The Emprise of the Azure Rose
Hosted by the Company of the Azure
Rose
and the
Shire of Riversmor
Featured at
The Tournament of the Wolf Moon
January 5th – 7th 2007
Spirit of the
Live Oak,
|
Maréchaux de l'Emprise |
Baroness
Aurora Danielle Trevelyan of Renwick Baroness
Brenna Caitlin MacGrioghair of Renwick |
|
Reine aux Bras |
THL Sinmora Haukstrand |
|
Cheifs
Juge |
Duchess
Elspeth Trelawney MacNaughton of Lochawe Duchess
Brighid Caileen of the Moors |
Challenge
Let all princes, lords, barons, knights,
squires and gentles of Trimaris and all other kingdoms, who are not banished or
enemies of the King and Queen of Trimaris bear witness to our words:
WHEREAS those of
us bound together as the Company of the Azure Rose are resolved to better exalt
the Virtues of Prowess, Courage, Honesty, Largess, Loyalty, Faith, Courtesy,
and Franchise, to the betterment of our souls and to the benefit of all.
WHEREAS we wish
to reward and promote the above-mentioned virtues, and to display said virtues
in martial deeds of splendid prowess, valiant acts, grand presentation and seek
to acquire illustrious renown and fame thereby,
WHEREAS those who signify their
agreement to this missive crave to do honor to all that is grand, glorious,
noble, right, proper and good in the world, in fellowship with those of like
purpose,
WHEREAS we
proclaim that the Companions of this Company shall
endeavor to increase, advance and uphold the banner of chivalry as it was
practiced by our noble ancestors, and swearing to do the same, do we hereby
ordain these maintenances:
In our gallant Company, we shall
strive to do honor to our splendid ancestors, to maintain the equipage, raiment
and bearing of gentles-at-arms, to eschew the base vices of malice, anger,
vainglory, arrogance and pride, to display kindness and fond friendship and to
ever practice, promote and exalt the skillful and strong employment of arms in
both tournament and in war.
Also, that every Companion shall
revere such goodly arts and mysteries of days past, most especially those
relating to the martial use of horses, omitting neither their practice nor
their patronage.
To this end at 1:00 pm on the 6th
day of January in the year of Our Lord 2007 shall be held the Emprise of the
Azure Rose at the most noble Tournament of the Wolf Moon. The
company of the Azure Rose shall serve as host on this field but not as
Tenant. This field shall be open to all comers of the Knowne World who
shall hold this field of honor as one company equal in friendship and unmatched
in chivalry.
On this glorious day all Venants
shall come to this field to honor the Roses of the Knowne World and for the
entertainment of the esteemed Ladies that would share this day with them.
The format of the Emprise will be a
Noblesse Oblige prize tourney. All who
seek entry must provide a prize worthy of their station and something decadent
for the enjoyment of the Ladies of the Berfois.
Other prizes will be offered as well.
Each element (rings/quintain/spear) will be
run as a single elimination with the two highest scoring riders progressing to
the finals. An unusual element for this
year’s Emprise will be the method of breaking ties, should they occur. The Ladies of the Berfois, with the
assistance of Lady Fortune, will break the tie by rolling dice for each rider.
The Company of the Azure Rose
Dedication
This annual Emprise of
the Azure Rose is dedicated to our beloved Patronesses and Patrons who fight
dragons for us every day so that we may think they do not even exist.
Introduction
Noble equestrians, greetings from the Marshal of the Emprise of
the Azure Rose, Baroness Aurora Danielle Trevelyan. This Emprise is a
tournament based on King Rene’s Book of Tournaments or a Joust de Plaisance
(‘joust of peace”).
Our goal is to attempt
to recreate the pomp and pageantry of a grand tournament of the late 13th
and early 14th centuries with riders and their mounts in heraldic
livery.
Requirements for Participation
The Emprise of the Azure Rose will
be held in the style of the mounted portion of a Western European "Fete de
Armes" of the 13th through 14th centuries. All
Venants’ dress, be it human or horse, is expected to conform to the standards
of that time and place, within reason.
¨
Each Lance may
consist of one to four riders. There will be no maximum number of
attendants regardless of title or station. Presentations should be
created to impress the judges. Every Lance is required to have a Herald
and at least one Valet. The Herald will introduce each Venant of your lance and
will make all challenges and assist with your presentation. Your Lance
Herald will be required to provide a white baton to be used when striking
challenges. The Valet will hand you your weapons and see to you and your
horses to free up the ground attendants that will be busied in the
tiltyard.
¨
A horse.
Each rider must make provision for their own mount.
¨
Riders are
required to have full barding/trapper for their horse, of a heraldic nature.
The arms displayed may be the rider's personal arms, device or badge of their
Kingdom or home group, or those of a Tourney or other Company to which they
belong.
¨
Helms with crests
are required to be for presentation to the berfrois. A rider may wear the
crested helm for the tourney if they choose. Modern riding helmets will
be allowed if well disguised. Crests may be as tall or large as the
wearer wishes, but may be no less than six (6) inches in height. Crests do not
have to be made of period materials but should be made so as to conform to
period heraldic practice with regards to appearance.
