By Sir Guillaume de la Belgique
www.SirGuillaume.com

(©2005 Scott Farrell)

The “main event” of our trip to England was, not surprisingly, a tournament at Chepstow castle. When we arrived at the castle gate on the morning of the tournament, we were (as you might imagine) a bit apprehensive. After all, not only were we a bunch of foreigners trying to portray English history to English people, but we were also keenly aware that in many circles the name of the SCA is associated less with the words, “serious historical scholarship” than with the words “chain mail bikinis.” We hoped we could live up to the quality of the environment we were about to enter.

Fortunately, we had lots of help from the Chepstowe Garrison, a historical re-enactment group based in the castle. With the assistance of Roger, Thom, Amanda, Beryl and Josh, who graciously loaned us benches, tables, two arming tents and their combat arena, we soon had the castle’s lower bailey looking just like it might have in 1189, when William Marshal took possession of the castle as part of the dowry of his wife, Isabella de Claire. In fact, the lower bailey and the gatehouse it protects were built under the supervision of the famous Earl of Pembroke and star of the European “tourney circuit,” so we hoped that maybe the spirit of William Marshal was looking down on our little tournament with a smile from one of the upper windows of the nearby tower.

With all of us in our costumes and armor, it was time to open the castle gates and begin the tournament. We all gathered in the middle of the sunny field to hear the words of King Renee of Anjou, one of the most famous knights of the 15th century and author of The Book of the Tournament, which provided the inspiration for the activities of the day:

We are gathered, as has been announced by cry and letter, to hold a tourney and a bouhort of arms in honor of the lord of Chepstow castle. We undertake the charge that has been put forth before us this day with honor, faith and love. And we will thus conduct ourselves in the lists as nobly as possible in this world, using all of our intelligence and strength with such chivalry that if by chance we err, from which God protect us, it will be more from innocence than from vice. And we will submit always to the correction, good will and pleasure of those who have come to witness our acts and adjudge our chivalry this day.

For those of us in the armor, fighting in the castle was an amazing experience. Typically at an SCA event you’re looking around at things like shopping malls, basketball courts, parking lots or freeway overpasses — all things that blatantly remind you: This ain’t anything like the Middle Ages. Looking through the eyeslots of my helm during the Chepstow tournament, all I could see was … castle! I have to admit that there were several times I was admiring the scenery so much that I had to force myself to remember Sir Padraic or Baron Thorvald was over on the other side of the lists field, trying to whack me with a sword.

During the course of the day, several hundred spectators came to the castle to see our SCA demonstration. (Sir Padraic and Lady Runa even went strolling through the streets of the town to generate visitors.) Although we were worried that in the land of “real medieval history” our combat style — which is done with wooden swords instead of steel ones — would be scoffed at, in reality, everyone seemed sincerely intrigued that we were actually hitting each other. They respected the fact that our rattan weapons gave us the ability to carry out our fighting techniques without any worry of “pulling blows” or “choreographed movements.”

We demonstrated both sword and shield combat, and two-handed great sword combat. (If you really want an amusing story, find me at an SCA event in the future and ask me how much fun it is to check wooden great swords through the TSA baggage screening station.) All of our fights were done in “counted blows” style (three blows received), and we concluded our matches with the defeated fighter surrendering his sword and yielding, rather than “falling down dead.” Since two of the SCA’s more laughable customs are fighting from your knees (“Come back here! I’ll bite yer kneecaps off!”) and playing dead, we decided to eliminate those aspects in respect for the authenticity of the castle atmosphere.

Another thing that caused us some initial concern was the fact that two of our fighters were, technically, women. For those of you keeping score at home, the number of period references to women competing in jousting tournaments is: zero. (Yes, there are several accounts of women fighting in wars, going on Crusade and taking part in judicial duels — but history seems to be silent regarding women participating in jousting tournaments.)

Knowing this, we were somewhat worried that our lady-fighters would cause us to lose credibility with the spectators at Chepstow. Turns out, our worries were completely groundless: Everyone who spoke with Baroness Ceridwen and Duchess Felinah congratulated them for “getting out there with the boys,” and every time one of them won a fight against one of the male fighters, the castle courtyard echoed with applause.

Of course, we took plenty of time in-between our tournament fights to stroll through the castle and enjoy being part of the medieval atmosphere. Finally, as the shadow of the castle wall grew long across the field, it was time to pack up our armor and head home. As we were leaving I wanted to stand for one last picture in the gateway of William Marshal’s castle, and as I did, the gate opened up and Nina, the castle manager, poked her head out and asked: “Would you like this?”

Then, she handed me a key — the key to the castle! There aren’t many knights, I suspect, that can truthfully say they’ve taken a castle after a day of battle. I considered it quite an honor, and I look forward to a day (in the not-too-distant future) when I can use that key to open the gates at Chepstow once again to begin another wonderful SCA tournament in the courtyard.

And when I do, I hope a great many of my friends, readers and fellow “American-ized” SCA knights will be there to join me. I’ll guarantee it will be a day you’ll not soon forget!

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Chepstow is one of the many fine castles and historical sites managed by Cadw. To find out more about visiting these sites when you are in Britain, visite the Cadw website: www.cadw.wales.gov.uk