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Loser Get Pittsburgh

The Village of Slippery Rock, Butler County is normally a quiet little college town innorth, western Pennsylvania, but for each year in early August when Coopers LakeCampground erupts in a riot of colors, sounds and activities. Pennsic War has come to

Slippery Rock.

Pennsic is the first and largest inter-kingdom event (or War) in the Society for CreativeAnachronism (SCA), drawing over 10,000 people a year. The SCA is an internationalclub for the study, education and celebration of all things medieval (with a focus onEurope). As well as forgotten knowledge and skills of the medieval world the SCA

promotes the practice of the knightly virtues of chivalry, honor, honesty, and courtesy, allthe areas of most importance to the modern medievalist. Pennsic is the Holy Grail forthe modern medievalist. At Pennsic the modern medievalist can take classes on nearlyany medieval topic at Pennsic University, go to medieval; parties, concerts, plays orshops, and watch (or take part in) tournaments and melees battles. There is something foreveryone.

This is an aerial picturefrom 2002 ofmost ofPennsic War. Imagefromhttp://meisterin.katarina.home.comcast.net/~meisterin.katarina/ ennsic-

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

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It is completely up to the individual to determine what they want to take part in and towhat level of involvement. But, everyone must wear medieval clothing on site or areasonable attempt at it. Modern items are everywhere. Nylon and period canvas can beseen standing one next to the other adding the colorful visual of the site, people in perfectElizabethan regalia smoking a cigarette, talking on a cell phone and drinking an iced latteand million things that reinforce the fact that it is anachronism not reenactment. Thedifference is that reenactment is as close as possible to how it really was; anachronism isjust taking the best parts out of the past to the present. Pennsic is like the worlds largestrenaissance fair where everyone is a participant who lives on site in a tent and only doesthe medieval things they want to do.

How did the SCA start its first war? A king declares war on himself and subsequentlyloses. The international SCA is broken up into regions called kingdom each with a king.Kings are determine by single combat (or tournament) every six months. Back in 1970Cariadoc King of the Middle Kingdom declares war (proposes an inter-kingdom event)with the East Kingdom. In 1972 Cariadoc moves into the East Kingdom, wins CrownTourney and accepts his own declaration of war. The end of September 1972 the firstPennsic is held with less than 150 in attendance near Waterford Pennsylvania. The

Middle-Easterndancing and music canbe found all about the

site. Image from,http://www.majidaanwar.com/links_files/mz_

This is an imageof the thrownweapons range.Image from1994,http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950 e

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://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.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3839787950_ef5e3064cb_o.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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Middle Kingdoms army defeats the East Kingdoms army meaning Cariadoc was thefirst king in history to declare war on himself and lose.

Pennsic has grown from a large event that happened to be run by two kingdoms to thethird largest city in Butler County. The size of the population and the level of out-goingmail from the site necessitated the establishment it own post office for the little timePennsic City exists. Pennsic brings together over 200 medieval merchants, around2,000 armored fights, hundreds of fencers, projectile weapons enthusiasts and thousandsparties and student of the medieval period. Nowhere else on earth can a person roll out oftheir tent go to a class on wire-weaving, put on armor, fight along side 2,00 people, dierepeatedly, and still be able to shop, take more classes and finally party the night away.

Most people that attend Pennsic are from the Midwest and East Coast of the United Stateand Eastern Canada but many come in from much further west like California. TheSCAdians whom live in Europe and eastward Pennsic is their nearest war. There are afew who fly in from as far as Australia and Japan for this event. People have quit job andbecame temporary homeless so as to be able to go to Pennsic. The average attendee spendmore time effort and money for this event than all that years holidays put together. Theaverage attendee will spend over $1,000 at Pennsic has grown into the single largestmedieval gathering in the world.

This is a picture of twoLords in single combatas is done in CrownTourney. Image From2009,http://www.claireturner.com/coppermine/albums/Pennsic38%20%5B2009%5D/normal_Pennsic2009009.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.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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Keeping a war going is great for business. Nearly all the businesses surrounding CoopersLake Campground gear-up weeks ahead of time for Pennsic. They need to make surethey have all the last minute, forgotten or items that just did fit in to the pack vehicle oranything the attendees may need. These items are wide ranging in purpose and expense.An attendee may need hardware, clothes, food, party supplies and camping equipment orone of a thousand over things. Yearly the local supplies of firewood, alcohol (especiallymead) and camping equipment is decimated in a 20 mile radius of Pennsic. Pennsicboosts sales in Butler County second only to the days leading up to Christmas.

Pennsic, the greatest event you never heard of. The modern medievalist has all of theirinterests catered to at Pennsic. As long as Pennsic continues the medieval period willnever end.

This is an image from aRoyal court of theKingdom ofAethelmearc.Image from,http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2930209745_

6fa9651918.jpg?v=0

This is an imagethe one thousand a

side field battle.Image from,http://www.bogpages.com/SCA-photographs/Pennsic-Wars/Pennsic38Tuesday/9658788_hUiMb#651875773

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Bibliography: Works Cited

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

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

Pennsic.net

This is an image the RuneStone, erected in honor ofPennsic 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.jpghttp://www.pennsicwar.org/images/runestone.jpg

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

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