Hawkyns

Depends on what period you're doing. I do mostly Elizabethan/Jacobean, so I wear either baggy slops or baggy venetians, as were worn at the turn of the 16th/17th century. When I move up to Golden Age, the slops don't change so much, but the breeches do. They get tight in the leg but very baggy in the seat. If they look like you're carrying a load, then you're on the right track. All of my breeches are French fly with a 2-3 inch waistband and a tied adjustment gusset in the back. I don't do any period late enough to wear trousers. They start to appear in the 2nd half of the 18th century, but mostly in a military setting. They don't become common for everyone until post Rev War. Tights are pre-period, mostly 15th, early 16th century. I have a couple of pair for when I do a War of the Roses scenario, but they are made of sewn linen, not any modern stretch fabric. They do have a sewn in codpiece flap and are more properly referred to as joined hose. Not something I ever wear for the pyracy impressions. Hawkyns

Aww helll *shuffles feet* s'nuthing... Seriously, there are things the Society is good for but it does limit you. I do not like the way they water down their fighting rules to the lowest common denominator in order to let everyone play, even those who should not be on the field. I've fought a lot of styles over the last 25 years or so. I prefer a modified re-enactment/stage/martial arts style that takes from many sources. SCA rapier is too dependant on masks and is too competitive. In doing that, it takes too much from modern fencing and not enough from period sources in most cases. So Francois and a few of us get to play a better game that looks more real and, without armour or masks, makes you think about what you are doing. I'd love to be able to introduce black powder to the SCA battlefield, but that has been expressly forbidden except for signal cannon. There are people working better rapier styles in the Society, in particular the sidesword experiment which uses heavier blades and percussive cuts. No competition as of yet, which I think is a good thing. At the Known World Academy of the Rapier, I ordered a new rapier and dagger for sideword that will give better hand protection with a period design. We also did a fair amount of work with close combat, unarmed combat, and other styles more related to the reality of 16th century street combat, not the stilted salon styles which are more common in Society "period" combat. Fighting according to Silver's manual, and at a range which allows your off hand to be able to reach out and grab or push your opponent is a good thing. Let me emphasize that this is experimental, not approved everywhere, and subject to strict oversight in the Society. The advantage we have is that we can learn techniques in the Society and then take them out into re-enactment where we can use them in the ways originally intended. Hawkyns

I'm here to learn as much and to experience as much as I can of our ancestors' lives, at sea and ashore. I love the work we do in the day, and I like the companionship at night. Singing the old songs, enjoying a good clay pipe, sinking a few tankards of cider, even treading few measures of period dance- all of those are part of the life, too. But something that might be considered a modern 'party'? no thank you. Hawkyns

I got to handle one of Therion's granadoes a couple of weeks ago. Sweet. Good size and heft, the plug and match looked reaaly good. Far better than some of the repros I've seen dummied up from baseball grenades. One thing to remember. Original grenades were not made to government spec in a factory. They were made by local founderies and smiths and were expendable, so not made with a huge amout of attention to detail. I've seen a number and they are all different. it's difficult to determine the original surface after 300 years, especially since most extant examples are battlefield finds. Anything reasonably close would seem tp be acceptable. Hawkyns

Flax sailcoth is very close to hemp canvas, in some sources they are used interchangeably. do a google on hemp canvas. There are several places you can order on line, I'd reccoment the 14-17 oz weight for a coat. here's one http://www.burnleyandtrowbridge.com/ Hawkyns

A pretty conceit, Sir, and master John may do as he so pleases. I, however, am not a gentleman, I am a gunner. "Leave the Artillerymen alone, they are an obstinate lot. . ." Napoleon Bonaparte Hawkyns ( )

I recommend heavy canvas sailcloth, hemp canvas if you can get it. Wears like iron, cuts the wind, and isn't too heavy for summer wear. I have a caped greatcoat made of it, dyed chocolate brown and coated with wax waterproofer. The canvas doesn't take the dye perfectly evenly, so you get a slight mottling which looks like age fade. Since a lot of sailor's clothing was made from old sails, this comes out perfect. for buttons, I recommend these http://jas-townsend.com/index.php?cPath=18...919a74ac427f05f At the bottom of the page are cast pewter buttons with a cast on shank. Very period and they hold up well. Hawkyns

