Jason's Historical Reenactment Ideas

8:34:28 PM EDT
Another excellent English group is The Feudal Archers.  Although they do emphasize archery, that is not the sole purpose of their society.  They do a full impression of medieval times, with a camp, crafts, cooking, etc.  Their website is exceedingly well-done, include information on their characters, pages on the weapons and armor of a 12th century knight, and a page about the trebuchet.  (Unfortunately, the group no longer has a trebuchet, having opted instead for a more portable ballista.)  Add in a very well-organized page of links, and you have a truly excellent site.

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8:43:27 PM EDT
The Huscarls are a dark ages reenactment group from Australia.  Thematically and stylistically they are very similar to Regia Anglorum, and I think the two groups could very easily cooperate on an event, were they not so far apart geographically.  The Huscarls website, is very well done, although some of the animations can be very tedious after having been viewed several times (note to webmasters - if you put an animation in your site, put in a way around it so repeat visitors don't have to sit through the animation each time).  Besides many good photographs of the group in action, the Huscarls website includes a lot of good historical/archaeological information (for example, check out this pattern for a Viking undershirt based on recent archaeological finds in Denmark.

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5:10:27 PM EDT

At the end of the armorer's spectrum (as far as business philosophy), from the folks at Ashcraft/Baker, are the folks at Blankenshield Armory.  Whereas Ashcraft/Baker is producing armor to meet SCA standards and be affordable for the average "weekend warrior," Blankenshield's armor is custom-fitted, using extensively researched, labor-intensive methods to produce high quality, historically-based armor that will protect its wearer in live steel combat or equestrian jousting.  This quality comes at a price, though, as I have owned cars that cost less than a suit of Blankenshield armor.

I definitely think that there is room in the market for both sorts of companies.  When I am putting together my own armor (which will be for use in SCA-style combat), I will probably be buying equipment from Ashcraft/Baker or someplace similar.  However, if I were going into a combat reenactment of the sort that Blankenshield armor is built for, I would want to have the option of buying that sort of armor.

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3:43:32 PM EDT

If anyone had any doubts about how big medieval reenactment is getting (especially in the context of the SCA), check out Ashcraft / Baker.  What makes these people stand out from all the other armorers offering their wares is that the Ashcraft/Baker people have realized how big the market is and are mass-producing to meet market demands.  First of all, they guarantee that all their work meets or exceeds SCA standards.  Second, the don't do custom work - to keep their costs down, all their armor is "off the rack."  You choose your design, choose large or small, and order it.  And third, they offer a "basic suit" which (with the addition of a cup) meets the SCA standards for minimum armor coverage - helmet, elbow, knees, and gorget.  I'm sure there are probably other armorers offering this sort of service, but this is the first that I'm come across offering this sort of standardized, SCA-ready, "armor for the masses."

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1:47:42 AM EDT

The Empire of Chivalry and Steel website is one of the more underwhelming sites I've gone to recently.  I found no pictures of group at events, no historical information, just tons and tons of information about the internal organization of the group and how it is run.  While I can understand the usefulness to the group members of having this information on the web, I really think it would be better to put this in a "Members Only" section and put a friendlier, more inviting face on the main site.  Remember, folks, your website is often people's first exposure to your organization.  This is your chance to sell your organization.  If Group A has a site with lots of pictures of their members doing interesting-looking medieval activities, while group B has a site showing that the group has an exceedingly well-organized bureaucracy, which group do you think people are going to want to learn more about and possibly join?  This putting on a good public face and moving the paperwork to the background is somewhere that a lot of American sites drop the ball, while a lot of the British sites really shine (compare the ECS website to the Regia Anglorum website).

To be completely fair to the ECS, people, there did seem to be some good information on their local group websites, which I will review later when I have more time.  I just think the organization would have been better served by a more exciting main page.

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1:19:59 AM EDT

I just discovered the Ordo Procinctus website tonight.  They're a group local to me (southeast Louisiana) who appear to be doing really well.  Although their focus is different from mine (they focus primarily on combat and, in fact, their site states "We are not an historic reenactment group in the strictest sense."), I think it's great that they're out there, and based on the pictures they have on the site they seem to be having a lot of fun.  Their site looks great, is very well-organized, and, besides all the information on their group includes a lot of links to other useful sites, both archaeological and "how-to", primarily dealing with weapons and armor.  A very well done site from a group that really looks to be going places.  If you're in Louisiana any weekend in November, be sure to catch their performance at The Louisiana Renaissance Festival.

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1:03:34 AM EDT

It seems that everyone in the medieval reenactment community has strong feelings one way or the other about the SCA.  A lot of people in the SCA are doing some really great re-enacting.  On the other hand, a lot of the people the SCA are just flakes.

Personally, I tend to support the SCA and just try to stay away from those whose nuttiness I refuse to put up with (you know the ones I mean - the ones who want to create an elven or vampire persona or some such.).

The SCA takes a lot of flack for not have any sort of institutional authenticity standards.  I don't think this is such a big deal so long as you go into it knowing what to expect.  The SCA's wide focus (1000+ years chronologically, Europe+ geographically) makes it difficult to enforce an authenticity standard.  But you can't argue with the SCA's success - they have spread worldwide and have become the largest group, putting on massive events that other groups just don't have the people to pull off.  And even the guys who just hang around in a T-tunic and drink beer are valuable - at least they're not sitting in front of a TV, and they'll probably learn something whether they mean to or not.

Be sure to check out the SCA website.  It's exceedingly well organized, has tons of useful information, and a webshop selling their publications, many of which will be useful to members and nonmembers alike

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12:26:38 AM EDT
Feeling Happy

For more information on historical reenactment in any period, check out Reenactor.net.  They have links to reenactment groups in just about any time period you can think of, plus links to booksellers, equipment suppliers, and anything else you might need.  Highly recommended.

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10:03:35 PM EDT
Feeling Quiet

Let's get things started with a site that I love:  Regia Anglorum.  This is a British group that specializes in England in the period 850-1100.  They have very high authenticity standards and a very informative site.  Although the vast majority of their members are in the UK, they do have provisions for international members (who are then able to participate in Regia events should they be able to get to England).  In fact, the international membership option has proved so popular that they now that a branch in Canada, Wynmerestow, and a branch in the US, Geforðian Strand.  (Be patient if you try to access the US site - they're having server problems right now.)

Well, that's it for tonight.  Hopefully I'll be able to put out another entry tomorrow.  If you know a medieval reenactment site that you think I'd be interested it, send it to me and it could wind up as the subject of my next journal entry!

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