Things to do

Calm now reigns over the grassy Parade Square and impressive earthen ramparts of Fort Anne. This place has witnessed thousands of years of history and the past 400 years have been the most tumultuous. In the fort’s museum, housed in the Officers’ Quarters of 1797, learn about the traditional homeland of the Mi’kmaq and how European powers battled for hundreds of years to gain control of this coveted site. Outside, explore the fort’s defensive banks, ditches, and bastions, and as night falls, enjoy a guided candlelit tour of the Garrison Graveyard.

Fascinating reminders of Canada’s past in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia

Transcript

Parks Canada beaver logo

Text: Port-Royal National Historic Site [Moving image of the wooden log walls at Port-Royal.]

Narrator: Port-Royal National Historic Site.

Port-Royal Interpreter: Welcome to the Port-Royal habitation. Bienvenue à l'habitation de Port-Royal.

[A Parks Canada Interpreter greeting a family at the main entrance of Port-Royal.]

Narrator: One of the earliest European settlements in North America.

[The two children running to the well centered in the middle of the fort.]

Narrator: Let your imagination soar as costumed animators bring the French colony to life.

[The two children looking into the well.]

Text: Fort Anne National Historic Site

[Parks Canada interpreter greeting a family at the Fort Anne information desk.]

Text: Fort Anne National Historic Site

[The family standing in front of a red door holding Xplorer booklets. Parents point out something to see.]

Narrator: Fort Anne National Historic Site. Canada's first and oldest National Historic Site.

[The family walk through a narrow brick and rock wall tunnel.]

Narrator: Immerse yourself in early European colonization, where the past isn't really the past.

[The children trying on old-styled clothing.]

[One child running her hand along stacks of wooden barrels.]

Narrator: Imagine the music and laughter of Champlain's Order of Good Cheer.

[The family pretending to eat dinner at a display dinner set.]

Narrator: A masterpiece of authenticity.

[The children trying on old-styled hats.]

[The family learning about Mi'kmaq culture and drumming from a Mi'kmaw woman in a Wigwam.]

Narrator: Enduring alliance with the Mi'kmaq.

[The family walking under a brick archway and then the father points at something in the distance.]

Narrator: This is real stone and brick. A living, breathing monument.

[The two children interacting with a gun attached to a window looking out from the fort.]

Narrator: Meticulous reconstruction brings story to life.

[The two children sitting on a cannon and one points towards the ocean.]

Narrator: Sweeping views unchanged after 400 years.

[The two children rolling down a grassy hill.]

Narrator: Let you inner kid play "fort!"

[The father takes a photo of the two children posing with Parks Canada mascot Parka.]

Narrator: So many incredible experiences.

[A Parks Canada Interpreter greets the family, giving the children Xplorers certificates and dog tags before waving them all goodbye.]

Narrator: Discover the past in the present.

Port-Royal Interpreter: You are now Port-Royal Xplorers. Vous êtes maintenant Xplorateurs de Port-Royal!

Young girl: Thank you.

Port-Royal Interpreter: You are very welcome.

Narrator: Fascinating reminders of Canada's past in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia.

[A close up of three emblems hanging above the fort entrance.]

Credits:

Parks Canada logo.

Canada wordmark.

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