On Sideways Tabards

So, you may have come across the quaint and curious practice of some heralds wearing their tabards sideways. Do not adjust your set, you are seeing correctly. No, ma'am, they aren't drunk*. Please, sir, do not try to correct them. Especially not physically**.

In short, wearing tabards sideways - or athwart, colly-westonwards, or several other silly names - is a mark of a herald holding a certain rank. In the Lochac College of Heralds, there are three ranks: Macer, Pursuivant, and Herald (with a capital H). A tabard athwart is, as in period, the mark of a Pursuivant. Lochac Heraldic Policy says simply this:

5.3. A Pursuivant wearing a sleeved tabard should have the sleeves front and back (i.e. rotated 90 degrees).

 Note that it says "should", rather than "may".

In period, Pursuivants were something along the lines of journeyman heralds, who hadn't quite finished their training, and so wore their tabards sideways as a mark of "not quite there yet". In the Lochac College of Heralds, Pursuivant is the middle rank, and the first which is earned by actions (more than the action of deciding to be a herald in the first place). Macers wear their tabards "properly" because they're just beginning, and shouldn't have things complicated for them any more than is necessary, and Heralds wear their tabards straight because they're fancy and in charge.

The practice varied in period as fashions changed, ranging all the way from being entirely absent, to being enforced with punishments. And so too in the SCA has it varied, though not to the point of punishments. Wearing a tabard athwart is something of a herald's fancy, and as such usually requires explaining to the general public when they get confused by what they see as things being done weirdly or wrong. I've even had people quite condescendingly try to explain to me that that's not how you wear a tabard. But, we should see that as a place where we can see a wonderful educational opportunity, rather than as a reason not to try.

And finally, one practical note about wearing a tabard athwart: Some tabards, of particularly fine construction, with layers of brocade, velvet, and satin, while beautiful, are not appropriate for wearing on a particularly hot day. With the extra ventilation of wearing athwart, however, it's much more comfortable (experience from a Fighter Auction Tourney at Rowany Festival, where all four of the Rowan-made words of tabardy art were worn at once).

For more information on the wearing of tabards etc, see What Did Heralds Wear? by Eirìkr Mjoksiglandi Sigurdharson.

* Probably. I suppose there's a chance, but they shouldn't be drunk on duty.
** Yes, that did happen to me. They meant well, but grabbed at me without warning when I stopped for water.

On the Importance of Heraldry

Some days, it can seem as though heraldry is almost everywhere in the Society, between the various forms of book and voice heraldry. But why, exactly, should it be so ubiquitous? I believe (as may be deduced from most of the other posts here) that heraldry is important, though the reasons vary between the various forms of heraldry.

Let us begin with the obvious, that of arms as seen in the banners, pennons, standards, and other flags which are flown at events, and the shields and tabards of fighters and heralds, and painted on any number of diverse items. This side of heraldry is important to the Society partially because it was so important in period. A great many tourney scenes and feasting halls may be seen hung with a great many banners, and the inclusion of such things can quickly add a good period feel to an otherwise dull (or even unattractively modern) venue. Arms also still fulfill their original purpose, of identifying the bearer (either individually, or their affiliations in the case of group arms). And thirdly, the decorating of various objects with coat-armour is a relatively easy (or potentially greatly complex) way to make an object unique to the individual, and also make it uniquely theirs.

Continuing with the other side of book heraldry, being the creation of period-accurate (or at least period-plausible) names, I feel the importance here is again largely in changing the feel of our society, including by encouraging people to explore other cultures than the medieval equivalent of their native culture, and by encouraging the development of a separate persona that may be used as an escape from the modern world. While not everyone will go further into persona development than selecting a name, most will complete at least this basic step.

