[Sca-cooks] Fw: [Northshield]: The Road to Byzantium: A Chronicle of a Journey

[Mike Newton]

This is an account by the Heir to the Principality of Northshield.

thorbjorn
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sue Gilbert" <sggilber at facstaff.wisc.edu>
To: <northshield at minstrel.com>
Sent: Sunday, April 14, 2002 3:57 PM
Subject: [Northshield]: The Road to Byzantium: A Chronicle of a Journey


> In our current Knowne World, the road led us to the Barony of the
> Cleftlands, while a fair distance from the Northern Province of
> Northshield, was a trip well worth the taking. The opulence of the Court,
> all aglitter with the wealth and talent of the Midrealm, was the ideal
> setting for the crowning of our new Caeser, Valharic Caligula Aurelius,
and
> His fair and talented Consort, Alys Katherine. I do suspect that TE Raito,
> Adrien or Giles, or the few other Northshielders that I recognized there,
> might have a different tale to tell of the happenings of the day but that
> tale will be for their own telling. I can assure you, it was a memorable
> day for all.
> Remember, Gentle Reader, that I now view things from a different
> perspective than many see. The hustle and bustle of all of the mechanics
of
> what it takes to get the Royalty from Point A to Point B; make sure that
> everyone is in their places and knows their lines (please, pity the poor
> Herald who calls the King "Your Highness" more than once, or the King's
> Inspiration, "Queen by Right of Arms"); and make sure that all of the
> scrolls (or even the 20 pound stones) are ready and accounted for. (Even
> the scroll that had to be done over at the last minute after the scribe
had
> an unfortunate accident with a bottle of ink the night before.) All of
this
> to set the stages for the last Court of Ragnvaldr & Arabella, the
> Coronation of Valhalric & Alys, and the first Court of Valhalric & Alys.
> (The stones were the telling of the story of the reign of Ragnvaldr &
> Arabella upon the recognition of their Ducal station in the afternoon
Court.)
> Oh, the day was not just Courts, although we know that is the primary
> focus of a Coronation Day. The 750 Gentles on site that Glorius day had
the
> opportunity to visit with our new Monarchs as They sat in State. The long
> line went on for well over 2 ½ hours giving any who wished time to have a
> moment of TRM's time and to make gifts to commemorate the day. (Most
> notable of the gifts that I saw was the pearl and jewel-laden garments
that
> TRM wore for Their First Court and Feast.) Diversion could be found in the
> merchants' halls, on the lists (three for armoured combat that included
the
> Youth Tournament, a Chivalry-only Tournament, and a Bear Pit where TE
Raito
> & Adrien joined many others including three of Viscount Syr Siegfried's
> squires; and one for Rapier that was held in the upper level of the Great
> Building); a Mah-Jong Tournament; classes for learning dance or aspects of
> Byzantine culture; or a myriad of activities in the Youth Hall where
> projects became gifts that were presented to Their newly Crowned Majesties
> at Feast that night. Quite notable is that Northshield's own, Lord Tarien
> Dane, earned the only accolade rewarded for the Rapier Games as "Miss
> Congeniality" as it was announced at Feast.
> And the Feast. Ah, the Feast! How does one describe a repast that delights
> both the eye and the palate of about 20 dishes? Our new Queen, if you did
> not know, is not just a Patroness of all manner of divers Arts but a
> Connoisseur and Guiding Light for the Culinary Arts. Master Patrick
> McPhelan and his army of cooks and servers (led in distinction by the
newly
> made Duke Ragnvaldr & Duchess Arabella as well as the local Jarl Finn &
> Countess Tamara) came forth from the kitchen in what seemed to be an
> endless seas of victuals that included dyshes of chicken, lamb, pork,
> duckling, greens, pickled vegetables, a tart of spinach & cheese, and
> sweets are were just indescribable.
> Oh, my dear readers, there was entertainment and presentations worthy of
> the greatest of the Courts of the period or of our Current Middle Ages.
Few
> eyes were dry in the Feast Hall after Andrew McBain the Purple (known as
> Purple) finished the song he wrote for his lady & son of his time as King
> Ragnvaldr's Rapier Champion. Kerchiefs were out again later when an
Eastern
> Bard, Dinx I believe he said his name was, performed a piece that he wrote
> for HRM Valharic upon the occasion of HRM's knighting about "The Heart of
a
> Warrior". Between were performances by both European & Middle Eastern
> Dancers, the latter of which included a solo with a full chandelier of lit
> candles worn upon the dancer's head, as well as an seemingly endless
> procession of presentations for our newly crowned Monarchs.
> And speaking of presentations, there were four during Court that need to
> be mentioned before I end this Chronicle. The same Purple mentioned above,
> with the hard work of his lady and household, presented the Kingdom with
> banners representing each of the Midrealm awards. The Shire of Mugmort
gave
> a gift of 64 scroll boards (cloth-covered carriers that protect the
> wonderful scribal art of the Midrealm's scribes). A number of these were
> entrusted unto HE Raito-sama and myself to bring back for Northshield's
> use. A gentleman, whose name I'm afraid I missed, presented TRM with four
> weather-proof banners for Themselves and Their Heirs. And the last
> presentation that must be noted was that by the Khaghan of the Great
> Household of the Dark Horde, Chimbai, and His brothers, of gifts that can
> be used by TRM in baskets; clothes to line such baskets as well as some
> baskets, too; 65 scroll blanks created by Anda from all over the Knowne
> World; and a great many (fourteen, I believe) yards of purple velvet from
> the Brothers that roam in the lands of Ansteorra.
> The true joy of such an event such as we witnessed this past weekend is to
> see the riches and the talents and the generous spirit of not only
Citizens
> of the Middle Kingdom but of that of all of our friends in the Knowne
> World. Representatives of Ealdormere, Aethelmarc, and the East were also
in
> attendance to enjoy this Day.
>
> Vivant Valharic Caeser & Queen Alys! Long and well may You Reign!!!
>
> I remain, in service to the Society, Northshield, Jararvellir, and
> the Midrealm, and most of all, to the populace that are the reason
> that we are here~~
>
> Elashava bas Riva, OL
> Lady Heir of Northshield
> Baroness of the Court of Edmund III and Kateryn III
>
> (mka Sue Gilbert)  3314 Ridgeway Ave.  Madison, WI  53704
>
> phone: 608-244-2845
> fax:  608-244-8220
>
> "Freedom is found through the courage to seek your true happiness"
> ~~found somewhere on the internet. I wish I knew who said it~~


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