The History of the Kingdom of The West
The Twelfth Year

From The Page (July, 1977):

On July 23 at Carriage Crest Park ... the Third Annual Lyonesse Anniverary Tourney will be held. Set-up will be at 8:30; the Grand March will begin at 10:00, followed by Opening Court; and 1:00 PM will see the beginning of the evening Lists for Champion of Lyonesse. The Hall for the Evening Court and Ball opens at 6:30 PM.

There will be many contests, as follows:

1. LISTS for Champion of of Lyonesse. Victor will receive a favor.

2. ORDER OF THE DEAD MACKEREL. Given for the most dramatic death.

3. MOST ORIGINAL CHALLENGE. Sponsored by the Mistress of the Lists.

4. COOKING -- German desserts. There must be enough to serve, and a recipe must be included.

5. HERALDRY -- mix and match. There will be a series of color drawings of heraldic devices (mundane, Society, and fictional), with a somewhat longer list of names (both people and places). The contestant with the greatest number of identifications will receive as his/her prize a certificate good for the registration of a device with the College of Heralds. (Even if you don't need one yourself, it's a great gift for a friend!)

6. SINGING -- best rendition of a Child Ballad. A copy of the text of the song and the Child # must be provided by all contestants. A photocopy of the music would be appreciated. Soloists and/or ensembles may enter -- but all ensembles must appoint a leader to whom the prize will be presented. Both prize winners will present their songs at Evening Court. (We may want an encore. Remember that we are all there to have a good time -- we don't expect you to sound like Beverly Sills or Herman Prey!) First Prize: a record of Renaissance music and a pin or pendant of rhinestones. Second Prize: a record.

7. CARTOONS. Themes are A) any ideas that come to mind concerning a Prize Tourney, including the type of prizes you might win, and B) ideas concerning having a 10-year-old Princess in one's house. All cartoons should be done in black INK (ball-point will do) on white paper. They should be drawn NO LARGER than 8"x11", and no smaller than 4"x5". Wash will not print: use cross-hatching or Zip-a-tone for shading. All mailed-in entries MUST arrive at the home of John Trimble (address omitted) before July 22. All entries brought to tourney must be given to Mistress Bjo or Lady Fiona by 1:00 PM. Prizes: for best cartoons in each category there will be offered 5 (five) black fine-point pens, and publication in the CROWN PRINTS.

8. BEST CHOREOGRAPHED DANCE. For groups of 2-6 doing a choreographed (this means prepared) Medieval dance. Please provide your own music and/or sound system. This competition will run at Evening Court, where each group will perform for Their Highnesses and the assemblage.

9. ILLUMINATION. Entry should be an illuminated "K" (for "Know all men ..."). All entries must be in to Lady Mary Taran of Glastonbury by 1:00 PM the day of the tourney.

10. COURTESY. All persons attending the tourney will be judged on their courtesy (this includes children, too!). The person deemed the most courteous that day by Lady Lorraine d'Alsace and her assistants will be awarded a decorated plate.

11. PHOTOGRAPHY. Theme: Children in the SCA. Subject of the photo must be a child (12 years or under at the time the photo was taken). Other people may be in the photo, but the focus must be the child. Photo should show child at, or involved in, some SCA event (portraits are excluded). Minimum size is 3"x5" or 4"x4". PRINTS ONLY. No slides or transparencies. Prints may be B&W or color. All entries become property of the contest, and will be held at the disposal of the CROWN PRINTS. PLEASE DO NOT SEND YOUR ONLY COPY OF A PHOTO. All mailed entries must be received by Lady Joan of Crawfordsmuir (contact info omitted) by Friday, July 22. Entries at the tourney will be accepted until noon, July 23. Sponsor is not responsible for photo eaten by Post Offal. Prizes: 5 rolles of film, choice of winner, for best B&W and best color photo. Special prize for best photo in contest.

12. BOFFER LIST FOR CHILDREN. Entrants must be 6-12 years old.

ENTRY FEES: There will be a 10cent donation for all contests entered (with the exception of the photo contest, which has no entry fee), and for entry into the Lists. This is to raise money for the Arts. The proceeds will be divided among the Canton, the Barony, and the Principality, with some going to Kingdom as well. PLEASE do not let this discourage you rfom entering -- it is for a good cause!

