School Landship bid to preserve oldest cultural institution

The Barbados Landship, the island’s longest-surviving Afro-Barbadian cultural organisation, is experiencing a renaissance through a pioneering school initiative, as demonstrated by a spectacular display at the opening of Bridgetown Market for Crop Over.

Scores of secondary and primary school students brought the spectacle of rough seas and platoon drills to the Mighty Grynner Highway, showcasing the fruits of a two-year-old programme commissioned by the Ministry of Culture.

Andrea Wells, Chief Cultural Officer of the National Cultural Foundation (NCF), told Barbados TODAY: “The ministry commissioned the National Cultural Foundation to work closely with the Landship Association to ensure the preservation of this cultural heritage institution.”

Wells explained the impetus behind the initiative: “We’ve noticed in recent years it’s declined. There’s so many other options and choices, but we believe that the landship has unique skills and values to teach Barbadians, future generations of Barbadians.”

The School Landship Programme, piloted in 12 schools over the past academic year, goes beyond teaching traditional calls and manoeuvres. Wells elaborated: “The less well-known and maybe the even more important aspect of the landship [is] understanding its history and traditions, understanding its community work, understanding the principle of saving money, raising money, pooling money, and doing a greater good.”

The NCF’s Chief Cultural Officer, Andrea Wells.

A team of assessors, including creatives and senior Landship members, evaluated the schools’ performances in various aspects such as the maypole, manoeuvres, uniforms, and fundraising projects. “I must say they all did well, but coming up on top for the best secondary school’s Landship overall was assessed to be the Princess Margaret Secondary School, and among the primary schools, the Deacon’s Primary School would have come out on top,” Wells said.

Each participating school’s landship had been promised a paid performance opportunity during Crop Over. “It is a paying gig where the school can then utilise the funds to help invest further in uniforms and other programmes for the children at the school,” the culture division chief said.

Among the schools performing at Bridgetown Market were Frederick Smith Secondary, which placed second in the high schools category, and Holy Innocents, which came third among primary schools.

Wells praised the enthusiastic participation and community support for the programme: “These kids have really embraced the whole concept and principle of Landship, and you would see they’re accompanied by teachers, parents, and aunties who see the value of their involvement, and they come out to give their support.”

The chief cultural officer emphasised the Landship’s role in preserving quintessential Barbadian values: “They really preserve a lot of the better qualities of the Barbadian culture, which are resilience, each one teaching another and working together to build something bigger and stronger.”

Frederick Smith Secondary School and Holy Innocents Primary were among the parading schools on Saturday.

Founded in 1863 in Licorish Village, My Lord’s Hill, the Barbados Landship blended British naval traditions with Afro-Barbadian practices. Organized into “ships,” members perform naval-inspired manoeuvres at community events and gather at “Docks” for social activities. Beyond entertainment, the Landship historically provided financial support and was expected to turn out for funeral processions of members in the tradition of the Barbadian friendly society. Historians have recognised the Landship’s role in reinforcing an old Barbadian, and even older African, burial customs. 

(RG)