Members

This section of the web site is mainly for members and those thinking of joining us as members. It showcases things we have done, information gathered and MCS events over the years.

Between us all, we are a talented group of indivuals. from cooking, to medieval costume design, dancing to bow making, but one thing that links us together is a love of history. Here you can find all sorts of historical information. Some show our members in productions used to help educate, others link to research by our members to help understand the period we portray, and some MCS events just for fun. All are informative.

 

In 2008 members of the Medieval Combat Society filmed for a documentary on the Poor Knights of Christ.

This write-up explains a lot of the historical information about the Templar Knights from its founding to demise with details of who the Grand Masters were and a timeline of events.

'The Round table Tournament' at Windsor lead to the founding of the Order of the Garter. A number of our members have characters who are garter knights.

For example, founding members were Edward III. King of England and France, Lionel of Antwerp, Duke of Clarence, Sir William Montacute, Earl of Salisbury, Ralph de Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford and The Black Prince.

Others who were added later are Sir Thomas Montacute, 4th Earl of Salisbury, Sir William Stafford and Sir Thomas Banestre. To find out more about this order, click the link on the image.

According to Wikipedia, "Various legends account for the origin of the Order. The most popular involves the "Countess of Salisbury", whose garter is said to have slipped from her leg while she was dancing at a court ball at Calais.

When the surrounding courtiers snickered, the king picked it up and returned it to her, exclaiming, "Honi soit qui mal y pense!" ('Shame on him who thinks ill of it!'), which phrase has become the Order's motto. " A list of all garter members through the ages is linked to the image.

Short bows and Crossbows arrived in England with the Normans although they existed for centuries before that. The link explains the history of this formidable weapon. Join us at an event and you may see Lady Margaret Audley demonstrating its use.

It should be noted that bows existed before that time in Britain, the Welsh had that skill down pat. The powerful Welsh bow may have later been one influence that inspired the creation of the English longbow.

We have two kings in our membership, Edward III and David of Scotland. Do you know when they reigned? Ever wanted to know who wore the crown and when? We have all the answers! Click the link on the image.

Also, one of our members portrays a distant relative and it was he that negotiated with Pedro the Cruel for the red spinel, known as The Black Prince's Ruby, that now decorates the Imperial Crown worn by the current King at his coronation.

Effigies are snapshots of medieval people. One of our members has worked hard to acquire a collection of effigies that have been used by many as a valuable source of information. We can now bring this resource back to you. It is a WiP so don't forget to come back and check out progress. The link effigy is of William Marsall, 1st Earl of Pembroke, who some say was the greatest knight that ever lived.

Every year the society gets together and prepares a weekend of merriment and fun culminating with a medieval style banquet for the membership as a celebration of the year gone and a way of starting off the next season of events. Whether the location is a village hall or an authentic medieval castle, the main aim is fun.