In the predawn darkness, an enormous armada of ships will gather south of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. Then, as the sun begins to rise, the vessels — some sporting 10,000 square feet of sails and cadets, and others housing missiles and more than 15,000 combat marines and sailors — will make their way into New York Harbor, past the Statue of Liberty and towards Manhattan.

But unlike the 400 ships that the British amassed in the same place exactly 250 years ago, these ships come in peace. And they are part of the extraordinary spectacle that is Sail250, part of the nation’s 250th birthday celebration of America’s founding.

On Saturday, New Yorkers will be treated to the largest peacetime armada ever assembled.

On July 4, 40 classic tall ships from 20 nations, scores of naval vessels from more than a dozen countries, and the world’s largest traditional ocean liner — Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 — will parade up........

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