forage cap) and a gun or flag, we had the choice. After we were all kitted out, it was time to learn the basics. We were taught how to march, how to handle our wooden guns and all those soldier-y jobs! It was great fun and we were even paid at the end with a real Victorian penny which we could either keep or swap for some sweets in the museum shop!
At the end of the session, we went on a tour of the site with one of the amazing volunteers of the site and explored all the different areas.
Considering we were only there for about three hours, we squeezed in so many activities, it was brilliant!
As ever, check out our public Facebook page for more photos of the fun!
Next week will be another busy one! Not only do we have a meeting as usual on Wednesday, but we also have the Beaver fun day at Paulton's Park on Saturday and the worldwide JOTA-JOTI event starts on Friday for the whole weekend for us to participate in whenever we're able to!
For more information about JOTA-JOTI, check out their website. Anyone can participate, not just Scouts and Guides.
Comments