Pirate Party Theme

Pirate party themes have always been popular for children but now adults want to join in the fun with the release of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, who wouldn't want to look like Johnny Depp or Keira Knightley? At Measure for Measure we have a vast range of pirate costumes and accessories for ladies, gents and children.

No party is complete until the scene is set, Measure For Measure offer a wide variety of pirate scene setters, wall and hanging room decorations, props and partyware. 

If anyone mentions the word “pirate” it conjures up images of roguish swashbucklers, scandalous scoundrels and wicked buccaneer's of the sea. We have been bought up on the media’s vision of pirates as romantic and dashing heroes or incorrigible villains, but the truth is far less glamorous than that.

A Pirate is a thief who steals from other ships whilst at sea.  The word pirate (peirato) was first used in about 140 BC by the Roman historian Polybius. Norse raiders of the 9th and 11th century AD were not thought of as pirates but, were named 'Danes' or 'Vikings'.  Vikings were the most notorious of the Medieval pirates who explored abroad during a period from about 800 to 1100 AD.

Towards the end of the 13th century there saw a decline of central authority in China, as a result of this piracy began to increase along the China coast. Ships large enough to carry 300 men were used, the pirates would land and on occasion plunder whole villages.

Pirates, corsairs and buccaneers are very often joined together as one and the same, however they mean different things. Corsairs were pirates who presided exclusively in the waters of the eastern Mediterranean Sea, whilst buccaneers, or “boucaniers” were really deserters runaway sailors who found their way to the waters of the Caribbean Sea. Here they stayed alive by roasting stolen cattle on makeshift grills called “boucans” by the French (Rankin 151).

Piracy still operates today, however modern pirates operate differently depending on their location. Pirates of the Arabian Sea use modern weapons whereas West Africans Pirates use knives and dugout canoes. There is no Coast Guard in Brazil so Brazilian pirates take advantage of this fact, and Far East piracy is often controlled by organized crime and pirates kidnap the whole ships and cargo. The South China Sea is probably as dangerous as it was in the ancient times. Chinese pirates are perhaps the most blatant often operating under the protection of the Chinese government.

Walk the Plank
You will need:

a long thin length of wood                               buckets sponges and water

This is a classic Pirate activity. Place the plank on the floor elevated if you like.  Each person takes a turn to walk the plank whilst the remaining pirates throw wet sponges at the 'plank walker' to try to topple them off. If they make it all the way across with out falling they win a prize.

You could try blind folding them to make it more challenging. A change of clothing may be a good idea!

Pin the Patch on the Pirate
A Pirate picture                                                      eye patches for each pirate                                    sticky tack                                                     blindfold

Hang the pirate in a suitable place i.e. on a wall. Each pirate in turn is blindfolded and then with an eye patch with their name on it is spun around a few times and tries to place the eye patch on the pirate as close to his eye as they can. Prizes are given to the two closest.

Pirate Piñatas

Piñatas are filled with sweets or other small toys and then suspended above the party. Each pirate takes a turn to try and hit and break the Piñata to release the goodies inside.

Find the Glass Eye
bowl                                                          strawberry jelly                                                    toy eyeballs                                                     marbles                                                           blindfold

This game is not for the faint hearted! Place the eyeballs in a large bowl with the marbles. Make the jelly as per the instructions, pour the jelly over the marbles and ‘eyeballs’ and allow to set.  Each blindfolded pirate then takes a turn to dip their hand into the bowl to try to pull out a glass eye. The pirates that find a glass eye in the goo win a prize.

Finger food is great for raucous pirate parties such as:

• Parrott Legs (chicken drumsticks) 
• sailboat sausages (sausages with cocktail sticks and paper sails)
• celery palmtrees (use the inner sticks with leaves)
• golden treasure nuggets (chicken nuggets served in a treasure chest)
• sword fighting breadsticks
• Buccaneer Burgers
• Sea Dogs (hot dogs in rolls with paper flag using a cocktail stick)

If you are going to be a Pirate you need to know the lingo, here are a few popular expressions for you to try out:

• Ahoy - A pirate greeting, like Hello or Yo.
• Arrr, Arrgh - A common pirate term, used in different situations.
• Avast - An order to stop and pay attention.
• Aye - Yes
• Aye aye - Conformation, taking order from the captain.
• Belay - To tie something down something.
• Booty – Treasure and valuables.
• Bucko - Friend.
• Davy Jones's locker - A graveyard for people killed or drowned at the sea.
• Dead men tell no tales - A dead man cannot speak of any secret or fact, which is why the pirates didn't like to spare any survivors.
• I'll Crush Ye Barnacles - A pirate's threat.
• Jolly Roger - The well-known pirate flag, usually represented with symbols of a skull and the crossbones.
• Lad - A young boy.
• Letters of Marquee - A document issued by a government, which allowed the privateers and the buccaneers to legally attack the ships and the colonies of an enemy nation.
• Maroon - To leave prisoners on island or desert coast.
• Matey - A companion, a close friend.
• Prize - A ship captured by pirates.
• Savvy - 'Do you understand?'
• Sea Rover - A pirate.
• Shiver me timbers - Saying for surprise or shock.
• Smartly - To do something fast.
• Sweet trade - A term for the trade of piracy.
• Walk the plank - Someone is forced to walk on a plank with their hands tied behind their back, and forced to jump into the water and drown.
• Weigh anchor - get ready to sail.
• Yo-ho-ho - Roar of delight.

White Pirate

This is a version of the White Russian

INGREDIENTS:
• 1 1/4 oz. Captain Morgan Spiced Rum
• 1 1/4 oz. Kahlua
• Half and Half or milk to fill

Shake over ice & pour into a glass.

Captains Blood

2 oz. dark rum
3/4 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
garnish: lemon twist

Pour all ingredients except the garnish into a cocktail shaker over plenty of ice. Shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with a twist of lemon.

Planters Punch

2 oz. dark rum
1 oz. fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbsp. not-from concentrate orange juice
1 tsp. simple syrup
garnish: cherry, orange slice

Pour all ingredients except the garnish into a cocktail shaker over plenty of ice. Shake well. Strain into a glass over ice. For the garnish, spear a cherry and orange slice with a toothpick.

Edward 'Blackbeard' Teach was one the most feared pirates of all time. He was named Blackbeard, because of his large black beard that almost covered all of his face. To scare his enemies Blackbeard would weave hemp into his hair, and light it during battle. He was an unusually large man who carried two swords, many knives and pistols. He was even feared by his own crew.

Anne Bonny, historical documents support the thoughts that Anne Bonny was a headstrong, independent woman, which points to a legendary and fearsomely courageous temperament. It is quite evident that she was a woman well ahead of her time, as she broke convention during a period in history when women were expected to behave in a sedate, subservient manner.