As for voice heraldry, the most commonly visible role is that of the field or tourney herald. Their value lies largely in adding flair and pageantry, and in communicating to both the participants and the audience what is actually happening, and what is about to happen. By calling the names of the fighters, and leading the salutes, the audience is more able to be involved in what can be, for those not actually involved or specifically following a fighter, a rather repetitive if noisy event. Also, by making sure that the participants know who's fighting who, and in what order, without having to come and directly check with the list keeper, the tourney is made to flow more smoothly.

The next form of voice heraldry is court heraldry, which is valuable in that it allows the ruling nobles, be they Baron and Baroness or King and Queen, to take the centre of attention without straining their voice, thanks to the court herald taking the role of loudpseaker system, or having to be constantly fiddling with or hiding behind paper, thanks to the court herald having the full schedule and guiding the court through it, and having the text of the various ceremonies easily to hand.

Finally, there is duty heraldry, making the announcements at an event. The value here is simply as a mobile public address system, making sure that the announcements are made and heard, whenever needed. This is perhaps the least exciting form, and is usually best kept the least fanciful, but it is a necessary task for the smooth running of the other excitements.

On the Herald's Staff

5.9. Any herald on official business may carry a small white stave to indicate they ought not be interrupted.

9.2.3. When announcing a multi-field, multi-herald tourney a herald’s white stave may be raised when speaking to assist in prevention of overlapping calls.

The above are quotes from the Lochac College of Heralds official policy. It is rather brief on the point, giving it as simply a method of stopping interruptions during calls. However, there are a great many uses for the herald's staff, and they are currently greatly under-used by heralds in my experience.

The most useful area of heraldry in which a staff can serve well is in tourney heraldry. At the start of a bout, the marshal indicates each fighter as they're introduced, and each fighter usually indicates the other with their weapon. If carrying a staff, the herald can join in on this. At the end of the bout, one fighter is again indicated, the victor, and if carrying a staff, the herald can help with this. Also, the staff can be raised to call for attention. In a multi-field environment, this attention is, as indicated in the Lochac policy, quite useful from the other heralds present. In a single-field environment, raising a shining white staff can raise the visibility of the herald, particularly if it's crowded.

Outside of tourney heraldry, a staff has some other very important uses for a duty herald. Firstly, it increases the visual impact of a herald in their tabard, adding to the style and pageantry of the event, which is, after all, one of the important roles of the herald. Secondly, it gives the the herald's hand something to do, rather than fidgeting or scratching (though, be careful not to drop it too often once you inevitably start twirling your staff).

Finally, when making an announcement in a hall, or calling for the beginning of court, a stout staff banged on the floor before your 'Oyez' makes it slightly more likely to get attention, and on top of that, adds an interesting note of class.

On the Care and Feeding of Field Heralds

The field herald is a skittish and sometimes cantankerous critter, but with proper care and feeding, they can give you years of shouting. There are a few tips to help you care for your field herald, and get the best performance out of them.

Diet

Make sure that your field herald has access to plenty of water while working. Alcohol should be saved for an after-tourney treat. At the very least, water should be available nearby, and even better is if an attendant makes sure they have as much water as they desire, so that they can avoid causing breaks in the schedule.

Some field heralds prefer to eat before a tourney, or during, or after. If food is being served, it can be preferable if the field herald has easy access to some (again, so as not to cause too large a break in the schedule).

Shelter

Your field herald will require shelter while watching. In cases of sun, a broad-brimmed hat will usually suffice, though sunscreen can also be quite useful for encouraging their usefulness in the long term. In cases of inclement weather (but not so inclement that the tourney itself is cancelled), a place out of the wind from which they can still make their diverse calls effectively can be of great use.

Somewhere for them to sit between periods of activity can also be good. This can be near (but not obstructing) the List table if preferred, and should be sheltered from the day's conditions if possible, to allow their recovery.

Company

The field herald is a social animal, as may be seen from their boisterous calls. If possible, try to keep them at least in pairs (so that they may share the load of the tourney). This will keep them happier, and more energetic, and allow them to operate for much longer than the two might if kept separate.

