2025

The Eolder’s Ramblings

Myles Stevens

Next year is Regia’s 40th birthday hence Regia XL. I’m keen for it to be the type of year where we look forwards and do new things. Yes, look at cool things we’ve created and done in the past, but we build on that to create new memories that make people who missed out seethe with jealousy. 

Should we camp near a river a short row from a convenient pub and spend our days rowing people back and forth?

Should we build a palisade bigger and better than our old one so that we can assault it with rams and ladders? 

Should we make Sherwood even better? Maybe as a crazy Norman tourney with teams from the cultures we represent battling, riding and shooting whilst the rest of Regia cheer from the sidelines?

Event Highlight: Kingston-Upon-Thames
Samuel Clarkbourne

To read more of Samuel’s Early medieval posts, please visit his blog page: Mīn Webblēaf

A summary of this year from our Officers

Military
Tom Robinson

After seven incredible years, I am not re-standing as MTO and the role now passes to Rob Howell. What a journey it’s been! Officerships can be more work than expected, but this role has truly been one of the most rewarding things I’ve done.

This year brought some real highlights. Wychurst at War was a standout success, thanks to its immersive, story-driven approach. Your feedback has been fantastic, and we plan to build on this format for future events—so watch this space! We also made progress toward introducing show fight testing into training and this is ready for Rob to implement in the new season.

I’ve always believed Regia’s battlefield culture is something special. The positivity, humour, and teamwork you bring—rain or shine—make every event a joy. Leading you onto the field as one society has been among my proudest moments. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who makes this hobby possible, especially the training team past and present. Their ideas and commitment have been the backbone of everything that’s gone well. I’m excited to see where you take the battlefield next—here’s to the future!

Living History
Helen Mallalieu

Another season has come to a close, and it’s been a busy one—back to pre-COVID levels of national shows! While I only managed to attend a few events personally, those I did were fantastic, and I want to thank my deputies for stepping up, especially at Wirral when car troubles meant they ran the LHE all weekend. The LHE continues to go from strength to strength, with a huge variety of displays across the season. Highlights included York’s return, Craigtoun’s brilliant multi-period show, and Sherwood—the largest event of the year with 190 members and 80 structures. At Sherwood, we trialled a new idea: a Saturday morning meeting with representatives from each wic to discuss authenticity and LHE. It worked well, and we plan to make this a regular feature, with each wic nominating a weekend contact.

Please keep safety front of mind at our events. This year fires were left unattended at Sherwood and an unguarded weapon was picked up by the public at Hastings. These incidents could have had severe consequences. Fires must never be left unattended or in the care of children, and both fires and weapons must always be behind a barrier.

Thank you all for making this season such a success—here’s to an even better year ahead!

Maritime
Greg Collier-Jones

Def. Wooden Boat: a timber lined hole in the water into which you pour time and money to no discernible effect.

That has somewhat echoed through the last year. I thought rather than précis my officers report I would give a more full description of what exactly went wrong with the Bear and how it was fixed. I will try to keep it understandable.

On the first of our winter maintenance weekends some bolt holes, we believe from the original construction, joining two parts of the keel (backbone) were found to be retaining water and some softness was discovered. Great, we will cut it back, stick some rot hardener on it, fill it and cap it. That is a job for the next work weekend.

The next work weekend rolls around and it’s filled up with water again. So everything gets dried out, again. I think this is where we bought cat litter to soak it up over night. The next day more digging with a chisel reveals around 40cm of rotten wood. We are fortunate in the way the boat is constructed. While the keel should be one bit of oak in a T-section, it is actually in two parts; a l with a – bolted to the top. And the rot has only affected the –. This is still a vital structural part but it is not in the true keel. Now with something like this we cannot just cut it square and be done with. Any repair needs to be long scarfed in (a diagonal join at about 20 degrees off the horizontal). This means the removal of healthy wood up to 1.5m to give us material to bolt onto. It is also in the bottom of the boat, crossed with structural supports, and can only be done with hand tools. This work took a full weekend of Tom Gibson’s time working with chisels to cut back the needed material.

After an intermittent period of purchasing wood and fasteners (bolts for you and I, but fasteners, if you sell them, thanks Joe Bhart) we return for weekend 4, or is it 5? Between myself, Tom and Joe we cut and shape the new keel hog. Thanks to Patrick O’Connell for the loan of his workshop and planer thicknessers. By the end of Saturday we have done a test fit. These things cannot be rushed, so Tom keeps telling me. It is then just a case of fitting all the bolts, sorry fasteners, and she is ready for the Wirral Viking festival …err… the next weekend.

