[Artemisia] Rose and Butterfly 2018

[Mike Bradley]

Unto the Ladies of the Rose and Ladies of the Papillion of Artemisia,

and to the Ladies of the Rose and Ladies of the various orders for former
Princesses in whatever grand Kingdoms and Principalities this missive may
reach, (and, anyone wishing to forward this to other Kingdoms via various
means are welcome to do so)

and as well, to those that fight with rapier within Artemisia, and our
neighboring Kingdoms of the Outlands, An Tir, Caid, Atenveldt and anyone
else that wants to come visit the Noble and Glorious Sovereign Lands of
Artemisia

Does HE Conchobhar mac Michil, by the Grace of Their Gryphon Majesties,
Defender of the White Scarf, Baron of the Court, and Master of the Pelican
send heartfelt and warm Greetings and Salutations.

As the summer months of camping, crusading, and fighting as much as
possible draws near, so does the time for setting aside fighting for
personal glory and to raise arms in honorable combat for the glory of the
Queens, Princesses, Ladies of the Rose, Papillion, Stag, and Solar Leaf
(and all of the other Orders for Viscountesses) who have supported and
inspired the rapier community for all of these years.  It is, once again
time for the Rose and Butterfly Rapier Tournament, now in it's ... well ...
hard to calculate year! I held the first R&B Tourney in 2004, so this would
be the 15th year except it didn't run one year, and was run by someone else
under different rules two other years. So this is year 12 of me
running/sponsoring the tournament.

This year the Rose and Butterfly Tournament will be held at King's Road I:
The Barons' War, at 10 AM on Saturday the 21st of July.  There are a
variety of reasons as to why this event was chosen, but the primary one is
mundane, to-wit, the celebration trip for the girl-child's graduation ended
up conflicting with other possibilities.

Because it has been my great honor to run this tournament for many years,
and I plan on running it until I am no longer able, I'm going to quote from
the original annoucement on the reasons for this tournament:

"Conchobhar's (First Annual?) Rose and Butterfly Rapier Tournament

Rapier fighters in the SCA have traditionally fought for the honor of
the nobility of the fairer sex. The original Black Wing charter named
the Princess of Artemisia the patron; the current charter gives that
honor to the Queen. And, it is in this tradition of honoring the Queens
and Princesses that this tourney was concieved."

While I might phrase things slightly different these days, and the Black
Wing Company is long since retired, the sentiment remains the same.
Through the history of the Society, to the creation of the first White
Scarf of the Society, to the most recent elevation to the Order of Defense,
the rapier community, regardless of Kingdom, persona of the fighter, or
anything else, have fought for and gained inspiration from our Princesses
and Queens.  They inspire the community, and this tournament is, always has
been, and always will be for Us to go out, fight our best, and honor Them.

Now, on to the rules...

Those fighters wishing to enter must have a sponsor. Said sponsor must be a
member of the Order of the Rose (i.e., a Countess or Duchess), a Lady of
the Papillion[1] (Viscountess) or a currently seated Queen, Princess, or
Heir to one of those titles. Those Ladies eligible to sponsor fighters may
sponsor one fighter for each reign that they did serve; any variance from
that rule is at the whim of myself.  It should be noted that my whim always
includes reigning Queens and Princesses being able to sponsor as many
fighters as they wish, and to allow Crown Princesses and Tanistas (or
whatever Principalites call the Princess' Heir these days) to count their
upcoming reign when determining the number of fighters they can sponsor.
(For example, HG Renee could sponsor three fighters, twice Queen of
Artemisia and once Princess of Artemisia.) All fighters must have a letter
of marque from their Lady Sponsor, or be presented in person to the Marshal
of the Tournament (Don Conchobhar) on the day of the tournament before the
tournament starts.  My personal preference is for an e-mail from the
sponsor in advance, but hand-written and mailed or delivered by hand are
fine as well.  Even if you will have a hand-written letter (some of which
have been beautifully done and I love receiving) a quick email of intent
from the fighter or sponsor would be greatly appreciated (and by 'greatly
appreciated' I mean 'pretty pretty please?' as the more paperwork and
tourney prep I can get done before the tourney, the less time fighters are
waiting to cross blades while I get it all together).

The format for the Tournament will likely be, as it has in recent years, be
pooled fights, followed by a single elimination fight of the top fighters
from the pools.  Weapons are up to the fighter, unless the sponsor of the
fighter declares otherwise.  Meaning, fighters should bring their best, not
just match weapons with their opponents.

At this time, the list for the Whateverth Annual Rose and Butterfly
Tournament is now open.

In service to the Dream, the Crown of Artemisia, the Ladies of the Rose and
Papillion, and the Arte of Defense,
Don Conchobhar mac Michil, DWS Artemisia


[1] Or any one of the Orders for former Princesses.