War of the Rams
General Information
War of the Rams is the annual fall event of the Barony of Bordermarch in the Kingdom of Ansteorra of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). The event is held each fall at Border Keep, a permanent stone castle located at Jones Country Music Park near Colmesneil, Texas.
The event began as Bordermarch Autumn Melees (BAM) and in 2011 attendance was over 700 people with many coming from the kingdom of Gleann Abhann. In 2012 it was renamed War of the Rams (WotR or WotR/BAM) as the event grew in size and scope. The new name reflects the ram's horn (shofar) featured on the Bordermarch armory and also acknowledges the long tradition of friendly rivalry with participants from the neighboring Kingdom of Gleann Abhann, whose kingdom armory features a ram.
War of the Rams has grown from a local baronial melees event into the largest annual event in Ansteorra. The event features armored combat melees, rapier combat melees, archery, thrown weapons, Arts & Sciences activities, merchants, classes, camping, and many social activities. It has reached a documented peak attendance of 880 participants.<ref>War of the Rams Historical Financial and Attendance Records.</ref>
Additional information on the event site may be found at Border Keep. Information on the event's early history prior to the name change can be found at Bordermarch Autumn Melees.
Ongoing Competitions
War of the Rams regularly hosts a variety of competitions and still hosts some of the Bordermarch Championships. These have varied over the years and have included armored combat, rapier, archery, thrown weapons, and other championships and tournaments sponsored by the Kingdom, Barony, or event staff.
- War of the Rams has hosted a number of Kingdom-level championships over its history, including:
- Royal Hunter – Kingdom Archery Championship
- Royal Thrown Weapons Champion – Kingdom Thrown Weapons Championship
- Royal Lancer – Kingdom Equestrian Championship
- Royal Middle Eastern Dance Championship
Chronology
- 1981 Dame Tessa documents the fist Bordermarch Autumn Melees as one timber tower fortification at Claibourne West Park.
- Event Steward was Therese de' Ivoire
- 1982 Nov.19-21 - Two timber towers, Claibourne West Park.
- Event Steward was Nathaniel duBoid Sauvage
- 1983 No BAM.
- Only year missed from 1981 until 2012 when BAM became War of the Rams.
- 1992 BAM XI - Last year at Claibourne West Park
- Event Stewards: Henri le hibou du Bois / Malachai Khan
- 1993 BAM XII - First year at Jones Country Music Park
- Event Steward Valencia de Granada
- Bordermarch's 15th year as a Barony!
- more to come...
Event Reviews/Memories
Gallery of Images
Gallery
- BAM / War of the Rams
