One of the things that can be puzzling to new SCA members in Æthelmearc is the way we cheer in courts or when someone does something admirable.
“Vivat? What the heck IS that?”
Vivat is a Latin word meaning “Long may he/she/they live.”
If we are cheering for multiple people, then the proper form is Vivant for “Long may they live.”
But why?
Let me tell you a story….
Back in the mists of time, there was only one Kingdom, and it was located in Berkeley, California. They cheered using “Hip Hip Hooray” or sometimes “Huzzah.”
When a member of the SCA from the west coast moved to New York City, they formed a new Kingdom. It was called the East Kingdom, and the SCA in California became known as the West Kingdom.
The East Kingdom continued to use “Hip Hip Hooray” to cheer until the reign of Gyrth (of blessed memory) and Melisande in A.S. XIII.
Their Majesties noted that this cheer may have its roots in anti-Semitism. Per Wikipedia, “It has been suggested that the word “hip” stems from a medieval Latin acronym, “Hierosolyma Est Perdita”, meaning “Jerusalem is lost”,[11][12] a term that gained notoriety in the German Hep hep riots of August to October 1819.” These riots occurred as a result of pogroms to oust Jews from Bavaria.
King Gyrth and Queen Melisande proposed the switch to “Vivat” as a more positive cheer without the racist overtones, and it was enthusiastically embraced by the populace.
At the time, Atlantia was a Principality of the East, and Drachenwald and Æthelmearc did not yet exist, but all three carried on the tradition of cheering with “Vivat” once they became their own Kingdoms.
Some Kingdoms still use “Hip Hip Hooray,” others use “Huzzah,” Ealdormere uses “Wassail,” and the Middle Kingdom inexplicably uses “Hoobah” because, over 50 years ago, a Midrealm King felt that “Hubba Hubba” being used to cheer on some belly dancers was too crude and suggested “Hoobah” instead.
But here in Æthemearc, remember it’s Vivat for one person, and Vivant for multiple people.
Our sister publication, the East Kingdom Gazette, has published a memorial article about Viscount Edward Zifran of Gendy, who passed away on July 15th after suffering a stroke. Also known by his nickname “Fast Eddy,” Sir Edward was known throughout the Society, most especially for his work at the Pennsic War, held here in Æthelmearc.
This is your opportunity to give the SCA Board of Directors your feedback on what you think of the way the SCA currently operates and what kinds of changes you would like to see.
The Florilegium is a collection of files assembled by The Honorable Lord Stefan li Rous. The information hails from various sources, starting from when Stefan first joined the SCA in 1989. This includes files from the Rialto newsgroup (rec.org.sca), from the old fidonet medieval echo conferance area, from various mail lists, posts in various Facebook groups, as well as articles submitted directly to Stefan by their authors. Be aware of “rabbit holes”… many an artisan found more than they were looking for after finding their way to the Florilegium research vaults!
What’s a “Florilegium”? Literally, it means “a gathering of flowers.” Florilegia were collections of choice tidbits (from Ovid, Aristotle, various popes, church scholars, etc), arranged topically.
A “Florilegivm Insulæ Sanctorvm” from 1624
Typically, a florilegium is huge, encyclopedic, and contains only choice selections from particular works. For example, Ovid’s Metamorphoses would be too long to include in its entirety and might suggest some of the wrong ideas (from a Church viewpoint), so only those works that offer clear exegetic or moralistic examples would likely be included. Thus, a florilegium would probably *not* include Nestor’s account of the battle of the Lapiths — the tale pokes fun at Nestor, at old men attempting to claim wisdom solely based upon age, and (less directly) at Homer. A florilegium probably *would* contain the tales of Midas, however, because they provide lessons on the evils of greed, pride, and gossip.
Stefan, on the other hand, is interested in the whole of what the SCA has to offer, and is always on the look out for new articles. If you have written an article that would be of interest to others in the SCA, please send it to him for possible inclusion in the Florilegium. A&S documentation and class handouts often work well, and he is especially interested in research papers submitted as A&S entries.
I hope you find these files useful, interesting, amusing or all three.