IN THE EVENING there will be Court, at which time the dancing competition will be held, the contest winners from the day announced, the winning Child Ballad sung, and there will be a presentation of two scenes from Shakespeare. Following that there will be a ball and revel, with munchies provided by the Canton. (A list of restaurants in the area and a map will be provided at the tourney.) The revel will also be a Cancerian Birthday Party (for Lady Käthe von Münchhausen-Trimara, Lady Fiona Gregorovna, Viscountess Arabella, Lord Guillym Avery of Royce, Lady Maria Slesandre, Trygvvi Halftrollson, and everyone else born under this delightful sign).

(directions omitted)

For further information, please contact Lady Fiona Gregorovna (contact info omitted).

From the History (by Wilhelm):

Held at Carriage Crest Park, Carson, CA. Lady Fiona Gregorovna (Natalya de Foix) was the autocrat. Prince Balin and Princess Lorissa attended. Officials from the City of Carson also attended. Lady Anns McAyre of Gorabh, Seneschal of Lyonesse, presented seashells and ribbons to Their Highnesses, the city officials, and all who were born under the sign of Cancer. The Lists were held for Champion of Lyonesse and the victor was Sir William the Lucky (who was also Champion of Isles). The Order of the Dead Mackeral for the Best Death went to Talin the Bored, twin brother of the Prince. The Children’s Boffer Lists was won by Fair Karen, who shared the prize of a children’s set of plastic armor with Katwen du Griffin, the runner-up. Both ladies fought valiantly in the finals.

During the day, Lady Lyndia of Woodlyn and Lady Neptha of Thebes put on a very successful and entertaining belly-dancing display. After a dinner break, everyone reconvened for evening court. Their highnesses gave Awards of Arms to Fredrick and Lyndia of Woodlyn. Lady Melissa Kendall of Westmoreland and Lady Persephone of Woodland were made honorary members of Lyonesse. The Prize Winners from the day’s contests were: Child Ballad - Alacya Daveraugh; German Dessert - Jared Blaydeaux; Cartoon - Viscount Edward Zifran of Gendy; Illumination - Lady Guinever Elspeth Malyn; Courtesy - Lord Charles of Dublin; Heraldry - Baroness Alison von Markheim. There were also contests in Best Challenge and Photography. Lord Fredrick and Lady Lyndia presented Viscount Gregory of York with a mantle so he would not “freeze” at the next Kingdom event. Princess Lorissa presented strawberry bath salts that she made herself to all of the Cancerian ladies. Following court the Best Choreographed Dance contest was held outside on the basketball court. Revelry continued inside, with desserts furnished by the Canton members, including a huge birthday cake made and decorated by Kyri.

Annotations:
[Lady Anns McAyre of Gorabh, Seneschal of Lyonesse, presented seashells and ribbons to Their Highnesses, the city officials, and all who were born under the sign of Cancer] “Ah, this explains the seashell on a blue ribbon we have in our SCA collection!
     [Princess Lorissa presented strawberry bath salts that she made herself to all of the Cancerian ladies.] “She really did make the bath salts herself; the house smelled of strawberries for weeks afterward!” – Flavia Beatrice Carmigniani

Description of this event, © Copyright 1980 by William R. Keyes (Wilhelm von Schlüssel)
This is from The History of the West Kingdom, Volume 1 (the only volume produced). When reading this text, please keep in mind the following disclaimer:

Disclaimer: This history may have errors in it, as much of the detail is “remembered” history, or as one of the cover pages of the original type-written manuscript states “The material within is derived from the information printed in The Crown Prints and in The Page, and from the memories of the participants.” The original document was typed on onion-skin paper, with hand-written notes (often in the margins). All attempts have been made to reconcile the notes with the original document.

Annotations, when they are added, are from The Annotated History of the West, Volume 1, which is the same text as Master Wilhelm's mentioned above, with commentary from members of the SCA who were active at the time of the event, and are added to help clarify questions and expand on what happened and why. This volume is copyright © Ken Mayer (Hirsch von Henford).

The West Kingdom History Website was created by and is maintained by Hirsch von Henford (mka Ken Mayer).