Why have I told you this long and rather dull story about bits of wood A1 grade fasteners? Not sure, I just thought you might want to know what has gone on this year… mostly this.  

Missiles
Tony Peel

It’s been another busy year for the missile team, with arrows and javelins flying across almost every national battlefield. Javelin sessions remain popular—especially since moving them to the end of the day. Archery ranges have been well attended, and intensive sessions are proving popular even for those not planning to do combat archery.

Combat archery has grown noticeably, archers are making a real impact on the battlefield, supporting pushes and countering threats. Crossbows are also appearing—five members own them, and two have used them in combat—but they remain less versatile than bows and may face legal complications.

Missile regulations were updated this year to include crossbows, which five members now own with two having used them in combat. We also have a new javelin ruling which prohibits combining javelins with two-handed spears for safety. Arrow attrition has dropped despite heavier use, though Wychurst at War gate fights still take their toll!

Equestrian
Claire Collier-Jones

This year brought two fantastic equestrian events and plenty of memorable moments. Whilst we were not able to put on our own equestrian show at Kingston due to horse hire and rider diary clashes, we hired in Alan and Rosie from The Troop, who wowed crowds with parades, skill-at-arms displays, and even a cavalry-infantry session—great for both horses and warriors. Watching them in action was inspiring, and I’ve picked up plenty of ideas for the future!

Sherwood was another highlight, with six horses and riders creating a stunning spectacle. Our new rider, Robyn, impressed us in the skill-at-arms displays, and the battlefield gave us one of my favourite moments—a cheeky exchange between Stuart (riding Ben the horse) and Ben (the warrior) who offered his apple to the horse mid negotiations! I’m exploring wireless microphones so audiences can enjoy these gems too. We also trialled a cavalry-infantry scenario, which proved so popular we’ll plan for bigger numbers next time.

Easter’s training weekend at Welsh Horse HQ saw riders sharpening their skills and shaking up the leaderboard in a friendly competition. Looking ahead, we’re planning more training weekends—including a potential one in the northeast—and hoping for another Sherwood event. Some of our riders returned to Hastings this year, joining Nigel Amos’ Conroi, a testament to their hard work and high standards of kit and horsemanship. Here’s to more equestrian adventures in the year ahead!

Ecclesiastical
Wilfrid Somogyi

This year has been a busy one for the ecclesiastical team! We began with an overdue update to the ecclesiastical regulations—already circulated to members—which serves as a stop-gap while work continues on a full supplement to the authenticity guide. In the meantime, GLs with members considering monastic or other ecclesiastical portrayals should pay close attention to the new rulings on hoods and belts and seek advice from the team.

Event highlights included the wedding of Malcolm III and Margaret at History in the Park, followed by the coronation of Æthelstan at Kingston upon Thames—complete with three bishops! Huge thanks to Andy for lending his crown and John for supplying the sceptre. At Detling, the team pulled together at short notice to deliver an oath-swearing ceremony and funeral, and at Wychurst at War we added drama with one dead monk and a treacherous abbot. Our new ecclesiastical tent has been a hit at national events, earning great feedback from members and the public alike.

MaA
Simon Kent

As the 2025 show season wraps up, it’s time to reflect on another successful year. First, a huge thank you to the hardworking MaA team and all those who stepped in to help—Regia thrives because of your time and energy.

On the battlefield, things have run smoothly, with only the usual late-season challenges like tired shields and Sunday rust creeping in. Please keep up regular maintenance to avoid last-minute fixes! This year saw a slight change to the muster process: combatants must now pass the AO team before MaA checks. It’s working well overall, but remember both steps are essential for safety. We’ve also nailed the “use the designated gate” rule—great job everyone! One small gripe: disposable cups have been withdrawn after repeated litter issues, so please bring your own drinking vessel to future shows.

In terms of regulations, the big news is the introduction of 6mm shields following a successful trial—check the appendix before making one. Media protocols have also tightened, so photographers should review the updated guidelines to avoid any awkward moments.

Thanks for making 2025 another fantastic year. You are now all in the safe hands of Ian Morgan who takes over the role for the season ahead. If you have ideas for improvement, he would love to hear them.