Honorable Lord Stefan li Rous (Mark S. Harris)
John Fulton, President for the SCA, has announced that the 2018 Report on the SCA Archives is now available on the SCA website.
The report can be located here: http://sca.org/BOD/PresReport/ . Questions or commentary regarding this report should be directed to Mr. Fulton at president@sca.org. Please use the subject line “SCA Archives Commentary”
Comments are strongly encouraged and can be sent to:
SCA Inc.
Box 360789
Milpitas, CA 95036
Good evening, please remember that if you feel you have been subjected to any harassment, bullying, or retaliation in the SCA, to contact me directly.
If you know of anyone that has been subjected to harassment, bullying, or retaliation in the SCA, please encourage them to contact me. I can be reached at ae.seneschal@aethelmearc.org.
Happy New Year! It is now Anno Societatis LII (AS 52).
From the SCA website:
SCA newsletters and award ceremonies use a special calendar, numbering our years starting with the year the SCA was founded. Years are specified as “Anno Societatis, or A.S. – (Latin for “in the year of the Society”) followed by a number, usually expressed in Roman numerals.
Our “New Year’s Day” is May 1st, the day that the First Tournament was held in 1966.
Here’s another in our continuing (two counts as continuing, right?) series of alternate histories. This one involves a different kind of revolt…
Pacifism wrapped in duct tape. That’s what they called it. P.C. (Period Correct) culture had run wild, they said. The history of the Pax Æthelmearcus League (PÆL) was written in the fake blood of simulated martyrs. Few recall it now, and those that do shudder to speak of it. The trauma of those trying times never seems to grow as dim with the passing years as we do. But I will tell you. I will tell you because our mock struggle meant something, dammit. We dreamed of a Middle Ages as it should have been…
The movement gained momentum slowly at first. It began with a few rogue Laurels like Mistress Chrestienne de Waterdene and Master Valgardr Gunnarsson, who said they were tired of the incessant, faux-killing and imitation mayhem every Pennsic. Every year the same people would feign being brutally slaughtered, again and again. Had it been actual battle, it would have been absolutely horrifying. We had had enough.
Bloodthirsty fighters at Pennsic. Photo by Lady Àine ny Allane.
There had been too much bruising. There had been too many strains and wrenched joints. We had had our fill of tending the mildly injured with Tiger Balm and homemade beer. Our gorge would rise at the thought of one more case of dehydration. We were weary of carrying the weight of the Kingdom’s cultural legacy like so many milk jugs of diluted Gatorade while so many of our youth were mindlessly indoctrinated into a cult of pretend violence.
The movement’s leaders, Master Fridrikr Tomasson and Mistress Orianna Fridrikskona. Photo by Mistress Irene von Schmetterling.
Our made-up angst was simmering toward boiling. Mistress Charmaine of Falkensee wept for the pseudobrutality that would, if this were actual reality, have been visited on those who might have existed, but did not. Master Bedwyr Danwyn’s affectations of righteous rage would surely have led to some sort of not unexplosive action had they been genuine expressions of passion, but it was yet to be. The Rhydderich Hael Galligraphers’ Guild was a crackling maelstrom of counterfeit vehemence, but without true false focus. It was only when the Kingdom Ministers of A&S, Master Fridrikr Tomasson and Mistress Orianna Fridrikskona, became vocal proponents of our fabricated cause that it really hit its stride, and took flight like some sort of kite shaped like a bird or something.
At Ice Dragon, the artisans, bolstered by the brewing entries, attempted a boycott of the pentathlon until the fighters and fencers agreed to cease and desist their fictitious aggression. Mistress Felicitas Fluβmüllnerin, Mistress Alicia Langland, and their apprentices were some of the first to fall in this action – of terminal ennui. When this fanciful act of civil disobedience failed, the Pelicans and their protégés stormed the field at War Practice, vowing to drag the mock-combatants to the Great Hall and force them to actually wash the very real breakfast dishes, but they were repulsed by the water-bearers and siege engineers in a concocted rout so vicious that many good gentles swore never to eat breakfast again. Master Creador Twinedragon, Mistress Ekaterina Volkova, and their associates took many artificial casualties as they pretend-fought on both sides of this spurious argument.
