On
April 18, AS XXXIX (2005), Ardchreag carried out its second manorial court.
Each person wishing to participate brought with them a certain number of dry
goods. For each item of dry goods they received one token with which they would
be able to pay fines and bribes during the court. The amount of dry goods
brought was up to each participant, and all goods brought went towards the
canton’s baronial taxes (to raise the baron’s weight in food to be donated to a
food bank at Feast of the Bear in November.
Unlike
in the previous court, this time jurors could make charges as well as be
charged themselves. They also sometimes acted as pledges.
The
court scribe records the following persons as in attendance:
Corwyn
Galbraith, Lord of the
Manor
Marion FitzWilliam, Lady of the Manor
Berend van der Eych, flesh and fowl taster, member of the White Tithing
Marion FitzWilliam, Lady of the Manor
Berend van der Eych, flesh and fowl taster, member of the White Tithing
Colyne Stewart, ale taster, member of the White Tithing
Eirik Andersen, juror, village alderman, member of the
White Tithing
Jean-Margaret Donnerfaust, juror, member of the Green Tithing
Mahault van der Eych, brook looker, member of the Green
tithing
Naja Kesali Orekh, bailiff, member of the White Tithing
Nicolaa de Bracton, visiting dignitary from Citie of
Eoforwic
Siegfried Brandbeorn, Hayward ,
village alderman, member of the Green tithing
Tarian verch Gadarn, beadle, member of the Green Tithing
Þorfinna gráfeldr, juror, member of the White Tithing
Wat of Sarum, ale taster, member of the Green Tithing
Also,
Adelaide (Teach)
van der Eych, Rhiannon van der Eych, and baby Ethan.
The
lord and lady of the manor, and the jurors, sat at one end of the room on a
dais representing the court. All others in attendance sat about the other three
sides, leaving the centre of the room open. Someone wishing to lay a charge
would respectfully step before the court and state their accusation. The
accused would then step forward as well. Both would be instructed to gather
pledges and between one and two minutes were allowed for this. During this time
much money changed hands as pledges were bought, silences ensured and officials
bribed. (Any bribe to a juror went right into the beadle's money jar.)
Both
sides then presented their stories, and all pledges were allowed to speak.
Rebuttals were allowed, though the court could stop them at any time. The court
then discussed the testimony and settled on a verdict. Generally, if the defendant
was found guilty they—and all their pledges—were fined. As well, generally, if
the defendant was found innocent, the plaintiff and all their pledges were
fined. There were of course cases where both sides were fined or only certain
people on both or either side.
The
charges and their results are below:
Colyne
Stewart, ale taster, did accuse Wulfgang Donnerfaust of failing to pay chevage
(a tax to move outside of the lord’s manor). Colyne said that his very absence
proved the charge was true, and that his absence meant he was negligent in his
duty as Chief Pledge of the White tithing. Though the bailiff, Naja Kesali, and
Jean-Margaret Donnerfaust tried to argue that Wulfgang was merely engaged in
espionage in Trinovantia Nova on the lord’s behalf, he was found guilty. His
estate (in the person of Jean-Margaret) was fined three gold.
Wat
of Sarum, ale taster, charged Mahault van der Eych, brook looker, with stealing
some of his ale, and having unseemly revels at their home. For pledge, Wat
secured Siegfried Brandbeorn, Hayward
and village alderman. For her defense, Mahault enlists Berend van der Eych,
flesh and fowl taster, Naja Kesali, bailiff, and Colyne Stewart, ale taster.
They allege that Wat’s missing ale was in fact consumed by him, and further
that he had left his ale under a bird’s nest to be fouled. At this point Wat
accuses Mahault of witchcraft! First Naja, then Colyne and Berend all throw
themselves on the mercy of the court and admit that Mahault is a witch and had ensorcelled
them to give testimony on her behalf. Nicolaa de Bracton, emissary from the
Citie of Eoforwic, speaks as an expert witness having spent much time with the
Dominicans. She is adept at spotting witches and assures the court that Mahault
could very well be a witch. It is pointed out that Mahault spends much time
with her horse and has many cats (having in fact recently acquired a third).