Wychurst
Wychurst Project Council

Wychurst has been buzzing with activity this year as we continue to strengthen and expand our beloved burgh. After a brief summer pause for the reenactment season, work resumed in earnest, and the results are impressive. The new gate tower is well underway—the main structure stands proud, and we’re now preparing the base and roof to complete it by year’s end. Alongside this, a new access bridge near the cookhouse has transformed the site, making it easier to navigate and adding a brilliant spot for training and skirmishes. It’s practical and fun—a win-win!

As winter draws in, our focus shifts to giving the hall some much-needed care. Fresh paint, repairs to frost-damaged lime panels, and roof maintenance are all on the agenda, with scaffolding in place to make the job safe and efficient. Huge thanks go to our maintenance crew, whose hard work has freed us to tackle these bigger projects and dream even bigger for the future (yes, there’s talk of a church!).

Beyond the building, our events have been just as lively. 12th Night was a feast to remember—thanks to Darren and his team for the incredible food and to Wilfrid for top-notch entertainment. The Regia Festival may have been smaller this year, but it was wonderfully relaxed and gave us time to dive into living history. We even managed to daub a cottage wall—messy, smelly, and utterly satisfying! Plus, the bread oven from last year’s project is now baking beautifully. With filming ventures and LARP groups joining us, the site has never felt more alive.

Finally, a nod to Wilfrid, our Wattle & Daub Coordinator, and the exciting coppicing project now underway. Hazel trees are being managed, and thanks to the Woodland Trust, new saplings will soon line the northern border, setting us up for sustainable building for years to come. To everyone who lent a hand this year—whether for a few hours or many—you’ve helped keep Wychurst thriving. Here’s to another year of building, feasting, and making history together!

In Your Local Area

Parchment-making and Book Arts in Furðer Strandi
John Cash

I’ve been involved in book arts for about fifty years. I began by learning calligraphy, but I became more and more interested in making my own paints and materials. Fifteen years ago I learned to make parchment, and soon I was off down the road of making books. After several years interpreting at living history museums, I earned a degree in library science and worked directly with books and records. When I was accepted into Furðer Strandi three years ago, representing a monk who made books seemed an obvious interpretive choice: seeking to interest the eorl in purchasing parchment and books from the monastery.

Of course, monks did not necessarily do all the work in the process of making a book, but certainly the monasteries and cathedrals were book-making centres. And it is important to show visitors a process. A black-robed monk bent over a two-meter-tall parchment frame strung tight with an animal skin, scraping it with a large curved knife – all appropriately researched – presents a process as well as an arresting picture.

Parchment is made from animal hide. The hides typically used were goat hides (in Mediterranean Europe), cow and calf hides (in northern Europe), and sheep hides. The type of animal reflects the animal husbandry of a given region. The skin is processed with an alkaline substance, usually added to water in which the dressed skin was soaked. The hair is removed during the process. After two weeks the skin is removed and washed thoroughly and is strung up on a frame or herse. Again, goat hides were strung on circular hoop-frames in southern Europe, while cow and calf skins were strung on larger square frames in the North. A lunellum – a knife with a half-moon blade – is used to scrape the skin’s surface (mine is a period reproduction). The cords tying the skin to the frame are tightened often. The combination of scraping and tightening breaks the binds between the protein fibers of the skin and leaves it thin and white.

A practical demonstration at an event can show only the final activities of scraping the hide. Even so, a scribe of the period had to finish the parchment further using pumice stones. So a hide on the herse allows the visitors to compare unfinished parchment with the finished material used in books.

If you have a books to show. Furðer Strandi often attends timeline events. In our camp we each have a spot and a thing to interpret – what a museum might call an interpretive station. After my first timeline event I realised two things. First, I had a compelling presentation about a medieval craft that led to early books, but I had nothing accurate to the time to show as the end-product. Second, our interpretations seemed, to me, to be disconnected from each other. So I asked myself, first, what sort of book might I make? and second, how could we connect our different interpretive stations?

The easy answer was to the let the book do the connecting.

Such a book shouldn’t be just blank pages. It should have content, a text that could be read to visitors and would engage them. I chose riddles for the text for three reasons. First, they’re often short and easy to write by hand, and easy to fit in a book format – and there is an example from Regia’s period: the Exeter Book. Second, they would engage visitors in games of guessing. Third, and most significantly, some of the riddles in the Exeter Book could be applied to objects around our camp, like eggs or shields. Once the riddle-game was over, a second game of hide-and-seek for the object could follow, and lead the visitors to a different interpreter.