Mistress Felicitas and her pacifist minions in the movement’s uniform. Photo by Mistress Felicitas.
Finally, at Pennsic 47, the forces of PÆL could take no more, and what had been a series of inauthentic skirmishes erupted into make-believe, full-scale, peaceful violence.
Master Fridrikr leads the pacifists onto the field. Photo by Lady Amalie Reinhardt.
Naturally, it was the Heralds who led the charge, meticulously correctly emblazoned banners flying. They’d had enough of people who knew no difference between “vivat” and “vivant,” blaming the fighters for the Kingdom’s ignorance on a matter of such dire import. As former Silver Buccle Herald, Master Fridrikr organized them into a cohesive unit that, along with the cooks, weavers, blacksmiths, bards, leatherworkers, scribes, embroiderers, and seamsters, took down every Knight and MoD on the field with an affected efficiency so whimsically ruthless that some even doubted its falsity. Master Will Parris, Earl Marshal, and Duke Christopher Rawlins, Kingdom Seneschal, joined forces with groups like House Sable Maul, the Confed troops, House Arindale, Hus Fearhaga, the Southern Watch, and the Tuchux, but to no avail. Who knew that artisans had so many potentially yet dubiously deadly weapons? Well, Master John Michael Thorpe knew….
Mistress Zoe, clearly at the end of her rope, pleading for mercy. Photo by Baron Steffan Wolfgang von Ravensburg.
After lengthy debate, the Promptly Contrived PÆL Co-Prosperity Council (PCPCPC) chose to spare the Grandmaster Bowmen and Marksman on the grounds that they targeted inanimate objects, not combatant personas, much to the relief of Baron Edward Harbinger and Master Antonio de Luna. However, the combat archers were ersatz-condemned with the rest (though Mistress Zoe Akropolitina didn’t go down without a fight).
And that, my children, is the fiercely imaginary and mythically savage history of how Pennsic 47 became the first true “Peace” fake “War.” No more would Scadians live in figmental fear that a chunk of rattan or an overly whippy rapier might temporarily end their personas’ supposed lives. No more would our children learn the ways of delusory war. Simulated swords were beaten into rather splintery and ineffectual ploughshares, and the land of Æthelmearc finally knew real peace.
This alternate history is brought to you by Master Daniel del Cavallo and Mistress Arianna of Wynthrope, who dream of a world that never was, but maybe someday could be…. Happy April Fool’s Day!
This is a story about an alternate universe, where the Squire’s Revolt of A.S. 51 succeeded. Was it utopia or chaos? It depends on your point of view.
King Láegaire with his co-conspirators, Lord Cormacc and Sir Murdoch. Photo by Lady Christina Mary Lowe, aka Jinx.
After the surprise success of the Squire’s Revolt that began in the fall of A.S. 51, Lord Láegaire Mac Conaill Meic Shiadahail has really shaken things up as the new King for Life. Lord Cormacc mac Ghille Brigde and Sir Murdoch Bayne helped place him on the throne with the assistance of Lady Elena de la Palma’s sleeping potions (discreetly added to Their Previous Majesties’ and Highnesses’ tea during 12th Night court). Once asleep, former King Marcus and Queen Margerite were gagged, bound, and together with their daughter, placed on a boat headed for sanctuary in the Barony of Nordmark, Kingdom of Drachenwald, with Jewel Herald Maestro Orlando di Bene del Vinta at their side. As the galleon set sail, ex-King Marcus was heard shouting, “Jag kommer sänka dig, ditt otacksamma kräk!”* Meanwhile, Prince Timothy and Princess Gabrielle have fled to Atlantia, as all 147 of His Highness’s squires flocked to King Láegaire’s banner.
Former King Marcus mercilessly beating his erstwhile squire, now King Láegaire. Photo by Karli Champ.