A toast to His Lordship! Pipe UP SPIRITS!! Hawkyns

Tom's site is Tuckahoetradingco.com I saw him at St. Mary's this past weekend, but he only had the living history setup, didn't bring the store. Also, a friend of mine, Frank Rodriguez, out of New Bedford, MA did the hammocks for Master and Commander. He used to have a site selling period canvas and ropework items, but I see he's closed the store. I'll check with him for dimensions and sources. Hawkyns

Not yet. I've got the leather for the barrels on the shelf waiting, but I haven't found the right pair of boots to cut apart yet. I'm looking for a pair of low heeled straight barrel boots like the old Sears engineer boots. Closest thing I've found so far is a pair of Harley riding boots, but $175 just because it has a Harley logo is ridiculous. Still looking, I'll let you know when I get started. Hawkyns

Mine is 18 ft x 12 inches, which is what the 17th cenury officers sashes were, more or less. It wraps 3 times round, and has plenty left to tie a bow with decent tails. Sashes were originally a mark of rank for officers, and the colour frequently identified what side you were on in a battle. English Royalists wore red or blue, Swedes wore blue, Dutch wore orange, and so on. The length was because if you were wounded on the field, your sash could be used to carry you off as a sort of stretcher. Obviously, this applies to national armies and military units. I would surmise that pirates wore the sashes in order to ape the rank of the gentry, although I have never seen that in primary source documents. Hawkyns

Well, damn. I'da stopped in if'n I'd known. I stayed at the BW Lex Park on Friday then spent the rest of the weekend at St Mary's City for the Grand Muster of the 17th C.

I have 3 pair of 18th C shoes. My first, and oldest, is a cut down pair of Fugawee civil war brogans. Leaving the tongue long looks good, but they are a bit sloppy withy the akles cut away. I wear these for the absolutely filthy, disgusting work like mucking the pens or fighting in swamps. Next I got a pair of straight last Fugawee Ft. Ligonier style, rough out. I love these. They are my favourite shoes for fighting and land based stuff Fit well, and I do rotate so they don't take a set to one foot or the other. Keeps the wear on the soles and heels even. last, I bought a pair of shoes from Flying Canoe Traders. They are right and left, which I don't like as not being accurate, but they do have rubber heels, so are better on a wet deck. Since I have to wear shoes due to ships orders, these are a better choice than plain leather soles and heels. I agree, shoes are almost always the most inauthentic part of kit. Limited supplies and high prices make it one of the last acquisitions for most people. Hawkyns Hawkyns

Anyway we can arrange to get me a copy of that, fax, scan, snailmail, or whatever? I'd be very much obliged. Where is Columbia? I'm going to be in Maryland this weekend at the Grand Muster of the 17th Century down in St. Mary's City. You might want to see some of this- it's great living history. Hawkyns

Yes, there's a cartridge box there that I want a copy of the report on too. Emailed the curator and got a nice reply, said he'd get me a copy. Never saw it though. Hawkyns

Have you contacted the Marine Archeology Museum at Lelystad? It's home port to the Batavia and when I was there a couple of years ago, they were building a replica of The Seven Provinces. Also, there's a big Museum of Maritime History in Amsterdam. They had a repro of a VoC Indiaman and a couple of 15th century cogs. Either one of these might be able to put you in contact with any Dutch maritime re-enactments. Hawkyns

