Welcome to the Online Clann Tartan Newsletter for October 2008

UNCLE GUS WANTS YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Col. Gaffney's cannot do what it does without a Staff to oversee equipment maintenance, take responsibility for logistics and supply, and most of all feed us! Staff elections are coming up Saturday, November 1st 2008. They will be held at the Quarterly Members Meeting at the Lake Hiawatha Neighborhood Center at 1 PM, not at Corcoran (Corcoran is now closed on Saturdays). Persons interested in helping Clann to do what it does should please talk to any member of the Staff about running for office. Staff names and numbers are listed elsewhere in this Newsletter.

Our gallant Captain has deserted to graduate school; the position of Captain is open at this election. The Captain needs to be well versed in military matters: pike drill, musket drill, and the care and firing of mortars.

Uncle Gus wants YOU! Gaffney's needs you to help make it go.

BIG ISLAND SETUP

Big Island and Mankato History Fair coming in October
Big Island Rendezvous, October 2-5

The 2nd and 3rd are school days, and the weekend is public. We need enough of us during the school days to run about eight demos simultaneously. Organization and scheduling is tight, so even those who don't feel ready to give demonstrations are needed to act as traffic cops and prepare meals. We put on presentations of roughly 20 minutes on some aspect of 17th century Scottish life. On the weekend, we normally have some scheduled presentations like dance and drill, and we may be asked to participate in other event activities, such as the parade. Saturday night is usually a big party near the main stage.

We are allowed to set up the weekend before the event; please check Staff announcements for Corporate setup time. As we did last year, we have the prime real estate right inside the gate; we will be the first group that people see!

For a fee you will be able to park at the private residence on the road to the park entrance. Free participant parking is available at Snyder field (not the athletic field, but a lot on the North side of the high school.). Shuttles run from the parking area to the park on a regular schedule. Shuttles run to shower facilities at high school. Showers are free for show participants. Personal vehicles are prohibited from event grounds during show hours.

Location

Big Island Rendezvous is located in Albert Lea, MN - just off Interstate 35 about 98 miles south of the Twin Cities.

Drive Time

Allow about 2 hours from the Twin Cities.

Directions

From Minneapolis or Saint Paul, take I35 South to I90 in Albert Lea.
Take I90 West to the 90 west take exit 157 (one mile)
Turn Left and head South on Bridge Avenue to Hammer Road (about 1 mile).
Turn Right and head East on Hammer Road to the park entrance.
You will be able to drive on-site before and after show hours. Our
camp will be located inside the park area.

Mankato History Fair, October 9-11

Saturday is a public day. We are allowed to remain in camp Saturday night and leave Sunday. Clann equipment will be packed after closing Saturday. Mankato is within day-trip range, but vehicles have to removed before opening.

Directions

From the Twin Cities, follow 169 through Mankato.
Left at the Hillcrest Health Care Center ( if you go past the flashing lights at Co Road 68 you've gone too far);
Left onto Shamrock Lane, which is the second left after crossing the Blue Earth River;
follow this to its end (Jack McGowan's on the map)

A proposed procedure for disputes of historical fact

In the event of dispute, invite the person you disagree with to get together and study the evidence; this is the civilized thing to do. Possibly copy the camp and company reps at this time. The other person has ten days to respond and schedule a date. At this point, *both* parties are to refrain from discussing the issue with the public, as it is officially disputed.

If the challenged party does not respond or they the meeting cannot be scheduled, issue a formal challenge. At a time X days from the challenge, papers are due from both parties, each stating their position *and giving references and citations.* The issue is still disputed and still must not be discussed with the public.

If a member misses the deadline for the papers, the *other* member is held to prevail and that side of the issue will be presented to Clann and the public. If the late person presents good reason a later filing can be negotiated.

The judges will consist of the camp rep, the company rep, and a qualified person not associated with Col. Gaffney's. After the panel has judged, the prevailing position shall be taught or, if the evidence is not strong enough for either position to prevail, we shall teach that the evidence is unclear and we are not sure of the facts.

We are an educational organization. We strive to continually improve our grasp of historical fact as supported by the best available evidence. Often, we don't have enough evidence, but when we do, evidence must prevail.

Members are encouraged to think about this issue; we will discuss it at the Members' Meeting.

Mia McDavid

FOR SALE

GAFFNEY'S SUTLER SEEKS WARES

You can either bring your goods to Heidi at events, or entrust them to her beforehand. We ask that items be small and not terribly fragile if Heidi is to transport them.

Thank you for your support of Clann Tartan.

