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Society for Creative Anachronism

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Arms of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Description: Or, a laurel wreath Vert.
File:NorthshieldHromnice2008.JPG
SCA members holding court

Society for Creative Anachronism (usually shortened to SCA) is a historical re-creation and living history group founded in 1966 in California, which recreates pre-17th century Western European history and culture. The SCA describes itself as a group devoted to the study of the Middle Ages, life, and culture of the landed nobility in Europe before 1601.

As of December 2007, the Society has over 30,000 paid members.[1]

History

The Society for Creative Anachronism's roots can be traced to a backyard graduation party of a medieval studies graduate, the author Diana Paxson, in Berkeley, California on May 1, 1966.[2]

The graduation party began with a "Grand Tournament" in which the participants wore motorcycle helmets, fencing masks, and usually some semblance of a costume, and whacked away at each other with weapons including plywood swords, padded maces, and even a fencing foil. It began with an invocation (from "Winnie The Pooh" in Latin), and included feasting and dancing as well as the martial displays, before it ended with a parade down Telegraph Avenue with everyone singing "Greensleeves". It was styled as a "protest against the 20th century". The name "Society for Creative Anachronism" was coined by science fiction author Marion Zimmer Bradley, an early participant, when the nascent group needed an official name in order to reserve a park for a tournament.

The SCA still measures dates within the society from the date of that party, calling the system Anno Societatis (Latin for "Year of the Society"). For example, 1 May 2006–30 April 2007 is A.S. XLI (41).

In 1968 Marion Zimmer Bradley moved to Staten Island, New York State and founded the Kingdom of the East, holding a tournament that summer to determine the first Eastern King of the SCA. That September, a tournament was held at the World Science Fiction Convention, which was in Berkeley that year. The SCA had produced a book for the convention called A Handbook for the Current Middle Ages, which was a how-to book for people wanting to start their own SCA chapters. Convention goers purchased the book and the idea spread. Soon, other local chapters began to form. In October of 1968 the SCA was incorporated as a 501(c)3 not for profit corporation in California. [2]

By the end of 1969 the SCA's three original kingdoms had been established: West, East and Middle. All SCA kingdoms trace their roots to these original three. The number of SCA kingdoms has continued to grow by the expansion and division of existing kingdoms; for example, the Outlands, Artemisia, Ansteorra, Gleann Abhann, Meridies, and Trimaris all originally belonged to the fourth kingdom, Atenveldt, which began as a branch of the West.

Organization

Northshield court at an outdoor SCA event.

The SCA is divided into administrative regions which it calls kingdoms (which typically cover several U.S. states or Canadian provinces, and can be as large as countries or collections of countries as needed to reach a suitable number of members). Kingdoms are sometimes divided into subregions known as Regions or Principalities (though the latter are regions that may be in the process of becoming Kingdoms) and contain chapters (typically which encompass a county or part of a county), which are called Shires, Provinces, Baronies, Cantons, Colleges, and Strongholds. Kingdoms, Principalities, and Baronies have ceremonial rulers who preside over activities and issue group awards (Orders).[3]

Groups are active all over the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand, with scattered groups elsewhere, including the Panama Canal Zone and an incipient group in Antarctica.[4] (At one time there was even a group on the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, known as the "Shire of Curragh Mor" (anglicized Irish for "Big Boat"), and the shire's arms played on the Nimitz's ship's badge.)

There are also local and regional sub-groups, usually termed "households," which are not part of the Society's formal organization. The largest and most visible of these is the Great Dark Horde[citation needed].

Corporate organization

The SCA is incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation in California, with its current headquarters in the city of Milpitas, CA. It is headed by a board of directors, each of which is nominated by the membership of the SCA, selected by sitting directors, and elected to serve for 3.5 years. Each director serves as an ombudsman for various kingdoms and society officers. The BoD, as it is called, is responsible for handling the corporate affairs of the SCA and is also in charge of certain disciplinary actions, such as revoking the membership status of participants who have broken Corpora regulations or modern law while participating in SCA activities.