I'm in the SCA and I'm a pirate. Two different things. I've been in the Society 28 years, my persona is an Elizabethan soldier/sailor in the service of George Clifford, Earl of Cumberland. I also portray a pirate outside the Society, doing late 17th/early 18th c. "Pirates", as most think of them, don't exist withing the Society. There are mariners and corsairs, certainly, but the true freebooting buccaneer is post period. They are not so welcome in the Society because too many pirates come in with post period clothing and weapons. Flintlocks, tricorns, and captain's coats are a product of the 17th c. Rumba, you are correct about the politics. I'm a peer, been in more Royal Households than I care to think about, been an officer at all levels except Society, and am head of the Blackpowder Gunners Guild. Seen more heads roll, know where more bodies are buried, and dodged more incoming fire than a sloop up against a 3rd rate. It does get to me, and I have to take some time off, every so often. On the other hand, I have friends there that I've had for more than half my life, and I can't give up trying to make the Soceity better. So, Cap'n MacNamara...... WTF?? Hawkyns

Ummmmm. I really don't want to ask this..... Am I going to hear about this 'officially'?? Sometimes there are questions you just KNOW aren't going to have anything like a good answer. OK....what happened? Hawkyns

OK, lots of answers here. First, this works for me and those like me. Doesn't work for everyone and I wouldn't expect it to. Colonial House was a joke. A number of us re-enactors who do living history tried to sign up for it. We were all rejected because we knew too much. We would have had fun playing the period and would not have created the dissent and drama the producers wanted. Yes, I know the 21st c exists. It's a mindset issue, that we do our best to put it aside. No, it's not perfect, and we can't get 100%. But we work at it and study period journals to try and figure out how THEY thought. Some of our artifacts are created by modern procedures, but linen and leather hand stitched; bone, horn, and wood worked with handtools, and hand forged iron have not significantly changed. Firearms are safer, but though I don't own one myself, I do know people who shoot with handforged barrels. Going into the woods entails walking miles into the backcountry, not driving to a campsite. A weekend scout will cover from 10-30 miles, further if we are out longer. Doing it in period footwear, straight lasted or mocassins gives a whole new meaning to foot pain, until you get used to it. We carry our minimum kit and deal with nature as it comes. We get wet, cold, dusty, sunburned, blistered, and cut. Yes, we know that civilisation (?) is waiting when we get home. That doesn't help when you are 20 miles from the trailhead and an early season snowstorm just blew in unexpectedly. Or your camp was raided by animals and your food sack is gone. Research is research. You talk about Perry Como vs Jimi Hendrix. I talk about Philadelphia vs Niagara Frontier vs London vs Carlisle. All different, all with their own style. That's where a huge library, lots of research friends, and sharing of sources comes in. Hostiles- OK, if I were in the New England woods in 1720, chances are the only humans I'm going to see are Natives. Without knowing which nation they belong to, I'm more likely to get killed than anything else. If I'm out on the Norfolk fens as a pirate or smuggler, I'm likely to run into the Excise men or someone who will report me to them. Either way, I don't want to be seen. Since so many of todays people are likely to freak out when seeing a bunch of shaggy guys in stained leather and linen, carrying all manner of weapons, come down the trail, we don't want to be seen there either. So we treat them as hostiles and fade into the woods so as not to be seen. It's all mindset. No, we can never be 100%. But the journey towards it is part of the joy. And getting as close as I can is my sense of accomplishment and community with those who have gone before. It may not be yours, but it doesn't have to be. Hawkyns

I. too, had been taught that the thrust was faster, for many years. Never quite believed it, though, it always seemed somewhat wrong. After working with a couple of different masters this weekend, now I know why. It depends on the fight. If you are fighting the Italian rapier fight, such as Saviolo, then this is correct. You are at full sword distance or better, and dropping the point slightly and extending, with or without the lunge, will be quicker than bringing your blade offline enough to develop sufficient force to make a significant cut. If you are fighting the true fight, as Silver calls it, the English fight, then the cut is faster. The distance you fight at should be close enough that you can grab your opponent, with your blades touching each other about halfway along the length. From there, it is quicker to disengage in some manner, and drop the shoulder and twist the hip into a cut, rather than withdraw the blade to clear his sword, drop into line, and then thrust. I've always preferred Silver and studied his manual, but this weekend was the first time I've been able to study with a couple of masters who could show me some detail and nuance in position that were not clear in the facsimile. Hawkyns