Board Minutes

Clann Tartan Board Meeting, August 19, 2008

Board Members Present: Julie Yoder, Bruce Yoder, Glenn McDavid, Betsy Bolton, Cate Hesser, Marty Byers

Staff Present: Mia McDavid

Also Present: David Vavreck

Minutes from the July meeting were accepted as presented.

REPORTS:

Vice President:

Not much happening. Laura has the recruiting flyers.

Treasurer:

Financially, Almost nothing happened in July. We still have not heard from the Minnesota Scottish Fair and Highland Games. Apparently our contact there was out of the country. Mary will try to reach somebody else. (check received in September)

Deer River: They say that they handed out the checks. Nobody in Clann seems to have ours. We will ask around. (they found the check and mailed it in September)

Bruce presented a new report, giving revenue and expense by show. It still needs more information, e.g. headcounts, but already looks like a very useful planning tool. E.g. it indicates that for some long distance shows we may need to limit attendance to keep food costs down.

Secretary

We will probably need to renew our ISP contract with DotServant. John D's website is not yet ready, and in any case does not include e-mail, which is an absolute necessity for us. We can look at Yahoo, Gmail, etc., to see what they offer.

The Board agreed that we should renew our contract with DotServant and authorized payment. Financially this is close to a wash since one way or another we will have to pay an ISP.

Quartermaster

Absent. However, at Perham we encountered somebody who can make pike heads for us. We lent him one our current ones as a prototype. David V says he is good. We asked him for a quote for four.

Company and Camp Reps

There are reports of unrest.

Music Guild

Going well, learning stuff.

Dance Guild

Going well, learning stuff.

Sword Guild

Nobody showed for the August meeting. There was considerable enthusiasm at Perham. Some safety concerns came up, but they were managed.

Fiber Guild

Mia is planning a dying demo for the Ren Faire show. Rilla will probably bring her great wheel to it. Jen has offered to host meetings at her house. Judy Byers has a wheel she might sell.

Historic Site

Nothing lately, but the last work weekend (July 12-13) went very well.

Garden Guild

No update. Some produce has been donated. Not meeting.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Minnesota Renaissance Festival, August 23-24.

Church event in Hudson, September 7.

Muster (Second weekend in September)

At Jack McGowan's in Mankato. The Muster Committee has met.

Big Island

A list of 10 demos has been sent to Perry. We may need shelter for some of them if the weather is bad.

Mankato

We have still not yet heard from them, but that is not a surprise.

Fargo (November)

Nothing yet. It is a long way. Accomodations are an issue--this is not a camping event

Others

Anything else is tentative. Lisa has several possibilities for 2009 that are close to the cities.

OLD BUSINESS

None

NEW BUSINESS

Glenn said that it is very unlikely that he will run for Secretary again at the February Board elections, or to serve as Clann computer resource past that date.

Marty announced that he will definitely not be available to serve on Board or Staff next year, and would decline any such nomination at the upcoming elections.

There have been some disagreements among members about what is historically accurate that they have not been able to resolve privately. Julie suggested a mechanism for dealing with this and adopting an "official" Clann position on such issues. This was tabled for the next meeting. Any ideas?--Send them to the Board List.

David pointed out that 2009 is odd numbered year, and that historically Clann has made long distance trips in such years. He was told (see July minutes) that such plans are already being considered. He suggested St. Mary's muster for this event. It will be the 3rd weekend of October, which used to be the weekend of Winona but is not now scheduled for Clann.

There was a complaint about an incident at Perham. Julie responded that the Board has a mechanism in place for dealing with such issues and is prepared to take all necessary measures to deal with them, including expulsion of the problem party from the organization.

Board & Staff

If you need to contact someone associated with Clann Tartan, here is where you find out how. If you are unsure who to contact, you can always email us at: info@clanntartan.org

Guilds

Contact:
Marty L. Byers
orthodoxdruid@gmail.com
651-483-1173

MUSIC!!!!!!!!!!

We will sing and play music of many styles and places from our period. Bring your voice and/or your instrument(s). Neither need be period correct.

The Yoders have graciously offered to host music once a month. We will meet at their house at 4736 12th Ave S, Minneapolis, from 7 - 9pm the 4th Monday of each month.

To contact the Yoders, call 612-825-4519 or email to Julieyoder@juno.com.

To contact your Music Chair, call David at 612-378-1973 or email to baethan1630@yahoo.com

Thanks, and I look forward to making some noise with y'all!

David

We have a yahoo groups email list for the guild that we use for reminders about the meetings and topical discussions. If you want to be on the email list, request an invitation to join from Bruce at bruceyoder@juno.com.

