The City of Lumberton once again played host to a wide variety of knights, archers, blacksmiths and other medieval figures with Gulf Wars XXXII, held from March 9-17 at King’s Arrow Ranch.
Billed as “A War with No Enemies,” Gulf Wars was started in 1991 by the Society for Creative Anachronism — an international non-profit organization devoted to re-creating and studying the skills and arts of pre-1600s Europe — and gives participants a week-long opportunity to immerse themselves in that lifestyle.
“We are very excited to be able to gather again at King’s Arrow Ranch,” said media department head April Edwards, known in the SCA as Duchess Danielle de la Roche. “We all want to gather and fellowship, to make new friends and to learn from each other.
“Gulf Wars is one of several large inter-kingdom wars around the country that allows members to gather and meet from other places. It’s an opportunity to learn, shop and compete.”
The four main SCA kingdoms represented at Gulf Wars are (Texas & Oklahoma), Trimaris (Florida), Meridies (Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee), and Gleann Abhann (Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas).
“There are 20 kingdoms in the SCA, and I think most of them were represented (this year),” Edwards said.
Activities at Gulf Wars include metalworking, falconry, wire weaving, medieval dance and more. The Merchants’ Row site features items such as arts and crafts, clothing and armor.
And fitting with the event’s name, the week includes several battles, including open-field town battles, jousting and fort sieging.
In the name of safety, Gulf Wars officials and participants adhere to a strict set of rules regarding any weapons and armor used in the event. That includes weapons such as broadswords, greataxes, ballistas and arrows made of foam and rattan – which is similar to wicker and constructed of palm stems – to help negate injuries.
There are plenty of events following the battles as well, including pageants, thrown weapons tournaments, a medieval movie night, and goods and services auctions. Gulf Wars also features a wide variety of classes on topics such as falconry, embroidery, pottery and blacksmithing.
A few years after being cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, this year’s event saw a huge turnout.
“This year we had nearly as many pre-registrations as we did attendees last year,” Edwards said. “As of (March 15) we had just over 2,900 people on site.
“There were over 100 merchants, many classes, hands-on demonstrations, several styles of martial activity, equestrian games and jousting. The turnout for the war was very good, and we hope it will continue to grow in coming years.”
For more information on Gulf Wars, visit www.gulfwars.org or visit the "Gulf Wars, SCA" Facebook page. For more information on the SCA, visit www.sca.org.
Interested south Mississippi residents can visit www.gleannabhann.org.
“We would be happy to have new members join us in the future,” Edwards said.
