Local Shire Information

(Updated July 16, 2007)

Marshal Activities

Fighter Practice

Local Fighter Practice: Our local fighter practice is held on most Sundays at 1:00 at Sycamore Shoals. Fighter practice is in garb.

• Our scheduled fighter practices can vary from month to month. It depends upon the travel schedules of our Marshal and the Knights. Please check the list-serve regularly for updates. The calendar is updated as frequently as possible; however, the most current updates can be found on the Shire's list-serve.
• If no one has arrived by 1:30, the Marshal will leave. If you would like to fight or visit, please arrive before that time.During the fall and winter, fighter practice is dependent upon the weather.
• If the temperature is 40 degrees or less, fighter practice is cancelled.

Directions to Fighter Practice / Business Meeting

From Johnson city or Kingsport: Take Hwy 26 ( 181 ) to the Elizabethton exit and then right to Elizabethton. The park will be on your left after traveling about 8 miles. If you get to a Winn Dixie on your right you just missed the park.

From Bristol: Take the Volunteer Parkway to Hwy 19 to Elizabethton. Take the right exit lane onto Broad street (At the Food City) and follow broad st/ Bemberg st all the way to the Park which is about 1 mile past Walmart on your right.

For all: There are 2 entrances to the Park's parking lot but these are only 100 yds apart. After entering the parking lot go to the eastern most part and look for the access drive to the lower parking lot by the picnic tables. These are visible from the parking area beside the visitor's center. Park in the lower lot by the swimming pool. Please stay on the paved area.

 

Target Archery

Any time that the Shire of Nant-Y-Derwyddon has two or more competitors assembled with the appropriatly warranted marshal ( Live weapon or combat archery) present, scores for IKAC, IKCAC, or TWIC may be recorded for submission score.

All royal rounds in archery should be reported to THL Ronan MacMorton through the Kingdom of Meridies archer rank submission link.

Business Meetings

Monthly Business Meetings: Our business meetings are currently scheduled for the first fighter practice of every month. Because of events and real life considerations, this does not always mean the first Sunday of the month. Please check the list-serve regularly for updates. The calendar is updated as frequently as possible; however, the most current updates can be found on the Shire's list-serve.

Directions to Fighter Practice / Business Meeting

From Johnson city or Kingsport: Take Hwy 26 ( 181 ) to the Elizabethton exit and then right to Elizabethton. The park will be on your left after traveling about 8 miles. If you get to a Winn Dixie on your right you just missed the park.

From Bristol: Take the Volunteer Parkway to Hwy 19 to Elizabethton. Take the right exit lane onto Broad street (At the Food City) and follow broad st/ Bemberg st all the way to the Park which is about 1 mile past Walmart on your right.

For all: There are 2 entrances to the Park's parking lot but these are only 100 yds apart. After entering the parking lot go to the eastern most part and look for the access drive to the lower parking lot by the picnic tables. These are visible from the parking area beside the visitor's center. Park in the lower lot by the swimming pool. Please stay on the paved area.

Demonstrations

We often perform public demonstrations to teach others about the middle ages, both current and past. If you are intersted in having us host a demonstration, please contact the Seneschal.

FunFest Demonstration

We participate every year in the Kingsport FunFest actitvities. Our demonstration is traditionally held during the first weekend of festivities. Please be certain to check the calendar carefully because it can change. We are located between the pool and the fire station.

• All Shire Volunteers: Because this is a very public demo, try to bring out your best garb and armor. We all love chitons and tunics for summer wear; however, that is not what the populace thinks of when they think of a medieval tournament. Try to wear something more in keeping with the 'medieval image' that won't cause heat exhaustion. Remember that all Shire gentles are on public display, even when you may not be on the field or manning the display tables.

• Fun Fest Fighting: Depending on the weather and the number of available fighters, we normally hold two tourneys and may have some group melee if time and energy permit. During the Tourney, each of the male fighters picks a young girl from the crowd to inspire him on the field that day. Most of the fighters bring a small momento to give to the little girl for whom they fight. Popular examples have been flowers (cloth and real) adorned with ribbons, simple bead necklaces, small bags of jelly beans (or another candy likely to survive the heat), or other cute little items. The fighter who wins the tournament will bring the girl who inspired him onto the fighting field to crown her with a flowered headwreath as the Princess of the Tournament.

Fighters, try to wear your best looking armor and rig. The public will be watching you closely and we want to give them a good show. A tabard or tunic can cover ugly armor very nicely. The crowd loves fancy salutes and a good death scene. If you are not theatrical, do remember to fall to the ground when acknowledging a death blow. If fighters decide to enliven their battle with theatrics, remember that we are a family-oriented group and that there will be children present.

• Fun Fest Display Tables: In order to show the crowd as much variety as possible, we try to include a display that includes interesting items. Many of the Shire's artisans often bring examples of their handiwork. For example, helmets, weaving, calligraphy, embroidery, and lampworking have been popular additions. We also try to include a helmet or two, a gauntlet, and sometimes some combat archery gear. Please don't bring anything that requires close supervision. Live steel will not be placed on the display table. Please don't bring anything that could accidentally be damaged by the crowd. People like to touch as well as look. We also include a flyer with descriptions and contact information. Recently, we've added a selection of pictures from wars and other events in picture frames. Those have generated a lot of questions and interest from all.

• Fun Fest Crowd Pleasers: We try to give tokens to the crowd, for the past several years, we've given all the children little flags to wave. The flags have been very popular with the youngsters. In 2007, one of the shire members photographed the fighters as they crowned the little girls and made arrangements to email those pictures to the parents. If you have a good idea for a crowd pleaser, bring it up on the list serve or at a business meeting.

Nant-Y-Derwyddon List Serve

List-Serve for the Shire of Nant-Y-Derwyddon: The Shire maintains a list-serve at YahooGroups! If you are interested in joining the service, simply follow the link (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nant-y-derwyddon/). It may take a day or two for the complete appication process. In order to prevent spammers for joining the list, the final application approval rests with a live person, the Web Minister. When you are completing the application to join the list serve, please leave a brief message about your interests. The list serve is for informational purposes only. Advertisements are sales are discouraged.

Annual Events

The Shire of Nant-Y-Derwyddon currently hosts one event a year. Our next event will be held in 2008. The theme and format of our events can vary from event to event. If you would like more information about the kinds of events we have held, please visit the links below.

Flyers from Past Events

We also hold annual Shire Championships. It is an opportunity to dress up, to fight, and to socialize. We hold a tournament to select the Shire Warlord. We also hold a vote to recognize individuals who have distinguished themselves in the shire.

Nearby Groups

Barony of Thor's Mountain: Because we are in the corner of Meridies, we have only one group that is really close to us. That group is the Barony of Thor's Mountain. They traditionally hold: May Tourney and Silver Hammer at Big Ridge State Park in Maynardville, Tennessee. While Thor's Mountain hosts other events, these two are only two hours away and are relatively close to the Tri-Cities.

Directons to Thor's Mountain Fighter Practice: Thor's Mountain Fighter Practice is located at the Tyson Park . If you would like a map of this location, please follow this link.

Directions: To get to the southern entrance of the park, go west on Cumberland Avenue past University of Tennessee's campus; after going under the overpass the park entrance will be on the right.

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