Heroic Dreams - All Things Medieval

The weather here where I am in New England has finally turned the corner into full blown spring. It has been a mild yet long winter. And the feeling in the air has my thoughts turned to outside activities. This means Faires! Woot. There are lots of Renaissance Faires that go on all over the country, and even all over the world.

If you have been to a Renaissance Faire you know the feeling that comes along with an event like this. It is a peculiar blend of medieval things like shows, jesters, jousting, food and all other sorts of things. It is even a time where you can dress up in your favorite medieval clothing and armor for the day. If you don’t own any medieval armor or clothing no worry, these faires often will rent it to you for the day or sell it to you.

Okay, Here are some resources for being medieval and stepping into the middle ages for a day:

The big list of Renaissance Faires across america. This list is broken down by state and you should be able to find a faire near you Ren Faires by State

The Renaissance Faire Website : Nice site with lots of resources and information about Renaissance Faires including what to wear. Ren Faire Website

The Society for Creative Anachronism: This is an organization that hosts and runs all kinds of groups that follow the code and custom of the middle ages. They have chapters around the world and do all kinds of middle ages things from combat to weaving and blacksmithing. SCA Homepage

What about a rainy saturday or sunday? Well of course you can always go to a Medieval Times Dinner. This is a medieval period event with food and jousting to match. This is becoming very popular and spreading across America. Their telephone number is 1-800-WE_JOUST.  which is a hoot! Check their website for a location near you. Medieval Times

It’s going to be a beautiful summer. Do something other than go to the beach. Step back in time and do something medieval.

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I have been into the art of building small catapults for a while now and I have built several different ones. I have even built a few trebuchets. Anyway, on of the best things about a project like this is that once you are done building it you are not done with it. You can play with it and use it. It’s an interactive project that people really enjoy. I have one particular catapult project called “The Table Top Troll” which is extremely popular. I get a lot of visitors to the project and I get a lot of email from people thanking me for it. It’s a totally free project that takes you through all the steps of making a nice little rubber band powered catapult.

To do the project I had to build two of them. The first one was a prototype where I figured out all the details then I built a second one so I could take pictures of the parts and every step of the way. You just need a few basic hand tools and a little wood to make this catapult and it’s a blast.

If you want to do this project then check out my make a catapult projects here:

Make a catapult

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If you want a kit with everything included so you can easily make your own catapult check this out at Amazon.com Easy wooden Catapult Kit

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When we think of Medieval Castles there is a dark a secretive feeling that we feel. A Medieval Castle was a castle, but it was also a place with a history, a place that had secrets and secret passages. It was a place where tremendous battles were fought to the death by knights.

Let’s Take a look at a real Medieval Castle! Here is a model of the Meersburg Castle -

An old legend and a 1548 document say that the creation of this impressive stronghold dates back to the 7th century which means this castle is possibly well over a thousand years old and still in perfect condition. It is located on Lake Constance in Germany.

Some of the things you would find in this castle would be a medieval living area, a Knights Hall, an Arms Hall, a well-room, a castle dungeon, chapels, guard’s walkways and towers, the picturesque fortress garden and the defensible northern bastion, the workroom and death chamber of Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, the most popular German poetess who lived in the fortress during her stays at Lake Constance. Can you see what I mean by a Medieval Castle is a place of mystery, secrets and stories?

Inside the Knights Hall - This is a picture I took inside the Hall of the Knights. Of course the electric light was installed many centuries later. See how the windows are arranged to let a good amount of sunlight into the hall. Imagine the knights sitting at the table and making plans for defending against a sieging enemy.

The tale of the Black Knight - Inside this Medieval Castle there is an armory where they have a variety of weapons and armor on display. One of the things that struck me was the size of the armor. It was quite small- as if the knights stood maybe five foot six at their tallest. Here is a picture of one of the suits of armor. It is black so I call it the Black Knights Armor. Do you think there is a story behind this armor? Why was it black? Who was the man who wore it and what deeds did he accomplish? This is a story that I wish the walls of this Medieval Castle could tell.

A picture of some of the weapons in the Armory

 - One of the biggest things to consider about Medieval Castles is that they were a place of life and death. These vicious polearm weapons show this. A Medieval Castle was built to withstand the onslaught of enemies bent on destruction. Life in a medieval castle was very serious business.

I have a website devoted to medieval castles if you wan’t to learn more:
Medieval Castles

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