The weakened afternoon sun beams on the nape of Caitrina Inghean Aindriasia’s neck, exposed by a single braid that falls over the front of her shoulder. The hem of her white linen dress hovers above the grass as she reaches the clearing leading to the king and queen.
“How long ago was it that you assisted with my heraldry?” the king asks as she approaches the giant thrones.
Hundreds of the Kingdom of An Tir’s subjects have travelled to this gathering. Cream canvas tents dot the field, all centered round the royal pavilion. It’s been 10 years since Caitrina joined the court. During this time she’s made a niche for herself in heraldry – a skill that’s been noticed by the royal inner circle.
“Your king asked you a question,” King Iuean booms.
Caitrina’s words cower in her throat, unable to climb their way to her thin lips. She kneels on a flat embroidered cushion before the king.
“I call upon the members of the Order of the Pelican,” he says.
Caitrina’s jaw drops as she realizes she’s being offered membership in the exclusive Order – one of the highest honours within the “Known World.” With the crowd cheering behind her, Caitrina’s husband Uilliam mac Fearchiar mhic Gille Aindrias joins with the other members of the Order gathering at the King’s behest.
Caitrina soaks in her friends’ kind words and her husband’s smile, knowing it’s a point in time she will hold dear.
The Mundane World
Mark Hood was 16 when he stumbled across The Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). His grandmother rigged together medieval costumes out of his father’s outfits for his ’50s band, The Wizards. Looking a bit like sorcerers, Mark and his friend headed to an event held at the Campbell Valley Regional Park.
What caught their attention and is usually the lure behind many of the society’s memberships, was the fighting. Beginners, at the time, slapped together make-shift armour made out of shag carpet or plastic pickle barrels, while today participants craft outfits out of leather and metal using designs from the ages.
Chivalry and rapier arts take up much of the society’s time, with combat tournaments dominating gatherings.
This isn’t child’s play. Annually more than 10,000 people gather in Pennsylvania for the SCA’s largest battle – the Pennsic War. Fighting rages for 17 days, with participants coming from as far away as Australia. It’s so intense and the battlefield so large that viewers can feel the earth tremble as the soldier charge into warfare.
The weapons, such as swords and lances, are made out of rattan, wrapped in leather and tape. It can take years of training to become a knight, with members taking part in week-long workshops on everything from archery to sword fighting. The Terminator himself had a brief stint with the SCA. Rumour has it Mr. Schwarzenegger made a poor knight.
Mark’s teenager years within the society stopped as abruptly as they started. Without a car, he was unable to make the meets. But in the summer of 1988, his passion for the medieval world was re-engaged when he attended a gathering with his two children and first wife.
It was like visiting with a long-lost family, he recalls. His youngest – only months old at the time – was carried away by a gaggle of elderly women who cared for him much of the day, while gossiping and crafting on a blanket spread out in the field. His wife engaged in artist activities and Mark watched the fighting.
When the Squamish resident’s first marriage ended, so did his involvement with the society. During a five-year hiatus from the organization, Mark reconnected with his childhood crush Roxanne. When they started dating he carefully broached the subject of the society.
Three years later the two were married at a baronial gathering, both wearing their best Scottish attire. Today the couple is the Baron and the Baroness for the Barony of Lions Gate – Greater Vancouver. It’s the only elected nobility position held with the society.
The expanding kingdom
The Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) was born out of a medieval studies’ backyard graduation party at UC Berkeley in 1966. The “living history” group today consists of 19 kingdoms extending around the world. More than 60,000 people participate in SCA events and the international organization has 30,000 paying members. The kingdoms’ subjects’ research, recreate and study skills and arts of pre-17th-century Europe. With its increasing popularity other cultures have jumped aboard, such as warriors from Japan.
Some members weave their own fabrics out of material authentic to the era. They practise dances accustomed to the period. Mark, an IT specialist for the Squamish RCMP in the “Mundane World,” is an expert in historical board games, his knowledge reaching back to the Egyptian pharaohs’ favourite past times. He’s also the barony’s brewer.
The skills learnt within the society often translate to the world outside, says Miranda MacAndrew. Since she could crawl, the Vancouver Islander’s weekends were filled with canvas tents and period dresses. For the past four years, the 11-year-old has taken up archery. She competes in tournaments at the events, but more recently started shooting in Canada’s Junior Olympian Program. She recently won second place in the 10 to 12 age group in the B.C. Junior Olympics and won the top spot in the nation-wide event. Now she’s got her eyes set on the world Olympics.
This is not a role-playing group, says Kim Guss, the Royal B.C. Museum’s adult learning team leader. Last month, SCA members were invited to be a part of the museum’s viking exhibit. They demonstrated how the ancient people spun their wool and what they wore.
Learning through action is always a good way to go, Guss notes. One of the museum’s curators, who is interested in the archeology of flint knapping, practises the skill himself so that he can recognize flints in the field. SCA members follow a similar path, Guss says.
While some historians may question the society’s validity, Guss believes they bring something to the table. They are able to answer museum visitors’ questions and through demonstration add to the understanding of a culture.
“These are people who are keenly interested in history. They do applied learning and that is one of the best ways of learning,” Guss says.
Living history
For Mark and Roxanne – Uilliam and Caitrina – the society is about family, as well as history. On the same wall pictures of the couple’s children hang beside scrolls written in Latin and Old English highlighting momentous events within their Known World lives. Similarly, on the dining room table lays a delicately handcrafted pendant depicting a white pelican on its surface. The fable goes that faced with starvation, a pelican with offspring will pierce itself and feed the young its blood. It’s one of Roxanne’s most treasured items.
SCA is an accepting community, she says. King-king couples can sit on the thrones of principals, as well as queen-queen rulers. Women can fight alongside men and children mingle with different generations, learning along the way.
“It is the middle ages the way they should have been,” Mark says.
Roxanne smiles, adding that in many ways it’s the way our current world should be.
Photo by Ashley White
Knights battle at a crowning event held over the September long weekend. One-hundred-and-six fighters took part in the tournament. In total there were 869 attendees.