Dance

It is at the corner of 27th Av S and E 44th Street. Both streets are one way. That block of 44th between 28th and 27th Avenues is one way westbound and that block of 27th Av between 44th and 43rd Streets is one way northbound. You must enter turning west onto 44th St from 28th Av and exit from 27th Av onto 43rd St.

Questions? call Mary at 651-699-6853 or Julie at 612-825-4519

2nd & 4th Tuesdays
Saint Christopher's Episcopal Church, 2300 N Hamline Ave. in St. Paul.

It is at the northeast corner of Highway 36 and Hamline Avenue (Hamline is between Snelling and Lexington). The church is actually encircled by the highway entrance ramp.
The Dance Guild gathers weekly from 7PM-9PM to learn and practice historic Scottish country dances.
For more information call:

Mary at 651-699-6853 or Julie at 612-825-4519

It's a great place to meet people!

We have a yahoo groups email list for the guild that we use for reminders about the meetings and topical discussions. If you want to be on the email list, request an invitation to join from Bruce at bruceyoder@juno.com.

Fiber Guild

Historic Site

Historical Background for Clann Tartan

by Glenn McDavid

Introduction

These are notes from the presentation I gave at Clann Tartan's muster on September 14, 2008. I have used an outline format and tried to keep the text very brief, but I have provided a lot of web links and hard copy references. All members are encouraged to follow up on any of these and I will be happy to discuss them. Comments, suggestions, and corrections (with verifiable references) are welcome.

The Thirty Years' War: 1618-1648

General European Historical Background, c. 1618

• The Holy Roman Empire: A collection of Kingdoms, Principalities, etc. in what is now Germany and neighboring countries. The most powerful was Austria ruled by the Hapsburgs, and for some time now the Emperor, though theoretically elected, had always been a Hapburg.

• The Protestant Reformation. Started with Luther in 1517 and quickly spread. By 1600 the Empire had grudgingly conceded some tolerance to Lutherans, less to the stricter Calvinists.

• Spain. Very Catholic. Ruled by Hapsburgs as well, and hence allied with the Empire. Most powerful army in Europe. Extensive possessions in Italy and the Netherlands.

• The Netherlands. Very rich from commerce. In rebellion from Spain since about 1568. In 1609 a 12 year truce was concluded. The mostly Protestant north (roughly modern Holland) was under the control of the Dutch rebels. The south (roughly modern Belgium) was largely Catholic and still under Spanish control.

• France. Mostly Catholic, with Cardinal Richelieu as effectively Prime Minister. However, France had been at war with Spain for much of the previous century. Visualize it on a map. With Spain to the southwest, Spanish territories in Italy to the southeast, the Spanish Netherlands to the north, and the Hapsburg-ruled empire to the east, they are surrounded by the Hapsburg enemy. Hostility to the Hapsburgs had consistently trumped the common Catholic religion in the previous century, and was not going to stop now.

Outbreak and first parts of the War

• Everybody was expecting a big war to start in 1621, when the Dutch-Spanish truce was due to expire, but fighting actually started in 1618. The Emperor was trying to tighten control of Bohemia (modern Czech republic). The local Protestants resisted and a meeting in 1618 ended when the Imperial representatives were thrown out the window--the The defenestration of Prague.

• The Bohemians then invited Frederick V, Elector Palatine (modern German Rhineland) to be their King. He was a Protestant. He accepted. He was soon called the "Winter King"--his reign was not expected to last long against the Imperial wrath, and it didn't. An Imperial army crushed his forces in 1620, and he was forced into exile. The Empire, with Spanish help, then proceeded to conquer Frederick's posessions in the Palatinate in the next few years.

• Denmark entered the war on the Protestant side, but by 1629 was utterly crushed. King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden now sees Imperial forces on the Baltic. France sees Hapsburgs triumphant in Germany. Sweden, encouraged and financed by France, enters the war.

King Gustavus in the war: 1630-1632

• Landed in Germany in 1630

• May 1631 -- City of Magdeburg besieged by Imperial army. Gustavus could not relieve the siege. City sacked and burned, most inhabitants massacred. Biggest atrocity of the war.

• September 1631 -- Battle of Breitenfeld. Gustavus wins big battle against Imperial army. Protestants flock to him in support.

• November 1632 -- Battle of Lützen. Technically a Swedish victory--they remained in posession of the battlefield, but the Imperial army was able to withdraw in good order. High casualties on both sides, including Gustavus, who was killed in a cavalry skirmish.

Later developments

• 1634: Battle of Nördlingen.. The main Swedish army is crushed by a joint Imperial and Spanish force. In the aftermath the Emperor is triumphant. Everything that Gustavus had won is lost.