Finally, as a sensitive and social creature, any spare words of thanks you may have lying about after the tournament would be appreciated by your field herald, to keep up their spirits and encourage a repeat performance.

On Heralding a Tourney

Following from the previous posts on voice heraldry, we come to the functional business of acting as a field herald for a tourney, and what you should be shouting when you do so.

There is a standard set of calls for tourneys in Lochac, centred around the so-called "Litany". There are modifications, for the various unusual tourney formats and such, but the standard Litany for the start of a tourney bout is as follows:

“My Lords and my Ladies, in this bout here do meet (fighter’s name)…”

Pause while the Marshal and Fighters indicate whose name you just called.

“…and (other fighter’s name).” 

Pause while the Marshal and Fighters indicate whose name you just called. 

“Good fighters, salute you the Crown!”

Pause while the fighters salute the Crown. You should also salute to the Crown (a bow or similar) after this call.

“You may salute the one whose favour you bear!”

Pause while the fighters salute any consorts they may have. 

“Salute your most honourable opponent!” 

Pause while the fighters salute each other. 

“For honour and glory, at the Marshal’s command…”

End here, while the Marshal calls “Lay On!”

As Herald, you should never call Lay On, as the Marshal must make sure that both fighters are ready and safe for their bout (the only exception being those strange bouts where you may be both Marshal and Herald).

You should make sure to pay attention when the Marshal and fighters indicate which fighter belongs to which name, it will be relevant later on.

Each of the salutes is an order to the fighters, except for the consort salute (this is because not all fighters have a consort, or do not wish to salute them, so it may cause offence if this salute were an order).

At the end of the bout, the Marshal will indicate which of the fighters was victorious, and you should then call “Victory to (name)!”



The other calls that may be required usually come at the start and end of each round. Note that this script is based on the single-kill double-elimination tourney format, which is the most common in use.

At the start of each round, you should call each pairing, in order:

“Oyez! Oyez! My Lords and my Ladies! In the (number) round:”

“(name) will meet (name)… (name) will meet (name)…”

And so on as required for the number of pairs. Make sure that each pair is clear, with a short pause between each to make sure people don’t get confused. Knowing the round in advance will make sure that the fighters aren’t caught undressed and drinking when they’re meant to be taking the field (fighters do rather like to cool off and rehydrate between bouts, for some strange reason).

Following this, you should call the first pair to the field, and tell the second (and potentially third) pairs to get ready:

“(Name) and (name), pray attend the field!”

“(Name) and (name), arm and stand ready!” 

“(Name) and (name), arm and prepare!”

The next two pairs should always be called. The third call, to Arm and Prepare, should be used if fighters are taking longer than usual to get dressed for their bout (due to unusual equipment or general tiredness), or shorter than usual to finish each bout, as it gives each pairing an extra bout’s notice of when their turn is coming up.

At the end of each round of a single-kill double-elimination tourney (except the first round), there is a chance that some of the fighters have been eliminated. The tourney’s List Keeper should let you know who they are. If there are eliminations, then at the end of the round, call:

“My Lords and my Ladies, eliminated in the (number) round were:”

“(list of names)” 

“For the fallen! Hip hip! (audience Huzzahs)” 

“Hip hip! (audience Huzzahs)” 

“Hip hip! (audience Huzzahs)”

This lets those who have been eliminated from the tourney be acknowledged for their effort, and lets them know that they can doff their armour or otherwise entertain themselves as they see fit.
At the end of the tourney, you should not announce the overall victor of the tourney until you have checked with the Crown (or their representative as appropriate), as they may wish to award victory based on factors other than a simple count of the bouts won.


There are, occasionally, exceptions to the nice and simple bout format given above, based on either the tourney format changing, unexpected occurrences, or royal whim.



The simplest situation to prepare for is the fact that not every tourney will follow the single-kill double-elimination format. There are many types of tourney, but each usually follows the same sorts of script, especially for bouts.