Kingdoms

SCA Kingdoms are (in order of founding):[1]

Officers

The Society as a whole, each kingdom, and each local group within a kingdom, all have a standard group of officers—with titles loosely based on medieval equivalents. [1][2].

  • Seneschal - The seneschal acts as the administrative head of the group. Every local group is required to have a seneschal who reports to the kingdom's seneschal.
  • Reeve - The treasurer, also known as the Chancellor of the Exchequer (from the British office), handles the financial matters of the group. Every local group is required to have one. The Society Chancellor of the Exchequer, who administrates the kingdom and local reeves, reports to the Society Treasurer who handles the corporate finances.
  • Knight Marshal - The combat supervisor, the knight marshal administrates heavy (rattan and armor) combat activities for the group. A local group is required to have one in order to host combat activities.
  • Minister of Arts and Sciences - Sometimes split into two offices, one for arts and one for sciences, this office coordinates arts and sciences activities for the group, arranging classes and demonstrations, and leading participants to others who work in fields of their interest.
  • Herald - This officer is in charge of heraldic activities, such as the creation and registration of names and arms. Each kingdom has a College of Heralds which prepares submissions to go to the Society College of Arms, headed by the Laurel Sovereign of Arms.
  • Hospitaller or Chatelaine - In charge of welcoming and facilitating new participants into the SCA.
  • Chirurgeon - In charge of safety and modern first aid. This officer usually has some form of medical training outside the Society.
  • Rapier Marshal - Supervises rapier (fencing) activities for the group.
  • Constable - In charge of maintaining and tracking liability waivers for events and combat activities.
  • Chronicler - Produces and edits the group's newsletter. The Society Chronicler monitors each of the kingdom and local group's chroniclers, while the SCA's two organization-wide publications, Tournaments Illuminated and The Compleat Anachronist, each have their own editor-in-chief.
  • Minister of Children - Arranging and officiating children's activities.
  • Historian - Recording the history of the group, from the local to the Society level.
  • Webminister - Derived from webmaster, this officer is in charge of maintaining the Internet presence of the group.

Culture of the group

SCA participant in period garb prepared for feast

Members, dressed in clothing of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, attend events which may feature tournaments, arts exhibits, classes, workshops, dancing, feasts, and more.

Persona

Each member in the SCA creates a fictional character known as a persona. For some, a persona is simply a costume and a name, an alter ego used for a single weekend event. Some members craft an elaborate personal history for a fictitious person who might have lived in a particular historical time and place. The SCA has onomastic students who try to assist members in creating a persona name which could have existed in a particular time and place within the SCA's studied period. However, claiming to be a specific historical individual, especially a very familiar one (e.g. Genghis Khan, Julius Caesar, Henry Plantagenet, Elizabeth Tudor), is forbidden. Likewise, one is not allowed to claim the persona of a fellow SCA member, alive or dead. Nor is one allowed to take on the persona of a sufficiently familiar fictional character (e.g. Robin of Locksley—Robin Hood).[citation needed]

Royalty

Thrones for the SCA Kingdom of Northshield.

The SCA has ceremonial rulers, some chosen by SCA combat (Kings/Queens, Princes/Princesses) and some by appointment (Barons/Baronesses). One of the primary functions of state for reigning monarchs is to recognize participant achievement through awards. Most awards designate excellence in a specific pursuit such as local service, arts and sciences, and combat. Some awards change the precedence and title of the recipient, giving him or her the privilege of being known as "Lord," "Lady," "Baron," "Duchess," "Master," and so forth. High level awards are often given with the consultation of the other people who have received the award, such as peerages and consulting orders. [3]

Ruler by 'right of arms' (SCA combat)

Each SCA kingdom is "ruled" by a king and queen chosen by winning a Crown Tournament. This is required by Corpora to be held as a "properly constituted armored combat" tournament. The winner of the Crown Tournament and his/her Consort are styled "Crown Prince and Princess" and serve an advisory period under the current King and Queen prior to acceding to the throne and ruling in their turn. The advisory period can last anywhere from three to six months depending upon the scheduling of the Crown Tournament.[3]

As of 2005, only one Queen has been made "by her own hand" (that is, by winning a Crown Tournament herself), though two other Queens have served as Sovereign rather than Consort when their Prince or King died before or during their reign.[citation needed] There has also been one instance of a Queen serving as Queen Regent because the King, a military reservist, was summoned to active duty with the armed forces in the real world after taking the throne.[citation needed] There have also been at least seven instances of reigning Princesses who have won the Coronet List for their Principality.[citation needed]

Peerage orders

The highest ranking awards within the SCA are called Peerages.[3] (This term is mostly an SCA term of art - not in keeping with European practice.)

