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THE GUNS OF ANASTASIA
Item #1: Castillo de San Marcos
The Spanish founded the city of St. Augustine in 1565. The settlement experienced a turbulent history and over the next one hundred years, the city was defended by nine wooden forts. After the city was burned by Sir Frances Drake in 1586 tensions between the English and Spanish continued to escalate. Another attack on St. Augustine by the English pirate, Robert Searle, in 1668, made it clear that the construction of a masonry fortification was necessary to protect the city. In October 1672 construction began on the fort that would become the Castillo de San Marcos. Castillo, is made of a native stone called coquina literally "little shells". The coquina was quarried from Anastasia Island across the bay from the Castillo. Construction lasted twenty-three years, with the Castillo being completed in 1695.
In 1702, the Castillo endured a two month siege by the British under orders from Governor James Moore of Charles Town in the Carolinas. The relentless cannon fire had little effect because the coquina walls were very effective at absorbing the impact of the shells. After the siege of 1702, the Castillo underwent a period of reconstruction. England declared war on Spain in 1739 and as part of the war, British General James Oglethorpe laid siege to the Castillo de San Marcos and the city of St. Augustine. Once again the coquina walls of the Castillo withstood the British bombardment, and after 38 days the British withdrew their forces from the area.
Today the Monument site consists of 20.5 acres and includes a reconstructed section of the walled defense line surrounding the city of St. Augustine incorporating the original city gates. The Castillo de San Marco is the oldest masonry and only existing 17th century fort in North America. As such it is an excellent example of the "bastion system" of fortification.
Item #2: Red Coat Soldier
The wearing of red uniforms by English soldiers dates back to 1485 with the Yeoman of the Guard and the Yeoman Warders who wore the traditional Tudor red and gold coats. In 1645 the English Parliament passed the New Model Army ordinance creating the first permanent English army. The official uniform of soldiers in this army was a Venetian red coat with white facings. The facing color (lapels, cuffs and collars) of the red coat differed to indicate the various regiments.
In 1732 the new colony of Georgia was founded by the English general, James Oglethorpe. This settlement served as a barrier between the Indians and Spaniards of Florida and the colonists of Carolina. General Oglethorpe realized the need for a larger military and returned to England in 1737 to secure a regiment of redcoats. He was given the 42nd Regiment of Foote, now known as "Oglethorpe's Regiment." Oglethorpe also knew that to effectively defend the colonies against the Spanish and the Indians, he must have unconventional fighters who were capable of fighting in the swamps, woods, and forests of Georgia and Florida. To that end, General Oglethorpe assembled a diverse coalition of fighters including units such as Nobel Jones' Company of Marine Boatmen, the Georgia Coastal Rangers, and the Highland Mounted Rangers. Upon Oglethorpe's return from England, the new regiment fell in for the first time in 1738. In 1740 when Oglethorpe and his coalition force faced the Spanish in a battle for St. Augustine, the Redcoats were joined by soldiers wearing many other styles of dress from civilian clothing, buckskin, and Highland kilts.
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