So back in mid February I sent an email to the contacts on the website for the various contacts of the Peerage councils of Lochac asking 4 questions.  The email as written is below.

Greetings unto the Councils of Lochac’s Peerages,

With the current Known World discussions on a possible Fourth Peerage I though I would pose a few questions to our Kingdoms current peerage councils in order to further cement my opinion on the matter and possibly provide a clearer understanding of the situation for all of Lochac.

The following questions are posed to the respective Councils as a request for an official unified council response, not the individual opinions of various members.

1. Does the council currently consider the efforts of Archers (both Combat and Target), Fencers, Siege Engineers, Equestrian and other such participants of various fringe activities to be worthy of their respective peerage (if earned, of course)?
2. Does the council currently have anyone in their sights who they believe may be worthy of their peerage based on the above activities (Not asking for detail, just whether or not it’s possible)?
3. Does the council ever receive nominations for their respective peerage based on the above activities?
4. And finally… What is the councils official position on nominations for their respective peerage based on the above activities?

I propose to publish these questions and their answers publicly for the benefit of all of Lochac as I feel that having a public unified response from each of the councils will help everyone understand where things stand, not just the individual opinions of various members.

I look forward to your responses.

Initially I received a bounce email from the published email address for contact on the Chivalry website and was provided another email address by Sir Gui of Rowany as well as a suggestion to forward the questions to the Crown as well.  This I did and then patiently awaited response.  It’s been more than 2 weeks and I have yet to even get an acknowledgement of my email from all but the Laurels Council who kindly provided the reply below.

We have an official stance published on the Laurel website and we have a Fencer as a member of the Order.

We are quite happy to consider any of the activities you mention, however the aspects we currently look at are not whether they win at the activity, but whether they do it, research it and teach it in a period style.  We will consider any recommendations for candidates.

Your question of what numbers of the order feel the various activities should have a peerage and what that peerage should be, this would be best answered by sending off to the SCA Census team for a breakdown of numbers within Lochac and by peerage.

I am indeed impressed by certain members of the Laurel Councils quick response and the documentation that they have on the website explaining it. Though I am concerned by the avoidance of directly answering questions 2 and 3 (which I personally do not believe require anything other than a yes or no response without further qualification), I am willing to concede however that question 2 may give away too much of the councils “Secret” business, even with a one word answer.

I’m still waiting to hear from the Pelican and Chivalry councils, so I’ll post their official responses when I get them.

As it stands with the information I currently have, I’m still not convinced that we need a 4th peerage, though that may change if in another couple of weeks I haven’t yet heard from the last 2 councils and I may take the non-reply as an answer in itself. Just to clarify, I do not believe that the councils should or even need to answer these questions, as they are not subject to the whims of plebs like myself, however I do believe that we as the populace of Lochac have the right to ask and be politely responded to, even if that answer is mind your own business. After all, is not the concept of these peerages to maintain a level of status that is worthy of respect, chivalry, honour and the quality of the skills each peerage upholds?

Aim:  To provide a framework for the establishment of a new group/co-op/community that can work together to develop a community living arrangement with the goal of purchasing the Crossroads property in Yass and provide a fully sustainable medieval living community.

Membership:  The group will be established without a joining fee however members will be legally contracted for a period of 1, 2 or 5 years to contribute a nominated monthly fee.  This fee will become the basic income of the group, and monies generated will be spent in the purchase and development of the community living project.  Membership numbers will be allocated based on length of time as a continual member.  Each year membership numbers will be re-allocated based on who is still a member, shuffling down if members give up their memberships.  There will be no shares, and members will need to continue their payments or risk loosing their membership.  This plan allows for reward for loyal active members and ensures that those that are not loyal do not retain positions of privilege.

Once the accommodation block is built, membership will include a small hotel style room allocated to that member.   Members will be able to rent out their suite should they not need use of it themselves, this could subsidise their monthly payment.  Provision may be made fore some cases of financial hardship, however applications for such will need to be in writing with substantial evidence, backed by previously good payment history.

Members are encouraged to think of membership as a life goal, not just as a hobby.  The idea here is to develop a community of people willing to live together and contribute to a better living arrangement.  One goal is to have space for all members to live within about 3 years.

All benefits of membership will be allocated based on Membership number.

Board:  A Board will be created and will consist of member numbers 1 through to 7 or their appointed representatives.  The board will only have the power to manage memberships and assign appointed positions/jobs.  The board will need to approve new memberships complete with an interviewing process to establish whether the potential new member is of a similar mind to the rest of the membership.  The board will also have the ability to vote out any members that it deems to be detrimental to the community, terminating their contract.

The board will assign jobs/positions to individuals, preferably members.  These will include a complete job description of what is expected.  In most cases these positions will be paid part time positions based on a fixed number of hours or paid per specific task.  The first of these will be a Managing Director responsible for the day to day running of the entire community.  It will be this persons job to ensure that the plan outlined here gets turned into reality.  They will be responsible for setting up the rest of the positions and ensuring that the allocated tasks are being completed.  It is not the boards job to tell the MD how to do theirs, only to appoint or remove them

Finance:  The initial primary goal of the group will be to establish a sustainable income stream that will support the purchase of the property and the day to day expenses involved in running that property including machinery and accommodation expenses.  This will be mainly achieved through the monthly membership payments, however will also be supplemented via site hires and other community based business ventures.  The monthly membership at this current time is $300/Month for 1 year, $260/Month for 2 years and $200/month for 5 years and the group is looking to find at least 10 members, though 15-20 is the ultimate goal.

Once an income is established a business plan will be written which will take into account the income streams and a mortgage will be sought that include the costs involved in building a community living arrangement and farm machinery needed to maintain the property.

Accommodation Block:  The community living arrangement will be designed to accommodate the number of members at the time plus 20% for future expansion.  It will be Hotel type accommodation with each member being allocated their own small suite.  The accommodation building will also have a community kitchen and laundry facility.  The building will be designed to be modern with a medieval look to it.  Possibly rendered with exposed wood beam facades to look almost Tudor.  Plans are for it to have an internal courtyard with rooms all facing each other.  The location for it will be close to road access.  This will also form the main entrance to the property, providing a stepping stone from the almost medieval to the period perfect.

Members will have the ability to allocate their suite as hotel accommodation for hire to the general public or to live in them themselves.  This will be managed by an appointed on site manager and monies raised minus a booking/management fee will be returned to the member.

The accommodation block with be build within 2 years of the purchase of the property by an appointed developer/builder.  No aspect of the construction will be left for members to and it be be finished to the point of liveability.  Members will be able to use their rooms as they see fit without board interference.

After the Block:  The accommodation block will be the first step to becoming a fully sustainable medieval community.  The future of the property after the construction of the accommodation will be to consider the construction of a demonstration medieval village.  Plans will open to all members and this will start the phase of medieval sustainable living.  The preferred plan at the moment is to make a demonstration village close to the accommodation block and then consider small out laying medieval farms further back.  There is also the possibility of hiding a number of manor houses that may not be entirely period in the hard to get to places.  This will provide a reason for the general public to want to come and stay as well as give the group the ability to turn the demonstration village into another income stream.

The Guild Hall:  What is currently the guild hall will be finished and turned into a tavern.  The up-stairs will be left open to accommodate tables and chairs and a bar will be built downstairs.  This will form the start of the demonstration village and a gathering point for meetings and celebrations.  It will also provide a great hub for Medieval events, providing shelter for feasts and classes.  A toilet block will be constructed near the Tavern a separate kitchen will follow as the budget allows.

A Community Garden/Farm:  Establishment of a community farm will take place even before the construction of the Accommodation block.  This the produce of which will be distributed amongst those members who contribute to it’s maintenance.  Any excess will be offered to other members who have not contributed.

Summary:  This is hopefully a plan that with sufficient support by a small number of dedicated people will ensure the success of Crossroads in the future.  It will be set-up as a company, with an accountant and run with the interest of the membership in mind.  The reason for choosing an ongoing membership as opposed to a share based system is to ensure that there is an income that can then reward the membership that are loyal.  I acknowledge that there are things that need to be worked out fully and discussed with potential serious participants, this is only an outline at the moment, a direction to start moving that may lead to Crossroads continuing to be used for Medieval Sustainable living.

If you are interested in discussing this plan further, then please contact me.