• 1635: France openly enters the war on the Protestant side.

• 1636-1645: Swedish military recovery.

• 1648: War ends with the Peace of Westphalia. Germany utterly devastated. 1/3--1/2 the population was killed.

  There was nothing heroic or chivalrous about how this war was fought. It was the most brutal conflict Europe had yet known. The "Laws of War" were just scraps of paper. Civilians were constantly subject to looting, rape, and murder by the armies of both sides. A "friendly army" was just as bad as the enemy. Under Gustavus this was slighly mitigated on the Protestant side, but he was only in the war for two years. After his death the conduct of the Swedish army was as bad as that of the Imperialists.

  The horrors of the war were frequently depicted by contempary artists. Jacques Callot's The Miseries of War is a well known example.

Scotland

• Ethnically divided, with tension. Think Quebec/Canada on steroids. The Lowlands, including Edinburgh, were English/Scots speaking. The Highlanders spoke Gaelic, very similar to Irish, and in fact Lowlanders often referred to them and their language as "Irish." This was not a complement.

• Officially Protestant. In the Lowlands very much actually so, but there were still a lot of at least nominal Catholics in the Highlands. For more information and references see http://home.comcast.net/~gmcdavid/HistNotes/highland_rel.html

• At peace with England. Forget all that you have heard about Anglo-Scottish hostility. From about 1580 King James VI did everything he could to stay at peace with England. He knew he was next in line for the English throne and really wanted it. He achieved this goal in 1603, becoming King James I of England. The royal court moved from Edinburgh to London and never returned, except for brief visits. James died in 1625 and his son became King Charles I of England and Scotland.

The Scottish Highlands

• The Highlanders have an image as simple barbarians, but in fact their written culture, shared with the Irish, is older than that of English. The Golden Age of Scottish Gaelic Culture had ended with the fall of the Lordship more than a century before, but some of the richer chiefs of the MacLeods, MacLeans, MacDonalds, and (!) Campbells maintained traditional Gaelic courts at home, and continued to do so throughout the century.

• Traditional Gaelic culture, like that of their Irish kin, was rural. There were towns in the Highlands (e.g. Inverness), but they were not Highland towns. They were colonies of lowlanders planted by royal authority. The people of the towns did not consider themselves Highlanders, and neither did their Highland neighbors in the country.

• King James VI hated everything about Highland culture and society. For him the only good Highlanders were those who had adopted Lowland culture. He required that the Highland chiefs show they had Feudal titles to their lands; i.e. a place in the official Lowland social structure. He also attempted to repress many aspects of Highland culture. These repressive measures are well documented by historians of the Highlands such as Michael Newton and I.F. Grant. I have summarized them at http://home.comcast.net/~gmcdavid/HistNotes/Hostility.html.

• King Charles was much more interested in English affairs, and hence his neglect of the Highlands was to their benefit. In 1644, as his fortunes in the English Civil War waned, he turned for help to those same Highland chiefs his father had hated. Under the Marquis of Montrose an army of Highlanders and Irishmen (with close Highland connections) fought a brilliant campaign on the King's behalf for a year until a superior Scottish force defeated them in September 1645, well after the King's army in England had been decisively beaten at Naseby.

Scottish involvement in the war.

• The Elector Frederick V was married to Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of King James VI/I and sister of Charles I. Hence many Scots felt attracted to her cause, but neither King officially intervened in the war.

• With England and Scotland both being officially Protestant, official sympathies were toward that side.

• When Denmark was forced out of the war, King Charles I allowed Gustavus to recruit in Scotland. Scotland had more young men than could be peacefully employed, and sending a lot of them on a one-way (for such it usually turned out to be) trip to Germany was a way to deal with this.

• Most of the Scottish leadership came from Lowland families. Only one regiment, MacKay's was actually recruited by a Highland Chief in the old manner of a Chief calling his clansmen to follow him into war. However, there were probably a lot of Highlanders in the other regiments as well.

• In reality, as opposed to on paper, the recruiters were not too fussy about who signed up. As in all armies, they had quotas to fill, and sometimes filled them from the town jail.

References

Notation:
(B) Book, linked to Amazon or other source.
(W) Web reference.

• General and military history

  • Christer Jörgensen, et.al., Fighting Techniques of the Early Modern World: Equipment, Combat Skills, and Tactics: AD 1500 ~ AD 1763 (B)

  • John Childs, Warfare in the Seventeenth Century (B)

  • Jacob de Gheyn, The Exercise of Arms The most influential military drill manual of the period. Our pike and musket drill is based on it. There is at least one other edition of this available, but I could not find an online source. (B)

  • Encyclopedia of World History, The Thirty Years' War, General chronology. http://www.bartleby.com/67/617.html (W)

  • Encyclopedia of World History, Swedish Phase of the 30 Years War. http://www.bartleby.com/67/620.html (W).