Critiques and criticism of the SCA

The SCA will use modern elements when necessary (like plastic-framed eyeglasses) or to promote safety (like replacing steel swords with rattan during combat). Also, SCA gatherings do not reenact a specific time or place in history. For this reason, the SCA is more self-referential than a living history group, such as Colonial Williamsburg. Within the SCA as well as outside [5] it is discussed whether the SCA is more of a subculture group than a reenactment. For instance, the discussions of the Grand Council of the SCA, an advisory group to the Board of Directors, debated this at length.[6] There is evidence that the SCA is recognized in the popular culture as a subculture 'fan' group, not a reenactment group.[7]

One argument in the SCA is the meaning of "Creative Anachronism". An oft-quoted though unofficial SCA motto is, "The Middle Ages as they should have been"[8] — that is to say, lacking such undesirable elements as religious persecution, bubonic plague, and open-pit sewers.

Despite such criticisms, there is some educational quality to the group's activities and they have helped to foster a good deal of valuable research, especially in the area of medieval crafts.[9]

Extent of royal influence

While the Kings and Queens do have a significant influence within their individual kingdoms and the larger Society during their reigns, their duties are primarily ceremonial. The day-to-day business of running the Society is performed by volunteers or appointees in kingdom-level offices, and by the Society's Board of Directors. In fact, the Board of Directors can strip any crown of its authority (retroactively to the beginning of their reign, even after it has ended) if they abuse their authority. To date this has never occurred, although the Board has on several occasions voided individual awards made by Kings and Queens (usually for raising an individual from another kingdom into the peerage without obtaining permission from their fellow sovereign before doing so), or banned individuals from competing for the Crown for a certain period.[citation needed]

The amount of authority a king has also varies from kingdom to kingdom. Argument over the extent of royal influence is another strong element of the SCA's internal culture. A discussion of this can be found in Mike Woodford's Trends of Change in the SCA [10]

Elevation to the peerage

SCA peerages are bestowed as lifetime awards to those who receive them, though the recipient may surrender the title if he or she so wishes. It is possible, though usually difficult, to receive again a peerage so surrendered[citation needed]. Peerages are bestowed by the Crown (the Sovereign and Consort) of a Kingdom. In most cases, this is done at the request of the members of a given peerage.[3] The Society's Bylaws state that: The Crown may elevate subjects to the Peerage by granting membership in one of the Orders conferring a Patent of Arms, after consultation with the members of the Order within the Kingdom, and in accordance with the laws and customs of the kingdom. Restriction: to advance a candidate to the Order of Knighthood, a Knight of the Society must bestow the accolade." [3]

Authenticity

Some people criticize the SCA because it does not require its members to adhere to as high a standard of authenticity as other living-history or reenactment groups. Other SCA members stipulate the fact that they are not 100% authentic in their recreations and merely add that this is the reason they have the word "creative" in their name. This attitude has created the unofficial motto: "The Middle Ages not as they were, but as they should have been." This tension is highlighted by David Friedman in his articles "A Dying Dream" [11] and "Concerning the C in SCA".[12]

SCA events tend to be unique to the SCA's culture. For instance, events can be heavily dominated by court and award granting, the bi-yearly (or, in one kingdom, tri-yearly) combat for the royal seats and subsequent coronations. Some SCA events have been dedicated to particular historic events or have portions of their camping sectioned off for only strict reenactment, sometimes called "Enchanted Ground",[11] in which much more strenuous attempts are made to keep anachronistic objects and actions out. However, this is not the norm.

