13th Century

[MacGumerait]

The thing is that I was asked to do a short (30 min), demonstraition of combat techniques used by Scottish warriors through the later half of the middle ages and early Ren. period. I was asked to do this by someone with a passing knowledge of Scottish history. My troop which normaly does nothing close to this urged Sir Wulfscyld (another member of the troop) and myself to do this simply for the exposure. It's being done free so we can't spend a lot of money on the equipment or costumes, and the audience in question is a group of boy scouts. So we are hurrying to piece together make-shift kits that are a blend of what the kids will recignize and still have some historical merit. This goal, to be honest is turning into a nightmare. I'm starting to think that we should just cut back to using out English kits just slightly tweeked with some north-of-the-border flair. I figure that I could put together a quick kit and refine it later if I enjoyed doing this. The liberties we are taking are due to a lack of time, but even so we are tying to use reasonable facsimilies of what we know to be accurate. The only "could have been" I have is a French style axe and I figured that since the Scotts and French were military allies much of the period we are being asked to portray (a window so big that it's hard to pin down a look), that a Frenchaxe would not be out of the question. So much of living history is about modest beginings and the constant work toward the goal of authenticity.

As to the sources for the early targes, I based this on art references from the period. As with other weapons, it is not quite fully developed, but it is the direct ancestor to the final targe.
http://manuscriptminiatures.com/apoc...t-d-4-17/1859/

http://manuscriptminiatures.com/the-...or-ee359/3189/

http://manuscriptminiatures.com/quee...l-2-b-vii/803/

Note the center figure in the second image. He is using a two hand axe with a small shield fixed to his upper arm. The fist could be termed a buckler, but the third image is definatly a target. There are a few others in that site that depict them, but thase were the ones I could think of on the spot.

Sir Didymous ,

Given all that you said above , perhaps you could open by telling the Boy Scouts that Scottish Knights and English Knights during the time period of the 1500s ( the Ren period ) were often outfitted the same .

Also as mentioned earlier about William Wallace , perhaps you could have a tartan cloth wrapped around your armour like a plaid as opposed to the cape in your avatar . This could be done last minute without a lot of cost and give a Scottish identifier which would be somewhat historically accurate .

At that point , you could give your battle demonstration .

In addition , at most Scottish Festivals there are often Scottish re-enactment groups , usually a group dressed as the Black Watch from the 1700s .

You might be able to ask the Black Watch group to be present at your demonstration , then once your done , introduce them and tell the Boy Scouts that 200 years later the Scottish soldiers became known as a group like this , and the Scottish soldier became known to the world as something very similar .

This would allow you to demonstrate your battle skills of that time period , be outfitted pretty much historically accurate and give the Boy Scouts a visual of the kilted soldier at the end .

This might satisfy the expectation of the battle performance and give the boys a quick big picture history of Scottish knights of the 1500s , then fast forward them 200 years to something they more relate to today's world .

Just food for thought . Best wishes on your performance !

Mike