Asked what prompted the revolt, King “Roo-Roo” Láegaire rolled his eyes and said “It was the children. The beatings, the lousy food (I mean, really, you can only eat so many Swedish fish), the sleeping on the floor, even the crouching in the back of the wain beside the Dread Empress Ingrid for miles, that I could take. I didn’t even complain when King Marcus refused to share his cigars. But when Marcus and Margerite had the children chase me while I ran with the chest of toys, with scant seconds of lead time until they arrived to tear me limb from limb – it was a horror show! I had to rid the land of those tyrants!”
King Láegaire has retained his consort, the eternally bemused Lady (now Queen) Mara of Hartstone, who seems to have busied herself trying to keep the Kingdom from falling into complete disarray under his yoke benevolent rule.
Master Will Parris, the somewhat baffled highest-ranking peer in King Láegaire’s realm. Photo by Jinx.
Among his many controversial rulings, King Láegaire’s rearranging of the Order of Precedence, making the Order of the Silver Buccle the highest award in the Realm, has elevated Master Will Parris to the senior non-royal peer in Æthelmearc. Master Will expressed some surprise at his new status, noting that it had been so long since he was inducted into the Silver Buccle that he’d kind of forgotten about it. When King Láegaire was asked why he would elevate a children’s order to such heights when it was rampaging children that inspired his rebellion, His Majesty only muttered incoherently about blackmail.
In addition, some have contested the King’s creation of a new peerage, claiming only the BoD has that power, but the number of gentles in the Order of the Bromance continues to grow. It is bestowed on those who show true dedication to “bromance” (regardless of gender; bromance is gender-neutral, after all) and bromantic pairs are often elevated together, further breaking tradition.
Resistance against the rule of King “Roo-Roo” Láegaire has coalesced around Duke Maynard von dem Steine, who believes he can bring King Láegaire down through proof of tax evasion. “He just has too many ducats to be the humble squire he claims to be,” said His Grace. Master Tofi Kerthjalfadsson, Kingdom Exchequer, agrees and is said to be combing Kingdom records for proof of the usurper’s criminal activities.
Baroness Beatrix Krieger receiving her Writ for the Chivalry at AEdult Swim. Were nefarious thoughts running through her mind? Photo by Lady Aine ny Allane.
Meanwhile, the kingdom waits with bated breath to hear what Baroness Beatrix Krieger will do. Her rumored collaboration with the rebellion may make her planned elevation into the Order of the Chivalry this Pennsic a trifle… awkward
Co-conspirator Lord Christian Goldenlok was forced to flee his homeland of Misty Highlands to avoid the wrath of his Knight, Sir Gareth Kincaid. He and his wife, Lady Adelyn Idesborn, have taken up residence in the Canton of Steltonwald, where they are hiding out until the birth of their firstborn child. Lord Christian is said to have plans – though whether to support or overthrow King Láegaire is unknown.
While there was some thought that the Curia would invalidate His Majesty’s usurpation liberation of Æthelmearc, his legion of squires and squire wannabees has proven too formidable a force. One of the ringleaders in the squire wannabee contingent, Lord Robert MacEwin of Thornhill, has been named His Majesty’s Royal Enforcer, with occasionally tragic results as Lord Robert cannot seem to decide whether to skewer his victims with a rapier or knock them unconscious (or worse) with a rattan sword.
Lady Elena de la Palma looks innocent, but what brew is in the cup she offers the Crown? Photo by Mistress Felicitas Flussmüllerin.
Rumors say that a coordinated invasion from the East and Middle is imminent, as their Princes intend to restore the rightful monarchy… or, perhaps, split Æthelmearc between them, unless Prince Timothy can muster sufficient forces from Atlantia to stop them as well as the usurper. King “Roo-Roo” Láegaire vows a vigorous defense, though how he will accomplish that without help from any of the chivalry except his Rasputin, Sir Murdoch, is anyone’s guess. In the mean time, he has taken the precaution of having one of his close retainers taste any potables offered by Lady Elena.
* Swedish for “I will take you down, you ungrateful wretch!”
This story was concocted written by Mistress Arianna of Wynthrope and Lord Láegaire Mac Conaill Meic Shiadahail with Swedish assistance from Duke Sven Gunnarsson. Happy April Fool’s Day!
