Since Leofwine any many of the old guard have departed to the southern lands and no one can tell when they will return, the Fyrds leadership is now in the hands of former banner-carrier Moeckerkalfie. This thread will remain and any changes to the clan will be represented in this post. If any member of LF that is not mentioned in the Member list feels it should change, just contact me and I will correct it as soon as possible.
The Town of LewesShortly after the death of King Alfred the Great, a document was written listing twenty-five strongholds across the country. Eight of these were on the Southern borders of the Kingdom; Hastings, Chichester, Porchester, Southampton, Wareham, Bridport, Exeter & Lewes.
Lewes was a Seaxon town straddling the River Ouse, roughly 10 miles North of the coast of Suth Seaxa (Sūþsēaxe or 'South Saxons') in a valley admist the South Downs, a range of hills running the length of modern day Sussex. From it's position it had dominance over the local area both in terms of economical strength & military power. With it's control over the local area it is not surprising that Alfred ordered it made a burgh.
The most prosperous town in Suth Seaxa of the time , it's wealth and importance were displayed in that it was where market days were held, two Royal mints were 'in residence' in the town. Large swaths of flat land, irrigated by the river made the fields fertile, whilst the River ouse brought masses of trade to the town. In the martial sense, the position of the town & burgh gave great fields of view to the South & North. The proximity of the Iron Age fort 'Caburn', atop Mount Caburn to the East of Lewes, showed how key the valley and river were in Suth Seaxa.
Following the Norman Conquest the town of Lewes was granted to William de Warenne a cousin of William the Bastard and one of his most dedicated generals. Whilst he held other swathes of land across the country, de Warenne appears to have preferred living in Lewes where, under his orders, the foundations for the first castle to be built in Lewes. de Warenne was also responsible for the building of Lewes Priory, where he was buried.
The Fyrd of LewesIn times of war when the Eorl of Suth Seaxa raised his banner the þegn would rally their tenants to their Lord, the coerls compelled to fight for their master in the 'fyrd'. Villages & towns would empty of able bodied men, armed & armoured with whatever they had to hand, could afford or beg/steal. For some this might amount to an old war axe or battered sword passed from father to son for generations. To others it would mean a sharpening wood axes, scythes & other equipment of their trade. Armour would be limited to a mans daily clothing, very few being able to afford any maille armour. Some villages or towns would equip their fyrdmen with long spears ending in sharpened steel, supplementing the poor equipment of the commoners with a deadly battlefield weapon.
With their motley assortment of arms & armaments they would march to battle where the þegn would form the backbone, the fyrd the numbers and the Eorl's húscarls the armoured first.
Fyrdmen were sometimes divided into 'Battles', forming long shield walls that would alternate whilst fighting, the engaged Battle retreating through the reserve who would then engage whilst the first Battle reorganised & rested for a moment.
It is almost certain that the fyrd of Suth Seaxa would have been present at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 as Battle, the village where the two armies fought, was within the boundaries of Suth Seaxa and as such the men of Lewes would have been present at the decisive battle of the Saxon dynasty.
-LF_Barabas
-LF_Thomas Caravard
-LF_ModusTolucan
-LF_Andraste
-LF_Burgred
-LF_Harold_Vargsson
-LF_Mabons
-LF_Moeckerkalfie
We have very few rules and those we have are easy to follow;
- Be courteous, polite, friendly and welcoming at all times whilst playing Vikingr & upon the M&B forums as well as any Vikingr related sites. I, the Reeve, will be merciless towards anyone who performs any actions that will damage our name and reputation as a Clan.
- To have a historically accurate name whilst playing Vikingr. The correct prefix for the Clan is
LF_. Those who require access to Seaxon names can use this
name generator, or speak to the Reeve.
TenetsOur tenets are the basis for the fyrd of Lewes's very existance. Through our actions we wish to;
- Create a living, breathing, disciplined & organised group of Seaxon warriors within Vikingr. This includes roleplay to an extent and the use of historically accurate names.
- Be as historically possible within the confines of Vikingr and what knowledge we have.
- Have as good a time playing Vikingr & other games together as we humanly can.
SignaturesBelow are clan signatures. Feel free to place the code into your Taleworlds signature to advertise the fyrd!
[url=http://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php/topic,183378.0.html][IMG]http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/rapier17/lewesfyrdsigsmall1.png[/IMG]
[url=http://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php/topic,158536.0.html][IMG]http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/rapier17/lewesfyrdsigsmall3a.png[/IMG][/url]
