pennsic article

8/9/2019 Pennsic Article

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BOOMBOOM......BOOM! (Cannon Fire)

CHARGE!

The thundering of four thousand feet beating the earth, the clang of jostling armor as the

two armies run at each other across an open field in Slippery Rock, Butler County, this isthe culmination of The Pennsic War.

Pennsic War:The Loser Gets Pittsburgh!

the one thousand aside field battle.

Image from,

http://www.bogpages.com/SCA-

photographs/Penns

ic-

Wars/Pennsic38Tuesday/9658788_h

UiMb#651875773

_fCzFF-A-LB
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Pennsic is the Holy Grail for the modern medievalist, yearly

drawing over ten thousand people from around the world to

Coopers Lake Campground in early August for shopping,

parties, classes, discussions, performances, competitions and marshal events. Some of theparticipants fly in from as far as Australia and Japan to take part in this event. The shear

size Pennsic makes it the third largest city in Butler County necessitating its own post

office. An event of this scale of is a boon to all the surrounding communities that are allneeded to help support the needs of this temporary city.

Pennsic:The Two Week Cit

ofmost of Pennsic War.

Image fromhttp://meisterin.katarina.

home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-

aerial.JPG
http://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPGhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPGhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPGhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPGhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPGhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPGhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/pennsic-aerial.JPG


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Pennsic is put on by The Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) for whose purpose it

shares with the event itself; for the research, education and celebration of all things

medieval. The following are the major categories and some of the sub-categories for

practical study in the SCA and at Pennsic:

Marshal Armored Combat

Fencing

Archery

Thrown Weapons

Arts and Sciences

Leatherwork

dancing and music canbe found all about the

site. Image from,

http://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_

pennsic.jpg
http://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_pennsic.jpghttp://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_pennsic.jpghttp://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_pennsic.jpghttp://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_pennsic.jpghttp://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_pennsic.jpghttp://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_pennsic.jpg


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Woodwork

Fabric Arts

Calligraphy

Illuminations

Singing

Dancing Music

Food

And anything else non-marshal that was done in the medieval period.

Yes, you read that right, he lost the war he declared upon himself,but before we get to that we got make sure we all got some general

SCAdian (pertaining to the SCA) background information. The

whole area in which there are SCA groups active is the Known

World. Each region of the SCA is a Kingdom with a King. The kingearns the right to by winning the Crown Tournament (six month

reigns).

The First

Pennsic:The King That

Declared War

Upon Himselfand Lost!

of the thrown

weapons range.

Image from,http://farm4.stati

c.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.jpg


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Okay, thats good enough for now. In 1970 Cariadoc (SCAdian name) King of the

Middle Kingdom declared war against the East Kingdom (proposed an inter-kingdomevent). The King of the East did not respond. In 1972 Cariadoc moves from the Middle to

the East Kingdom and wins the Crown, finds the declaration of war and accepts. The

Middle Kingdom defeats the East in the first ever Pennsic causing Cariadoc to be the first

King to declare war upon himself and lose.

Lords in single combat

as is done in CrownTourney. Image From,

http://www.claireturne

r.com/coppermine/alb

ums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_P

ennsic2009009.jpg
http://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpghttp://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.jpg


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Pennsic Wars in its early days were fought over The Barony of the Debatable Lands(Pittsburgh), the losergot it, but now Pittsburgh is part of the Kingdom of Aethelmearc

and they have to keep it, if they like it or not. The name Pennsic War is combination of

Pennsylvania and Punic Wars, a series of Roman wars fought between the Rome andCarthage. The first Pennsic War in 1972 had less than one hundred and fifty in

attendance. The location of Pennsic War moved about for the first six year until settling

at Coopers Lake Campground in 1977. In 1975 and 76 Pennsic was held in, God forbid,Ohio! No offence, but the Ohioic War doesnt have the same ring to it.

This is an image the RuneStone, erected in honor of

Pennsic X. Image from,

http://www.pennsicwar.org/images/runestone.jpg
http://www.pennsicwar.org/images/runestone.jpghttp://www.pennsicwar.org/images/runestone.jpghttp://www.pennsicwar.org/images/runestone.jpghttp://www.pennsicwar.org/images/runestone.jpg


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Though many modern alterations and modifications are allowed

for reasons of safety, comfort, practicality or necessity, the intent

and spirit is to relive the better qualities of the middle ages. Ofthese qualities the SCA puts emphasis of honor, chivalry and

courtesy. As long as Pennsic continues the medieval period will never end.

Pittsburgh the prize theloser of Pennsic had to rule,

now part of Aethelmearc.

Image from,

http://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_sk

yline_daytime.jpg

Pennsic:

Living in the Past

in Pennsylvania
http://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_skyline_daytime.jpghttp://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_skyline_daytime.jpghttp://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_skyline_daytime.jpghttp://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_skyline_daytime.jpghttp://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_skyline_daytime.jpghttp://www.nrcdxas.org/convention/08nrccon/Pittsburgh_skyline_daytime.jpg


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Bibliography: Works Cited

Bedgood, Al, The Known World Handbook: The Society for Creative Anachronism and

the Current Middle Ages, Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc, Milpitas, CA, 1992.

Cramer, Michael A., Medieval Fantasy as Performance: The Society for CreativeAnachronism and the Current Middle Ages, Scarecrow Press, Lanham, MD, 2010.

Forward into the Past: An Introductory Guide to the S.C.A., Society for CreativeAnachronism, Inc, Milpitas, CA, 1989.

Kitchen, E. F., Suburban Knights: A Return to the Middle Ages,

This is an image from aRoyal court of the

Kingdom of

Aethelmearc.

Image from,http://farm4.static.flickr.

com/3173/2930209745_

6fa9651918.jpg?v=0
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_6fa9651918.jpg?v=0http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_6fa9651918.jpg?v=0http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_6fa9651918.jpg?v=0http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_6fa9651918.jpg?v=0http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_6fa9651918.jpg?v=0http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_6fa9651918.jpg?v=0


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ODonnell and Domnaill, The Knight Next Door: Everyday People Living Middle AgesDreams, IUniverse, New York, 2004.

Pennsic.net

Pennsicwar.org

Reid, L., Talk the Talk: The Slang of 65 American Subcultures, Writers Digest Books,

Cincinnati, 2006.

Rodwell, Andrew Douglas,Anti-Modern Performance in the Society for CreativeAnachronism, National Library of Canada, Ottawa, 1998.

SCA.org

Smith, David, SCA is Getting Medieval on Campus, The Daily Collegian, University

Park, PA, March 28, 1997, page D5.

Winslow, Matt, The Pennsic War, DVD, Winslow Productions, Spruce Creek, 2005.

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