Yesterday, a great lady finally received a scroll honoring her contributions to the lands of AEthelmearc. Mistress Arianna of Wynthrope reveals the history behind the scroll.
In the spring of Anno Societatis 24, the western region of the East Kingdom had held a vote, chosen a name and arms, and presented our proposal to the SCA Board of Directors asking to become a Principality. After due deliberation, our request was granted and we became the “Crown Principality” of Æthelmearc. A Crown Principality is one that has no Prince and Princess. A Coronet Tourney was scheduled for September with an Investiture in December, but in the intervening months, we still needed a leader. Upon the recommendation of the regional officers, the Board and the Crown of the East chose Mistress Cassadoria Finialla to serve as Lady Protector and ceremonial head of Æthelmearc. She served admirably in that role through the summer and fall of A.S. 24, including leading our people at Pennsic 18. Though she was not permitted to give awards, she became a rallying point and a symbol of the hopes and dreams of our fledgling Principality.
When the time came for Mistress Cassadoria to relinquish the reins of power to our first Prince and Princess, Tarbold and Cainder, at their investiture in the Barony of the Rhydderich Hael on December 2nd of A.S. 24, King Horic and Queen Lea of the East felt it only right and proper that Cassadoria be recognized for her service in a lasting way, and bestowed upon her a Court Barony.
Fast forward to early spring in the waning days of A.S. 50. I was tasked with persuading gentles from Æthelmearc to loan their “historic” SCA scrolls for a display at the SCA 50 Year Celebration in the Midrealm. I was fortunate to be permitted to borrow some of the most amazing and storied art of our Kingdom, from our first Viscountess, our first Count and Countess, our first Knight and Pelican, to our very recent first Master of Defense. But to my mind, the biggest prize of all would have been Mistress Cassadoria’s Court Barony scroll in recognition of her service as Lady Protector, the first feudal overlord of Æthelmearc.
There was just one catch. When I contacted Mistress Cassadoria, I was dismayed to learn that she had never received a scroll in recognition of that Court Barony. It had been 27 years, and she still had no scroll. “Oh,” she said to me when I told her that ought to be fixed, “It’s all right, I’d rather that newer people receive their scrolls first, I don’t need another one.”
Perhaps so, but I felt that the Kingdom needed to remember the work of this remarkable lady. And so it is that her apprentice, Baroness Cecily of Whitehaven, painted the illumination, while I penned the words, on the scroll that was finally presented by the Baron and Baroness of the Debatable Lands, Brandubh and Hilderun, with the gracious permission of Their Majesties, Marcus and Margerite, on January 27, A.S. 51 at 12th Night in the Canton of Steltonwald, so that all will remember the glory of Æthelmearc’s founding, and Baroness Cassadoria’s role in its story.
Mistress Cassadoria with her Court Barony scroll at Steltonwald 12th Night, January 28, A.S. 51. Photo by Baroness Hilderun Hugelmann.
Here’s the text of the scroll:
Let all know that We, Horic and Lea, King and Queen of the East, have noted the grace with which our fair and right well-beloved Cassadoria Finialla has served as Lady Protector of Our Crown Principality of Æthelmearc, leading her people through a time of joyful change. Therefore do we invest her with a coronet of six pearls, signifying the dignity and splendor of a Baroness of Our Court. Done by Our hand and seal upon this 2nd day of December, A.S. 24, at the first Principality Investiture in Our Barony of the Rhydderich Hael.
The Florilegium is a collection of files assembled by The Honorable Lord Stefan li Rous. The information hails from various sources, starting from when Stefan first joined the SCA in 1989. This includes files from the Rialto newsgroup (rec.org.sca), from the old fidonet medieval echo conferance area, from various mail lists, posts in various Facebook groups, as well as articles submitted directly to Stefan by their authors. Be aware of “rabbit holes”… many an artisan found more than they were looking for after finding their way to the Florilegium research vaults!
John Fulton, President for the SCA, has announced that the 2018 Report on the SCA Archives is now available on the SCA website.
From Duke Christopher, Kingdom Seneschal:
