The catchphrase of the SCA is that we are “recreating the Middle Ages not as they were, but as they should have been”. Life in the historical Middle Ages was frequently “nasty, brutish, and short” (as was much of the population), riddled with dirt, disease, ignorance, violent religious persecution, and social oppression. Nevertheless, this same time period gave birth to the ideals of chivalry, courtesy, and romance: the age of the Crusades, the Inquisition, and the Black Death was also the age of courtly love, the literature of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, and the generations-long effort to transform thugs with swords and horses into embodiments and exemplars of virtue, morality, and service to a higher cause (a noble lady, God, or the Crown).
      The goal of the SCA is to create a mediaeval-feeling atmosphere in which the highest ideals of the Middle Ages, as well as its many beautiful forms of art, can be pursued, while the unpleasant aspects of the period are left out.

The Known World

   The Known World is the term we use for the SCA worldwide. To continue the mediaeval feel of the SCA the modern necessary administration is for the most part set up to give the illusion of the mediaeval world. Hence, rather than federations or chapters or what have you, we use kingdoms, baronies, shires, and so on. There are currently nineteen kingdoms. Most are in North America; Drachenwald includes Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Kingdoms often meet regularly at large events such as Pennsic (held every summer on the East Coast of the United States), with up to four thousand fighters taking the battlefield.
    At any given time there are about 100,000 people active in the SCA, and about a third of these would be dues paying members.

Why we use odd names for our officers and branches

    The terminology of the SCA is sometimes confusing: for instance, we have a Seneschal instead of a Chairperson, an Exchequer instead of a Treasurer, and so on, while names for different sizes and types of branches include Shire (the basic local unit of five or more), Barony (usually 25-150), Principality (over 200), and Kingdom (over 400), as well as special types like Strongholds (military bases) and Collages (university groups) for situations where there is likely to be a constantly rotating population.
     The reason we use these names is, essentially, to contribute to the mediaeval feeling of the SCA. Even when dealing with very ordinary issues of organization, it is that bit more enjoyable to refer a matter to the “Seneschal” rather than the “Chairperson”, or to speak of the “Shire of Eplaheimr” rather than the “Midlands Club”. When group competitions occur – for instance, “wars” between the armoured fighters of two groups – it is vastly more enjoyable to have a “war” between, say, the Principality of Nordmark and the Crown Principality of Insulae Draconis than between “SCA-Sweden” and “SCA-Ireland/Great Britain/Iceland”.

What titles add

    Like the names for officers and branches, the use of roughly mediaeval titles creates a sense of atmosphere. It also enhances the awareness of courtesy: addressing a stranger as “my lord” rather than “hey, you” is both polite and mediaeval-feeling, reminding everyone in earshot that we are, for the time being, portraying mediaeval gentry. To most people, the Middle Ages are characterized by knights, barons, kings and queens, dukes and duchesses, and so forth: not having such personages about would detract greatly from the mediaeval atmosphere.
     Titles are also important in that they serve as a record of achievement, a reward for skills and efforts made for the group benefit, and generally a means of positive recognition. In the SCA, everyone enters at the bottom rank as “my lord” or “my lady”, and anyone can work their way up to the top ranks by a number of means: skill at arms, artistic ability, dedicated effort for the group’s sake, and so forth. Many titles also imply (and indeed require) capability in a certain field and the willingness to pass it on to others: an SCA knight, for instance, is by definition a first-rate fighter and responsible for teaching the skills of fighting to whoever wants to learn.
     Additionally, having titled personages makes it possible to hold regular courts at which those who have done well can be called up by the highest nobility available (from the King and Queen, if they are available, down to whoever holds precedence in a small Shire) and recognised for their work, skill, or deeds. Courts are meant to entertain by adapting a slice of mediaeval life and procedure to the needs of the SCA; they are also often occasions for strong emotion as when, for instance, a deserving person is at last given the noble title they have earned.

Atmosphere at events

    The goal of SCA events is to create a generally medieval atmosphere without causing undue discomfort to our basically modern members. For instance, unlike most true re-enactment organizations, the SCA allows its members to wear modern spectacles; combat armour often includes plastic plates concealed under leather or authentic-looking fabric overtunics; nearly all events include running water, toilets, and hot (or at least warmish) showers; and so forth.
    While modern items are allowed, SCA members generally make an effort to conceal them from view so as not to distract from the overall atmosphere. Plastic bottles are kept off the table at feasts, and most folk do their best to either pour soft drinks into a goblet or use a mug big enough to hide the can from casual sight. Clothing and armour is supposed to follow the “ten-foot” rule: that is, it looks authentic from no less than ten feet away. No one is ever evicted for clothes that are not period-looking enough – the only actual requirement is that one make an attempt to dress in a mediaeval fashion – and long-term members are always happy to help new people upgrade their garb as quickly or slowly as they feel the need to.
      Because we cannot always hold events in castles or out in the greenwood (see previous comment about running water and showers), we have learned over the years how to bring atmosphere to even very mundane sites such as community halls. Banners effectively conceal much mundane architecture and bring a mediaeval feeling to blank white walls, and when a banner-hung hall is lit only by candlelight, it is easy to believe oneself back in the Middle Ages. Some people have very elaborate period table settings, which add considerably to the atmosphere, but simple wooden, metal, or unpatterned ceramic plates and bowls will jar no one’s sensitivities. Atmosphere is also created by music - often played by live performers on mediaeval instruments, but sometimes produced by the “little bards in a box”, carefully concealed under a table or drape. The object is not to re-create exactly what a mediaeval experience would have been in every detail, but to create a strong impression of the most pleasant elements of the mediaeval experience of a banquet, tournament, or other gathering, in such a manner that most people (after the initial sense of funny-clothes weirdness passes off) can feel comfortable participating.