Also, wearing her low-cut bodice revealed to all that she had a strange mark on
her chest1. Siegfried alleged that she had for a time turned him
into a dog (though he had gotten better). All this evidence weighed heavily
upon Mahault, who was found guilty of stealing Wat’s ale and had to pay one
gold. Further she was fined one gold for throwing revels to which the lord had
not been invited, one gold for practicing witchcraft, one gold per person she
had ensorcelled. Her case was then sent to the church court for further
prosecution. Wat was charged one gold for leaving his ale under a bird’s nest.2
Þorfinna
gráfeldr, juror, charged Mahault and Berend van der Eych with harbouring a
suspicious stranger. As pledge she brought Nicolaa de Bracton, emissary from
Eoforwic, Wat of Sarum, ale taster, and Colyne Stewart, ale taster. In their
defense the Van der Eychs brought Siegfried Brandbeorn, Hayward and village alderman. Wat claims that
this stranger, William Donovan, was scouting the lord’s manor in anticipation
of an invasion by a large household to the south, and Nicolaa says that on her
travels she has seen this household and knows that they are indeed mighty.
Siegfried as a knight then speaks on behalf of William Donovan and this
household in his capacity as an expert on military matters, saying that Donovan
and the house are friends to the lord and his manor. In fact, the head of the
household is king of the Middle Kingdom, and is therefore above reproach. When
asked is William Donovan paid chevage when he moved to the south, it was
pointed out that this tax would have been paid to the citie council of
Eoforwic. The jurors, their pockets suspiciously jingling, find Berend and
Mahault innocent. The lord also says that he found the paperwork showing that
William Donovan had indeed paid his chevage, though he had now lost said
paperwork. Þorfinna, Wat and Colyne are all fined one token for bringing
forward a false charge. However, Siegfried is also fined. He is fined one gold
for giving false statement (for the king he had spoken of had ion fact died two
days early, his son now being king of the Middle). Also, he is fined one token
for eating the lord’s paperwork regarding William Donovan’s chevage while
transformed into a dog. The lord’s beadle, Tarian verch Gadarn, then says that
the lord should be fined for loosing paperwork. Scowling, the lord fines the
beadle for creating a disturbance in court and tells her to retake her seat.
Naja
Kesali Orekh and Jean-Margaret Donnerfaust allege that, while at Lady Mary’s,
they overheard Eirik Andersen and Siegfried Brandbeorn plotting to overthrow
the lord of the manor! For their defense, Siegfried and Eirik call on Berend
van der Eych, flesh and fowl taster, Mahault van der Eych, brook looker, Colyne
Stewart, ale taster, and Wat of Sarum, ale taster. Eirik and Siegfried assert
that they were indeed plotting, but their coup was aimed at the lands of Rising
Waters, to increase the size of the lord’s manor. Eirik says that he never saw
Naja or Jean-Margaret nearby at the event, so for them to overhear their words
they would have had to use witchcraft! Wat then accuses Naja—a Rus—of being a
gypsy! Naja and Jean-Margaret counter that Eirik is a witch, as he has a device
that steals people’s images and places them on paper. In horror, Wat leaves
Eirik
S
side and goes over to Naja and Jean-Margaret. The court finds Eirik and
Siegfried guilty and charges them each one gold. They also send Eirik’s case up
to the church court. They also find Naja guilty of witchcraft and fine her one
gold. However, she has no more money and casts the evil eye on al present and
fled the room!
As
the court slowly came to order, Naja’s sister Ivanna the Oblivious—a member of
the Russian Orthodox Church—arrived.
Irritated
at Wat of Sarum’s head knuckling, the lord fines him six gold.