I wear 2 belts. One is just a plain 1 1/2 inch belt with my small pouch and bollock knife. Those are worn all the time. Then I have a weapons girdle, 2 inch belt that has my cartridge box and gunner's dirk. That is the one that the pistol belt hook goes through. Cutlass hangs from a shoulder baldric. If I need to carry anything else, I use a hemp canvas haversack, about 8x11, on a shoulder sling. That will carry food, extra cartridges, cleaning kit if I'm going to be firing for a while, and, if I need it, a pewter tankard attached to the shoulder sling with a thong. I hate having a lot of clutter from my belt. Since I do a fair bit of combat, it gets in the way, rattles around, and generally creates a nuisance. Plus, looking at the old woodcuts, I just don't see that sort of thing. Hawkyns

Lots. The French and Indian War period (just post Golden Age) is filled with women who keep the traditions and skills of the women alive. I go to musters and battles all the time that are filled with whole families who do this. They maintain the same authenticity standards as the men and have a good time doing it. There are several bulletin boards that are for 18th century women only. Check out a book called 'Tidings From the 18th Century' by Beth Gilgun. Children are brought into the hobby from birth, and are taught the skills as soon as they are capable. They are held to a very similar standard and do it very well. They are taught to shoot at an easrly age and are decent hunters by age 12 or 14, even the girls. At musters, the younger kids run in a pack with their wooden swords and muskets, so the women are not constantly dealing with them and have the time and opportunity to pursue their own interests. It depends where you play. If you play only RenFaires and festivals, you are probably correct. The SCA has a mix of party people and authenticists. Full blown re-enactment has mostly authenticists and is heavily populated by women. I play with all three so I see all the varients. Hawkyns

When we go out on a scout, modern folks are regarded as 'hostiles'. We fade into the woods and hopefully are never seen. We also prefer to do this in wilderness areas, or on private land where we are never seen. Makes it easier to hunt, when neccesary, too. Hawkyns

For the answer to this, see the new thread Why we do what we do. Hawkyns

I was asked, over in the Rapier vs.Cutlass thread, why I only carry real weapons. I think that answer deserves a thread of it's own. It's something that's been kicked around before, but not recently, and we have a lot of new crew members. Simply stated, my goal is to be able to live as much as possible in a pre-1763 lifestyle. I need to have the skills, the mindset, and the equipment to be able to live as a 16th, 17th, or 18th century person. Carrying fake weapons, ones that will not do their assigned tasks, just doesn't cut it for me. If I carry a pistol, it has to be able to shoot, and I carry all the accoutrements that go with it- powder, ball, etc. If I carry a sword, I have to be able to use it, and know that it will really cut my target. I practice with the weapons, both sword and firearm, so that I know what I'm doing. But it goes beyond the weapons. I go into the woods for weekends carrying nothing that is not of the period- 18th century backpacking, if you will. With a blanket, small canvas tarp, and minimal equipment, I can live out there- cooking over a fire, living on jerky, parched corn, and wild rice. I can move into museum settings and live in the houses, cooking on the fire, dealing with the animals, running the militia company, becoming that earlier person. I am learning more and more what is like to work on shipboard and what that entails. It's not all pyracy. Much of pyracy was just living an 18th century life. As a ship's gunner, or a boucannier, or a merchant, or soldier, I am willing and able to give up the comfort and convenience of the 21st century. No electricity and everything it entails-computers, tv, cd's, phones, etc. Just me and maybe a small group, sitting round the fire, in the candlelight, singing, talking, and smoking my pipe. Sleeping on the ground, or in a pile of straw, or on a tavern bench, or curled up on the anchor hawser. If I don't expereince at least some of the hardships of the time, I will never get even close to experiencing what our ancestors knew. And that is my goal- to slip the bonds of the 21st century and live, at least for a time, in a century where I make my own destiny, where my survival depends on the skills I have, and where no-one is telling me what to do or where I have to be. Hawkyns