¨ All entrants must make a
"tourney billet". On this billet should be the entrant's SCA
name, device and crest. You may also include a motto if you have one. The
purpose of the billet is to be placed beside your helm/crest during the display
of Crests, in order to help identify the rider. The billets will also be
displayed on the list tree where the heralds will strike challenges.
These billets should be no larger than 9”X12” and should have a short cord
attached for the purpose of hanging them on the list tree.
¨ Each rider should attempt to have a
banner with their device or badge to be carried by an attendant, in appropriate
heraldic livery, during his or her presentation to the judges.
Challenges and the Lyst
Three martial activities shall be used in the Emprise
of the Azure Rose:
¨
Quintain
¨
Ring tilting
¨
Spear throw
All martial activity equipment
(quintain, ring trees, and spear targets) will in be the tiltyard. Each entrant will need to provide their own
spears and lances though many are often willing to share this can not be taken
for granted.
Between the first and second rounds of the tourney, the judges will select two
riders for a “Tilt de Plaisance.” The judges shall choose the game.
These runs are for the pleasure of the judges only and will not count toward
the scoring of the Emprise.
Glorious Prizes Shall Be Awarded For
¨
Emprise Champion
Équestre
¨
Primus Equite
¨
La Meilleure
Présentation De Heraldic
The Emprise Champion Équestre and
winner of the Emprise shall be chosen by the judges based upon his or her
chivalry, presentation upon the field and martial prowess.
The title of Primus Equite will be
awarded to the rider displaying the highest score in feats of martial prowess.
The title La Meilleure Présentation
De Heraldic will be chosen by the judges and go to the rider displaying the
best heraldic presentation.
Outline for the
Emprise of the Azure Rose
Each participant must submit a
Letter of Venancy to the Marshal of the Emprise, Baroness
¨
Email to Rory07@aol.com
¨ Regular mail to Rory Williams,
Helm and Crest
Display
Each
Venant will take their helm, crest and tourney billet to the berfois at the
tiltyard for display by 9:00 am on the morning of January 6th, 2007.
Convention with the
Sovereign of Arms
Each
participant should make effort to report to the Sovereign at Arms at a meeting
to be scheduled the night before the Emprise to receive instruction regarding
the Emprise. If no Herald is available to you, you may present your
introduction script with your name, blazon of device, chosen crest, motto,
honors received and the lineage of the participant to be read by the Sovereign
at Arms (this is a last resort) and every effort should be made by each
participant to supply their own Herald as the Sovereign of Arms has many duties
this day.
Emprise Procession
There
will be a procession to the field beginning one half-hour prior to the
Emprise. This will include the Marshals of the Emprise, the Sovereign of
Arms, and all riders in order of precedence, with their mounts, banner bearers
and all attendants. Participants are asked to wear their helm and crest
for this procession.
Emprise Opening
Ceremonies
Judges
proceed to the center berfrois led by Duchess Elspeth Trelawney MacNaughton of
Lochawe and Duchess Brighid Caileen of the Moors as chief judges of the
Emprise, as well as any Royalty or Peers in attendance. The Gallery will be
open to all Ladies. Her Grace Duchess Elspeth will act as the speaker for
the Judges. Her Grace will instruct the King of Arms to formally open the
Emprise.
When all are assembled, the Sovereign
of Arms will read the Order of the Day:
¨
Now gather yourselves, noble lords and
ladies, and hear the rules of the day, to which you will bind yourselves for
the duration of this Emprise. According to the terms set forth this day
by our noble patronesses and judges, you will defend all challenges offered on
this field and bear yourself with nobility and grace. You will be awarded
three challenges to be offered to any that take this field in honor. The
challenges will be accepted in contest at the quintain, the ring tilt and the
spear throw. Noble gentles, having
heard these conditions, do you swear to uphold the rules and to do all in your
power to set aside the personal avarice of hollow victory and instead to
advance the noble spirit of Chivalry?
After
the order is read, each Venant shall be asked to affirm their understanding and
support of the Order in front of the assembled witnesses. The Venants
will then make ready for their individual introductions as there are no Tenants
of this field this year. All comers will be introduced by order of
precedence.
Venants
¨
The Venant will proceed before the judges mounted and accompanied by their
banner bearer and any attendants.
¨
The
Herald shall introduce their Venants.
¨
The judges, through the Sovereign of
Arms, will accept the Venants.
¨
Each Venant will
proceed to the far end of the tiltyard and wait while the others are
introduced.
At this time all riders shall retire to the recet and
await the call to challenge by the Sovereign of Arms.
Ladies Champion
Prior to the first challenge being offered, the judges, in consultation with
any other interested Ladies, will choose a participant to serve as their
Champion and who shall be known as La Championne De Dames.
Challenges
The Sovereign of Arms calls for the first riders to the field. Flourish and
panache is highly encouraged throughout the entire tournament. WE are
here to entertain the ladies. However…please leave Monty Python at home.
The order of go for the second and third rounds will be determined the highest rider’s
score from each preceding round. The Sovereign of Arms will inform
participants of the order.
Judge’s Challenges
The judges will issue their “Tilt de Plaisance” challenges between the first
and second rounds of the Emprise.
Closing ceremonies
After the scoring and consultation of the judges is completed, the Sovereign of
Arms will summon the Venants to the berfrois. The participants may come
mounted and accompanied by their banner bearer. The judges will make the
awards.
"FACTA NON
VERBA"