Tarian
verch Gadarn, beadle, accuses Berend of sabotage in the name of vanity. She
alleges that Berend taught her how to make mead for entry in the Annual Ulrich
von der See Memorial Mead Competition, and that he sabotaged her batch. The
lady of the court speaks on Berend’s behalf, saying that sometimes a sound
brewer will just have helpless pupils, intimating that she herself is such an
inept pupil of the lord of the manor. Tarian calls on Wat of Sarum, ale taster,
Ivanna the Oblivious and Mahault van der Eych, brook looker. Wat asks how
someone as talented as Tarian could make such bad mead as she displayed at the Competition.
Mahault says that she was also taught by Berend, using the same supplies he
provided, and that her batch also turned out foul. Ivanna says she heard Berend
tell Tarian that her batch was fine for entry, which was patiently false.
Mahault says that Berend sabotaged their mead because of the sin of pride, as
he is the usual winner of the competition. Berend is found guilty and fined one
gold. He is also fined one gold for being a braggart and one gold for wasting
honey. Tarian is fined one gold for not paying an apprenticing tax. The lady of
the manor is fined two gold by the lord for rubbing salt in his old wounds.
Mahault
van der Eych, brook looker, charges Colyne Stewart, ale taster, with poaching
fish from the lord’s pond. As pledges Mahault provides Berend van der Eych,
flesh and fowl taster, Ivanna the Oblivious and Siegfried Brandbeorn, Hayward and village
alderman. Colyne calls on eirik Andersen, juror and village alderman, and Wat
of Sarum, fellow ale taster. Colyne says that he did not poach any fish as he
does not eat fish at all. When Mahault asks if he does not eat fish on Friday,
he replies that he fasts on Fridays. As proof of his fasting Wat points out the
four stone in weight Colyne had recently lost, and Eirik tells of a Friday
recently past where Colyne sent his meal back to the kitchen rather than eating
it. However, Berend, Ivanna and Siegfried proof that he often breaks his fasts
on Fridays and that fasting or not, that does not explain why they all saw him
poaching fish. Colyne is fined seven gold!
Eirik
Andersen, juror and village alderman, on behalf of Sir Evander MacLachlan, then
charges Colyne Stewart, ale taster, with being a lazy lay-about squire for not
having fought in over two months. Eirik brings forth Berend van der Eych, flesh
and fowl taster, Mahault van der Eych, brook looker, Nicolaa de Bracton,
emissary of Eoforwic, Tarian verch Gadarn, beadle, and Þorfinna gráfeldr,
juror. Colyne presents Ivanna the Oblivious, Siegfried Brandbeorn, Hayward and village
alderman, and Wat of Sarum, ale taster. Before anyone can speak, Þorfinna
reveals that’s he was bribed to speak against her husband, and gives the bribe
money to the court. The Van der Eychs both also admit being bribed and change
sides. Nicolaa then says that she is used to corruption, being from Eoforwic,
and pulls her testimony completely. Siegfried asks Eirik if he believes
strongly in the knight-squire relationship. Eirik answers that he does, so
Siegfried tells him to drop the case.3 Eirik does so, and is fined
one gold for wasting the court’s time. However, Colyne is also fined one gold
for being lazy.
Mahault
van der Eych, brook looker, then asks that her sentence for stealing a lamb
from the previous court be overturned as she had only been holding on to it to
use in a stew for this year’s Snowed Inn feast. The jury decides that the meat
in the stew could have been anything and is fined one gold for wasting the
court’s time.
Jean-Margaret
then pays her chevage as she will likely soon be moving to Trinovantia Nova.
Court
was then concluded. All the remaining tokens were collected and counted to give
a rough count of the number of dry good collected (as each item was worth one
coin). It was discovered that 154 coins had been used throughout the court’s
proceedings, meaning that roughly 154 items for the canton’s taxes to the
barony had been raised.
1.
Her
military tattoo.
2.
This
whole case, devised by Siegfried, is a parody of the witch trial from Blackadder. Nicolaa was playing the part
of the Witchfinder Pursuivant.
3.
Eirik
is soon to become Siegfried’s squire.
No comments:
Post a Comment