Nautical Term of the Week - Armada

Armada 

Merriam-Webster says: "an armada is a fleet of warships or a large force or group of usually moving things.  A Spanish word that originally meant simply "armed", armada is now used in Spanish-speaking nations as the name of their national navies. In English, the word usually has historical overtones. The Great Armada of 1588 was a 120-ship fleet sent by Philip II of Spain in an attempt to invade Elizabethan England; it was defeated when British forces lit eight ships afire and sent them sailing into the Armada's midst, then blocked the passage to the south so that the remaining ships were forced to sail northward around Britain in order to return home, causing dozens more ships to be wrecked in the stormy northern seas. Today we sometimes use the word humorously for fleets of fishing boats, rowboats, or canoes."

Sunday, June 18, is the Blessing of the Fleet in Barnegat Light.  Check out our version of "armada" and watch the fleet get blessed!