There are a number of tourney formats where the pairs and order are not pre-determined, but decided by the fighters, and the List Keeper is more to keep score than to organise the layout. For these, you don’t need to announce the pairings or eliminations, but the bout format is usually fairly similar to the standard.

Another common tourney format is the “meat-grinder”, where each fighter takes the field, in turn, and faces every other fighter, one at a time. For this, you should call the relevant fighter to the field, and then do the attend the field/arm and stand ready/arm and prepare calls for individuals rather than pairs, as appropriate. The bout itself may be the same, or may have the salutes modified for brevity (such as having the fighter holding the field salute at the start of the round, and no other salutes). You should consult with the Crown or Marshal as to what salutes should be made.

Other tourney formats may crop up at random, but a modification on the standard litany should cover most cases (this is usually just a judgement call).

Sometimes, the salutes themselves will be modified. The most common situation is when heralding a fencing tourney, as some fencers prefer the call to be:

“Good fencers, salute you the Crown!”

“Make salutes as befit your honour, then at the Marshal’s command…”

Before using this shortened form of the salutes, you should check with the Crown or Marshal as to what is preferred.

Sometimes, there will be unexpected changes within the tourney itself. For example, fighters will sometimes withdraw from the tourney, due to injury, exhaustion or scheduling conflicts. The main work when that happens is for the List Keeper, but you may need to announce a revised version of the round’s pairings.

The final of many tourneys is given as a best-of-three. At the start of the bout, when announcing who is fighting, you should also announce that it is a best-of-three after calling each of the names (but before the salutes). At the conclusion of each bout, instead of calling “Victory to (name)!” you should call “Victory in the (first/second/third) to (name)!” so that people know where things are up to. If the same fighter wins the first two bouts, whether the third is fought is up to the Marshal and the fighters.

Finally, make sure that you never announce a victory in the tournament as a whole until you have confirmed with the listkeeper, the marshals, and above all, the Crown (or their representative there that day). While you may have an understanding of who won that day, and though it may be well clear (such as by a 3-out-of-3 victory in the final), they may wish to delay the announcement, or the Crown may wish to award the tourney title for a reason other than pure number of victories.

On Being Heard

The first area in voice heraldry, and especially field heraldry, that should be addressed when learning the unsubtle art is that of actually making yourself heard. If the fighters, the crown and the audience can’t hear you, it doesn’t matter what you say or when you say it.

When trying to be heard across the list field, you need to focus on projection more than volume, because a projected voice carries. If you focus on volume, you make a small amount of air carry a lot of energy. If you focus on projection, you make a huge amount of air carry enough energy.

The keys to projection:

• Good posture: I know, it’s not comfortable, but you want a good clear air path from your lungs to the world.
• Good clothing: Not necessarily your prettiest, just loose around the chest and throat, so you can use your lungs properly.
• Relax! Especially your vocal cords.
• Slow pace, even pitch: If you try to make it too fancy, and get it out too quickly you’ll end up with none of it coming through right.

The other component of being heard is knowing where to stand when you shout. Your voice can only travel in so many directions at once, so picking where you’ll stand, and where you’ll aim, is important.

There are, basically, three groups of people you need to have hear you.

First are the fighters themselves, who fight in the tourney, and they are arguably the most important of the three for a Field Herald. If the fighters can’t hear the Herald’s calls, they won’t know when to armour up, and when to take the field, which can slow down the tourney quite drastically.

Second is the crown, in whatever form they may be represented at your tourney. At a large tourney, they might be the Crown themselves. At a well-attended Rose Tourney, you might have a garden of the Order of the Rose. At local events, it’s common to have the Baron and Baroness in attendance. Sometimes, you get a combination of some or all of the above, and sometimes they’ll be unrepresented. It’s good to keep the Crown informed and involved, and they may be required to make decisions (weapon combinations, double kills, &c.).

Third is the populace in general, in whatever number and array they choose to make themselves present.

If at all possible, make sure all three groups can hear you, but if you have to choose one over another, this is the order you should take them in.