Although it may be a false dichotomy, the distinction between the goals of fun and authenticity is an ongoing philosophical conflict within the Society. See, for example, the debates from rec.org.sca, the SCA newsgroup on USENET.[13]

Tradeoffs - safety vs authenticity

The emphasis on safety creates an inauthentic style of fighting:

  • The look and sound of SCA combat suffers from using rattan rather than steel weapons.
  • The way some weapons are used is not authentic; an SCA mace, for example, has much less mass than the real item, and a rattan sword can be used very effectively in ways that a flat steel sword could not.
Self judging

Personal integrity and honesty play an important role in how bouts are fought. The recipient of a blow is the sole judge of whether the blow was "good" (sufficient for an edged weapon to cause injury) or not. It is therefore quite possible for a fighter to win a bout by refusing to acknowledge valid blows, although in practice this is rare. It also tends to be noticed (and heavily frowned upon) by others if this sort of behavior begins to form a pattern. The potential to form oneself a dishonorable reputation is one of the most important incentives to be fair in calling one's blows; the "small-town" nature of many kingdoms helps make this an effective check on a system that might otherwise suffer substantial abuse.

Sport vs re-creation fighting

While SCA combat techniques are well developed, they are based on what works with SCA weapons and armor rather than those actually used historically. The "wrap", for instance, is a common and accepted practice in SCA combat. In a wrap, the fighter throws a sword forward as if to strike the side of one's opponent, then the hand is rotated 180 degrees, bringing the sword around in an arc to strike the back of one's opponent. This works well with rattan swords, but aerodynamic limitations would prevent this tactic with (flat) metal weapons [citation needed].

Authenticity of determining a 'king' by combat

Actual medieval monarchs were not chosen by Tournament combat. There are, however, literary and historical bases for the custom, most famously the tournament in Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe. In the Middle Ages, there were a number of different "mock king" games, some of which involved some form of combat, such as King of the Mountain or the King of Archers. In the 17th Century The Cotswold Games were developed, the winner of which was declared to be "king". Also, the medieval sagas contain accounts of uniting petty kingdoms under a single king through actual combat.[3]

The SCA's first event did not choose a "king". Fighters vied for the right to declare their ladies (only men fought at the first event) "fairest", later called the "Queen of Love and Beauty".[2]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc". Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc. 2006-11-29. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
  2. ^ a b c Keyes, William (1980). "The Origins of the SCA". Ken Mayer. Retrieved 2007-06-07. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ a b c d e f The By-Laws and Corporate Policies of the SCA, Inc (PDF). Milpitas, CA: Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc. 2007. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. ^ Habernacher, Johannes. "Barony of the Southern Wastes". Retrieved 2007-06-07.
  5. ^ David Lowenthal (1985). The Past is a Foreign Country. Cambridge University Press. p. 363. ISBN 0521294800.
  6. ^ "Board Report". SCA. 2005-08-05. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
  7. ^ Duffy, Daniel (2005-01-31). "Ringers, Trekkers And Re-Enactors". Plastic.com. Retrieved 2007-06-07. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ Danielewicz, Sandy (2000). "How-to-Behave". Mark S. Harris. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
  9. ^ Mclean, Will (1995). Daily Life in Chaucer's England. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. pp. p. 221. OCLC 32167609. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ Woodford, Mike (May 1983). Trends of Change in the SCA. Phoenix, AZ, USA: The Runnymede Press. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  11. ^ a b Friedman, David (1986). "A Dying Dream". Greg Lindahl. Retrieved 2007-06-07. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ Friedman, David (1988). "Concerning the 'C' in SCA". Greg Lindahl. Retrieved 2007-06-07. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ Clark, Susan (1993-03-21). "The Dream". Mark S. Harris. Retrieved 2007-06-07.

Further reading

  • Erisman, W. E. (1998). Forward into the past: the poetics and politics of community in two historical re-creation groups. Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 1998. (Available from University Microfilms), OCLC:44631432, [4]
  • The Known World Handbook (3rd ed.). Milpitas, CA: Society For Creative Anachronism, Inc.
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