Bloomington 'Brotherhood' keeps medieval martial arts alive

It’s not escapism.

It’s not role playing.

And it’s not an attempt to create a fantasy world.

Simply put, The Brotherhood practices Western martial arts.

But for founding member and IU graduate Mike Horsley, also known as William Rayne, The Brotherhood is more.

“When you participate, you adapt,” Horsley said.

Since 2008, the Bloomington-based group has been known as The Brotherhood, a term signifying camaraderie.

Horsley, his brother and his friend formed the group after they noticed a man dressed in medieval garments walking around on the Purdue University campus.

Now The Brotherhood has about 23 members, practices weekly and fights in large-scale competitions sponsored by the Society for Creative Anachronism. The society is a nonprofit organization that researches and recreates the arts and skills from pre-17th century Europe.

The society consists of 19 kingdoms with more than 30,000 members in countries throughout the world, according to the SCA’s website.

The Middle Kingdom includes Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Ohio, as well as parts of Kentucky, Iowa and Canada. Members of the SCA pay a yearly fee, although being a part of The Brotherhood is free.

For four years, The Brotherhood has fought in the Pennsic War, which takes place annually toward the end of summer in Slippery Rock, Penn.

There, members of The Brotherhood — wearing garments displaying their logo, the grail — fight against the East Kingdom in a battle of more than 1,000 people.

Such combats are known as melees.

“You’ve got your 20 guys or whatever and you’ve got this whole army with you, but there’s a whole other army that wants nothing more than to hit you until you fall down so that you win,” Horsley said. “And so while the weapons are made of wood, there’s that aspect that if you get hit in an unarmored spot, yeah, that’s going to hurt like hell. Your brain kind of takes over and makes it even more real than it already is.”

The Brotherhood uses 9-foot-long spears, polearms — which are 6.5 feet long and feature either an axhead or a long blade — and great or bastard swords in melees. 

Their helmets are iron.

David Samson, also known as Hark-u in The Brotherhood, sews his own soft kit. The soft kit consists of clothes not worn during fights.

Samson, a Ph.D. student in biological anthropology, has sewn fur loincloths and stitched them with real sinew and bone to be historically accurate. He is a Ritterbruden, a ranking within The Brotherhood.

“There’s a little tension there, not necessarily in The Brotherhood but in the SCA as a whole, because I want to go as primitive as possible,” Samson said.

Being a part of The Brotherhood is an intellectual exercise for Samson. After he participated in a couple practices a few years ago, Samson said he was hooked.

“The Brotherhood really embraces people who sort of focus on the sort of culture they want to focus on, which is why I gravitate towards them,” Samson said.

Sophomore Doug Park, or Mordred Nathair, was promoted to the Ritterbruden ranking while at the Pennsic event in Pennsylvania.

When potential members initially express interest in being a part of The Brotherhood, those members are ranked as Neophytes, or “Those Who Seek The Grail,” according to The Brotherhood’s website.

After demonstrating a certain amount of skill and dedication to the group, members are promoted to Initiates, or “Newly Joined Warriors, Prospective Candidates for Full
Membership.”

Paladins, “Our Founders and Leaders,” are considered the highest order and teach fighting strategies and tactics for melee events. There is no specific process for determining full membership. 

“It’s also very important to the group that you have certain intellectual strengths because we’re appealing to a sort of romanticized ideal of chivalry,” Park said. “It’s important that each member of the group has some artistic or intellectual pursuit that they can devote themselves to.”

Other members practice woodworking, blacksmithing or garbing­ — the process of making the clothes members wear to events.

“The skills that we have in addition to the combat skills are often important to furthering our enjoyment of the control, if you will,” Park said.

But perhaps what is most rewarding for members, both men and women, is the sense of camaraderie.

Park, who moved often when he was younger, said having friends from The Brotherhood is comforting and reassuring.

“It’s nice to be a part of a group that likes you for who you are and recognizes the skill you have,” Park said. “It’s nice to be a part of something.”

Rankings in the Brotherhood

Paladins

Similar to managers, coaches or team captains in other sports. Paladins teach the martial arts moves and techniques, as well as strategy, tactics and plays for melee events. Unlike traditional coaches, Paladins are also members of the team and call the plays on the field.

Ritterbruden

Similar to varsity team members. Ritterbruden are longer-term Brotherhood members and show a higher-than-average degree of skill and competence.

Initiates

Similar to junior varsity team members. Initiates are newer, but still official, members of the team.

Neophyte

The newest members of the team. Neophytes have expressed an interest in joining the team but are in the “trying out” phase.