As for location, there are many things to take into account:

• Structures: It’s better to shout into a building than out from one, for acoustic reasons.
• Wind: Try to shout from upwind of the field if there’s more than a light breeze, because your voice carries better down-wind.
• Locations: The closer you are to someone, the better they can hear you. Don’t stand right behind the Crown, though, they like their eardrums.
• The List Table: Don’t stand in front of the list table, they need to see what’s happening more than you do. Do be NEAR the list-keeper, though, because they’re telling you what needs to happen.
• Shade and shelter: If you can manage shelter from the sun and rain, that’s good (never stand in full sun without a hat to herald a tourney).

There’s not going to be an ideal spot to stand in most cases, but there are some that are worse than others. Find the best you can, and pay attention to those around you as best as you can while still working.

On Being a Field Herald

One of the most visible areas of heraldry is that of the field herald, acting as announcer for tournaments, directing the fighters to the field in the right order, and with time to don their armour, letting the audience know who is on the field, and what's happening, and generally adding to the spectacle and feel of our tournaments.

One of the most common questions I get about field heraldry is "are you available?" One of the unfortunately less common questions, and the one I would like to address today, is "can I do that?"

There are very few people who can't learn to be a field herald, so the answer is probably a resounding "yes".

You need to be able to speak, and loudly, so if you're deaf or mute, then there are going to be some obvious barriers. You need to be able to see what's happening on the field, so blindness will also cause complications (it won't be impossible, but you'd need an assistant). You need to be able to read the lists and tourney cards, so illiteracy will cause some stumbling. Other than these, I see no great obstacles for anyone wanting to become a field herald, if they will put the time in to learn.

When making herald calls, there is a common mistake to focus on loudness, rather than on clarity and projection. This is, largely, the cause of the stereotypical "mumblemumblemumble ON THE LIST FIELD IN FIVE MINUTES!" When making your calls, it's better to speak somewhat slower than normal, with short pauses between sentences (this also allows you to breathe in).

On the difference between projection and loudness, think about the movement you're imparting on the air. If you're focused on being loud, you're pushing the air as hard as you can. If you're focused on projection, you're pushing as much air as you can. If more air is moving, then it will carry further (some loudness is important, but projection is more critical). You will need to pause for air more often, but pauses give gravitas to your speech, so that's good, anyway.

As for clarity, the other improvement once you've learned projection is to learn what to say. For field heraldry, there is a fairly standardised script, which can be adapted to any tourney. Variance from it is acceptable, but when the only part of the script that changes is the list of names, it becomes much simpler to follow, even if some words are lost. The actual script, and how to adapt it to the various tournaments, will be covered later.

On Being a Court Herald

One of my favourite activities in the SCA is acting as a court herald, whether a small Baronial court with maybe ten people, or a Royal court for Their Majesties and two hundred of their populace.

The main part of the work as court herald is fairly simple. You're the loudspeaker system, so that the Crown doesn't have to strain their voice all the time. You're the schedule-keeper, so that the Crown doesn't have to hide behind paper to check things every time. And finally, you're there to add some pomp and fanciness to court.

There are occasions when court needs a little less pomp, and a little more pump, to keep the populace engaged. In situations like these, I urge you... If there must be comedy, the herald should play the straight man.

There can be complexities when acting as court herald, which is where a good herald can show their skill to make things flow smoothly. And flow is the operative word: Court should flow from one item to the next, without great pauses to let the populace feel bored in.

If someone is far from court when they're called in? Perhaps move to the next item, and get back to it. If someone brings up extra business as you're trying to close court? Too late, perhaps next time.

In all of this, however, remember that the Crown are the centre of attention, not the herald (no matter how much it feels like it sometimes). If the Crown want to wait for someone, or allow last-minute business, or even engage in some light capering? It's their show.

If you would like a more in-depth look at the life of a court herald, please see Court in the Act, an article I wrote which was published on the Florilegium.