Our Riddle Book reproduces about two dozen riddles in Old English and in Latin. Margins and text block conform to period layout practice. For practical reasons, the text in the original language is on one page and a translation is on the facing page. The scribal hand is based on the Anglo-Saxon of the Exeter Book, but has some alterations for legibility’s sake. The riddles in Old English are taken from the Exeter Book, and those in Latin are from manuscripts of our period by such authors as Eusebius, Symphosius, and Aldhelm.

During our period, book binding was undergoing a transition from the traditional Coptic binding method to the new Carolingian method. Briefly, Coptic binding used the same thread that bound the pages into a group to bind each group to the one below it in a chain-stitch; while the Carolingian method bound them by tying that thread to a set of heavier cords positioned along the book’s spine. Our Riddle Book has a leather cover over its hand-cut oak boards, but enough elements of the Carolingian binding can be seen inside, on the backs of the covers, that I can compare it with Coptic binding in another book, which is in preparation (and which, in keeping with many Coptic-bound books, will not have a leather cover for its boards).

The idea is to lead the visitors to an understanding that all books in our period were not just handiwork but work. They were made bit by bit, in slow, labor-intensive processes. Before the electronic age, all knowledge and spiritual wisdom rested on people doing this work. And monks were at the forefront.

I have interpreted parchment-making once each year at the time-line event in which Furðer Strandi takes part. Each year I try to return with a better kit and reproductions of more proper tools (such as those found at Portmahomack) with which to focus on parchment-making. I have learned that, while I must let the interpretation go where the visitors will, use of the Riddle Book can eclipse the parchment-making, even though riddles don’t seem to be popular with visitors here in the States (though guessing games are). Nor do I see the higher interaction between interpretive “stations” as a result.

But the eorl has asked me for a book in which he can show his lineage and worldly assets to visitors. So there’s a box checked.

Resources:
Carver, Martin, and Cecily Spall. “Excavating a parchmenerie : archaeological correlates of making parchment at the Pictish monastery at Portmahomack, Easter Ross.” Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 134 (2004), 183-200.
Exeter Dean and Chapter Manuscript 3501 (The Exeter Book)
Members Handbook. Church. Regia Anglorum, 2007 (updated 2025). Reed, Ronald. The Nature and Making of Parchment. Leeds: Elmete Press, 1975.
Szirmai, J. A. The Archaeology of Medieval Bookbinding. London, New York: Routledge, 1999.

Wessex Local Show – WARAG, 2025
Ian Morgan

Wessex had fun in May this year attending ‘WARAG’, which is a largely WW2 show that has been successful in the West Country for several years and is now looking to expand from it’s khaki origins and add a few flashes of colour from other periods. Camped opposite from US Cavalry from the Plains Wars & next to some holes we suspected might shelter the Viet Cong we enjoyed a very positive reaction from the public, who seemed pleased to see something completely different at their show! We also had a great ringside seat for the afternoon battle reenactment and weapons demonstrations – and who doesn’t love to see a Sherman tank in action?

In 2026 Wessex are keen to bring more members and invite people from our neighbouring groups so that we can put on a more impressive LHE & expand our combat demonstrations. The show is on the 23rd-24th May. If you’re interested, get in touch with us.

“How did you make them?”
I (Adam) was keen to recreate these as authentically as I could, so I literally carved these just with a carving knife and chisel, with one modern cheat – a modified drill bit for the ring-and-dot decoration on the Tabula board. I’d not carved anything before, so the first couple of boards (Hare & Hound and Nine Men’s Morris) are simplistic without much, if any decoration. As I taught myself different techniques I felt more confident to tackle some simple decoration (Hnefatafl board) in the form of a Celtic knot border and some period-accurate runes/symbols – there’s the underside writing which reads ‘Adam made this for his beautiful daughter Jessica’ in Younger Futhark, the rune Tiwaz to denote an attacking square, a Saxon cross find I’ve used to denote a defender square and finally the reverse of a Saxon coin to denote the King square. Finally, I was arrogant/confident enough to take on the Gloucester Tabula board, well, be inspired by it to create my own version with my own researched imagery. You’ll note my group’s logo – the Saltwic Parrot on the one side, a dog from the Bayeux Tapestry that bears closest resemblance to my dog Luna, some decoration from a Saxon church font in the centre and standard vine and Celtic knot again though using three stands in lieu of two. All the boards were then treated with Linseed oil to preserve them. The gaming pieces were and are a work in progress. The Hare & Hounds/Nine Men’s Morris pieces are clay, though were bought. They will sub in until I make