  • C.V. Wedgwood, The Thirty Years War. Classic general history of the war. (B)

  • Richard Brzezinski and Richard Hook, The Army of Gustavus Adolphus (1): Infantry. Includes some discussion of the Scottish infantry. Parts are at Google Books.(B)

  • Richard Brzezinski and Richard Hook, The Army of Gustavus Adolphus (2): Cavalry. The rest of the army. Even though we re-enact regular infantry, we need to know something about the cavalry, artillery, and snipers. (B)

  • Richard Brzezinski and Richard Hook, Lützen 1632. The biggest battle of the war, and one that settled absolutely nothing, except that Gustavus was killed. This book gives a detailed picture of how a set-piece battle was fought, and gives equal time to both sides, so you can learn something about the Imperial army under its greatest commander. (B)

• Highland Culture and History

  • Michael Newton, A Handbook of the Scottish Gaelic World (B)

  • Michael Newton, Gaelic in Scottish History and Culture http://www.rfs.scotshome.com (W). A shorter version of his Handbook.

  • Alexander Shevlinn, Gaelic Society - an Overview. My comments at The golden age of Gaelic Scotland http://www.simplyscottish.com/readingroom/history/gaelic_society.htm (W)

  • I.F. Grant and Hugh Cheape, Periods in Highland History. (B)

  • Stuart Reid, Highlanders - Myth and Reality http://www.ecwsa.org/histhiglandersmythandreality.html (W)

  • Stuart Reid and Angus McBride, Highland Clansman: 1689-1746. The title is misleading; The period covered begins in the 1630's. (B)

  • Lowland Hostility to the Highlands. Several quotes documenting this, with links and references. http://home.comcast.net/~gmcdavid/HistNotes/Hostility.html (W)

• Scottish involvement in the war

  • James Miller, Swords for hire: The Scottish Mercenary. Extensive coverage of the 30 Years' War, as well as the service of Scottish mercenaries on the continent before and after that conflict. (B)

  • Robert Monro, Monro, His Expedition with the Worthy Scots Regiment Called Mac-Keys. The most extensive contemporary account of Scottish soldiers in the 30 Years War, (B)

  • Ian Grimble, Chief of MacKay. I have written some brief comments about this book. Chapter 5 summarizes Monro, with discussion. (B)

Calendar of Events

The following is a list of the dates of the events that are currently on the schedule for this year. The staff has met and decided to keep this running list of events in the newsletter to give you a chance to get an idea of what is going on this season as well as keep you updated to changes in the schedule.

The column titled status will include the following information.

Tentative- this means that an event organizer or Clann has expressed a strong enough interest in doing this event that it warrants reserving space on the calendar for the event.

Pending- this is the next stage of an event. This means that the Contracts Administrator has entered serious discussion about Clann doing an event but we are still not committed to the event. You should however if possible think about whether or not you may be able to attend this event.

Scheduled- this level means that the board and staff have approve the event and we are committed to providing manpower to making the event happen. When an event is assigned this level please let Julie know as soon as possible if you can or can not attend this event.

Canceled- This means that for various reasons an scheduled event has been removed from the current season. We will try and give as much notice as we can prior to canceling an event.

If you have any questions about this, please feel free to contact me regarding this matter

Thanks,
Lisa Gillstrom McCanna

Maps

1st and 3rd Wednesday Dance and November members’ meeting Lake Hiawatha Neighborhood Center 2701 E 44th St., Minneapolis	Map to St. Paul location St. Christopher's- Dance
Corcoran Neighborhood Center, 3334 20th Av South, Minneapolis, MN	Map to Marty & Judy Byers home 2821 Churchill, Roseville MN
Map to Bruce and Julie Yoder's Home Music and Board & Staff Meetings 4736 12th Ave S, Minneapolis	Map to Glenn & Mia's home Hosts for staff meetings and Fiber Guild 340 Brooks Ave Roseville, MN

Big Island Albert Lea, MN October 2-5, 2008

Mankato History Fair, October 9-11

Saturday is a public day. We are allowed to remain in camp Saturday night and leave Sunday. Clann equipment will be packed after closing Saturday. Mankato is within day-trip range, but vehicles have to removed before opening.

Directions

The McGowan Farm is located off of Highway 33 South from Highway 90 in Mankato.
Turn South on Highway 33 and follow to Hawkeye/Old Shamrock Lane and follow until the road ends.