Too long; didn’t read: Heralds keep track of the awards given by royalty in an Order of Precedence, and help make the game better for everyone.
Heralds of the middle ages were the multipurpose communication, messaging and record-keeping ‘systems’ of choice for the nobility.
The earliest heralds may have been minstrels: literate travellers, accustomed to learning and remembering stories and lineages, ideal for carrying messages and passing on news. Other heralds may have served in fighting forces for their local knight or baron: someone who recorded names, numbers of combatants, and their respective coats of arms in a roll of arms, who could advise their commander of who was on the muster.
In the late middle ages, heralds took on new roles for advising the crown, acting as ambassadors, allowed diplomatic immunity to allow them to convey messages to allies and enemies.
In the Current Middle Ages, what we call our time in the SCA, heralds continue to support the populace and our royals by announcing news, recording and registering names and arms, and keeping records.
Happily, we now share that work with computers and the Internet: it’s no longer an exclusive preserve of a handful of noblemen, but available to everyone. You too can release your inner herald!
Awards and honours
In our courts, our royals give out awards, to thank its volunteers for their good work, and to recognise individuals’ learning, improvement and excellence in the arts of war and of peace. Broadly modelled on medieval orders and honours, some awards are described in the Society’s laws, but each kingdom also develops its own honours, with names and badges that mean something special to the people who live there.
The Drachenwald site lists those awards the king and queen can give out. After someone receives an award in court, it’s the heralds’ job to record the name of the recipient and the award details.
Order of Precedence
This information goes into the Order of Precedence (OP, or ‘oh-pee’). Each kingdom keeps its own records, and ours is kept in a searchable online database. The OP forms part of our kingdom and principality history; you can see what happened at court at a given event, and track the official recognitions given to the populace.
If you find any mistakes (for instance, you saw an award given in court, but you can’t find the record of it within a couple of weeks) you can contact the Posthorn herald - the deputy in charge of the OP - to ask about it.
If record-keeping, researching names and painting armory, learning to blazon or organising court appeal to you, you too could have an inner herald waiting for their chance to shine. You just need to get in touch to find out how to take part. Contact your local herald or join the Drachenwald heralds FB group
Reference: Dennys, R. The heraldic imagination. Clarkson N. Potter, Inc, 1975.