Medieval Society brings the past to life
By CAROLYN SCHULTZ '04

Fencing, anyone? If you're a medieval maven, look no further than Wellesley's Felding Medieval Society, a group that has been keeping the medieval and Renaissance past alive since 1979.

According to the society's constitution, the purpose of the club is to explore various cultural aspects of the period before 1600, including art, dance, costumes, cooking and crafts, with an emphasis on medieval and Renaissance Europe.

Felding Provost (President) Caitrin McCullough '02 said she got involved in the organization because the group's values, such as chivalry and respect, appealed to her. "I've always been interested in the time period. [Felding] is a very social group. It's a good way to meet a wide variety of people," McCullough enthused. "Some people get a sense of belonging that they've never felt in any other group. That's what happened to me."

Felding is loosely affiliated with an international group called the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). McCullough explained, "The SCA is worldwide and is divided into 16 kingdoms." Wellesley's chapter is located in the East Kingdom, which extends from the eastern Canadian provinces to Pennsylvania. "Kingdoms are divided into baronies. The greater Boston area is the Barony of Carolingia. The college groups are called boroughs. Wellesley's group is called the Borough of Felding," McCullough said. There are also groups at Harvard, MIT, Tufts and Brandeis."

Felding typically meets once or twice a month at Wellesley, according to McCullough. In addition, every month an area college usually hosts one large event for the Boston SCA. The last Wellesley meeting, held on October 15, included a lesson in medieval cooking. The next large SCA event, the Masked Ball, will take place on October 21 at Tufts University.

The SCA was founded in Berkeley, California in 1966 when a group of science-fiction and fantasy readers organized a medieval-themed party, and later came up with the idea of recreating the Middle Ages.

McCullough said, "Thirty years ago people in Boston heard about the SCA, and they said, 'Hey, this is pretty cool.'" She explained the SCA used to focus primarily on medieval myths and legends, but now, "A lot of members will research different topics and try to reproduce what was actually done in the period."

Wellesley has been active in the Boston SCA since its inception in the '70s. "The first SCA event held in Boston was held on Wellesley's campus," McCullough noted, "so we have a long and glorious tradition in the SCA." The first event was held in the Shakespeare House; by now, however, the SCA has grown so large in membership that all of its members can no longer fit in Shakespeare House. Instead, they have moved the festivities outside.

The first major Felding event of the year, the 20th annual Falling Leaves extravaganza, was held on Munger Meadow on September 23. The group's biggest on-campus event, Falling Leaves is designed to welcome new Feldings.

Lasting 12 hours, Falling Leaves featured medieval games, fencing, a ladies' foot race, a performance by a 16th-century improvisational comedy troupe and a potluck feast. The day culminated with a ball in Alumnae Hall with lessons in various medieval and Renaissance dances.

McCullough said Falling Leaves successful. "We had about twice as many people as last year, and everyone I've talked to said they really enjoyed it," she said.

Part of the fun is dressing up in distinctive medieval garb, which usually consists of tunics or long, flowing dresses with laced bodices and full sleeves for women and tunics with short, baggy pants with tights for men, and veils or caps to top it off. Feldings also possess special medieval pseudonyms, or "personas."

"[E]veryone in the society picks a persona to help with the atmosphere at events," McCullough said. "It can just be a name, or you can come up with the whole life history of a person. A great way [to pick a name] is to just go through a book of historical names and find one you like."

Felding Chronicler (Historian) Kate Odiorne '01 chose the name Brighid ne Coughlan. "I was originally interested in Ireland and Irish stuff, and I realized that I really liked the fashions of the 1340s, so I developed a 1340s Irish persona," Odiorne said, adding, "My persona plays the harp and is an archer, but her father has given up on marrying her off, and is thinking of putting her in a convent. She naturally does not appreciate this." Odiorne created these details after doing some historical research on the lives of Irish citizens in the 14th century.

McCullough said that opportunities to explore the artistic, athletic and cultural aspects of medieval and Renaissance society abound in the Boston area. "The Boston area SCA group has a lot of different practices and meetings every month," she said. "The most popular topics are dancing, fencing, archery, thrown weapons, armored combat, storytelling, calligraphy, cooking, music and commedia del arte [comedy of art, or plays]. There's usually something going on every night of the week."

Odiorne has especially enjoyed learning about archery and its role in medieval society. "In medieval times it was used for hunting or as a method of protecting one's family," she explained. "Nowadays the only targets we shoot at have a red bull's-eye in the middle." Through her involvement in Felding, Odiorne has also had hands-on experience in archery. "There's also the possibility of making your own arrows and equipment," she said. "It makes [archery] more historically accurate, but it also gives more of a sense of immediacy."

Which, after all, is what the Felding Society is all about: bringing history into the present.