Kingdom of Ealdormere

Encompassing most of the province of Ontario, Canada, Ealdormere became the sixteenth kingdom of the Known World in October, A.S. XXXIII (1998). Before this, from A.S. XXIII (1988) to A.S. XXXIII, Ealdormere was a principality of the Midrealm, encompassing several pre-existing baronies.

Ealdormere's symbols are the Trillium (a three-pointed white flower common to the region) and the wolf. Ealdormereans often use the term "the Northland" as a synonym for Ealdormere (this is possibly a reference to the Canadian national anthem, or to the popularity of Norse personas in the Kingdom).

By long tradition, Ealdormere always fights alongside the Kingdom of the Middle in the Pennsic Wars under their own banners.

The Arms of Ealdormere

Gules, a trillium flower affronty argent, barbed vert, within a laurel wreath, in chief a coronet argent.

The Ban on Regions

As recorded in the third and fourth books of the Chronicles of Eoforwic., the creation of Ealdormere as a Crown Principality was a matter of some controversy. When the Eoforwic Pursuivant herald James MacAndrews first submitted this proposal by letter in January A.S. XX (1986), King Alen Elegil of the Midrealm responded by calling a hurried meeting with his advisors. The so-called Washroom Curia (this Curia was widely rumoured to have been held in a public restroom at an event) resulted in the issuing of the infamous "Ban on Regions". Published in the April A.S. XX edition of the Pale, this edict attempted to halt the effort toward creating local regions within the Midrealm by forbidding the use of local "regional" organizations beyond those Shires and Baronies recognized by the Crown. Combined with a change in Kingdom Law raising the requirements for becoming a Crown Principality dramatically, the practical effect of the Ban was to forbid the even name "Ealdormere" from open use.

Shortly thereafter, James Macandrews stripped of the office of Eoforwic Pursuivant by the Dragon Herald; while the reasons given were unrelated to his proposal, in Ealdormere it was widely seen as a punitive act done on the orders of King Alen. Rather than discourage the people of Ealdormere, however, these events only strengthened an underground commitment to greater independance from the Midrealm. A number of poems and songs written during and after "the dismal years of silence" that illustrate this point, in particular the popular and well-received "Doom of Ealdormere" by Baron Aedan.

While the Crown Principality requirements would be slightly eased by King Alen in A.S. XXI, the Ban itself remained in effect until the 17th Pennsic War in A.S. XXIII (1988). At that War Court, King Corwin of the Middle granted a charter making Ealdormere a Crown Principality.

The effect of the Ban on Regions is still felt in many Ealdormerean traditions today. The King and Queen of Ealdormere are styled "Their Lupine Highnesses", a reference to the spirit of the wolf which carried Ealdormere through the years of King Alen's proscription. Musical, poetic and bardic references to the time of the Ban on Regions abound, and Ealdormereans remain fiercely proud and protective of their independance.

This section is based on information in the Chronicles of Eoforwic.

Groups

• Barony of Septentria (Central Ontario)
  • Canton of Ardchreag (Scarborough-Pickering-Ajax-Markham)
  • Canton of Caer Draeth (Barrie)
  • Canton of Eoforwic (Downtown Toronto)
  • Canton of Greenhithe (Proto-Incipient) (Whitby-Oshawa)
  • Canton of Monadh (Orangeville)
  • Canton of Petrea Thule (Peterborough)
  • College of Skeldergate (North York)
  • Canton of Swan's Deep (Proto-Incipient) (Midland)
  • Canton of Vest Yorvik (Mississauga)
• Barony of Ben Dunfirth (Hamilton and Brant County)
• Barony of Ramshaven (South Central Ontatrio)
  • Canton of Bryniau Twywynnog(Kitchener/Waterloo and Cambridge)
  • Canton of Der Wolfengau (Guelph)
• Barony of Rising Waters (Niagara Peninsula)
• Barony of Skraeling Althing (Ottawa and Eastern Ontario)
• Shire of Trinovantia Nova (London and Western Ontario)

http://ealdormere.sca.org/ http://www.bards.ca/