Appledore
(Okanagan Valley, BC) Located in the Principality of Tir Righ.
The Shire of Appledore was founded in September of A.S. XV, when the first Appledore Open Tourney was held. Its petition for recognition was received by Their Magesties of the West, Frederick and Nicorlyn at Twelfth Night of A.S.XV in Lions Gate, where the Shire's roots lie.
Royals visiting Appledore are entitled to receive a tribute of a red apple and a golden one. This compact was entered into with the Monarchs of the West; Steingrim and Lenora, on their visit in A.S. XVI.
The laws of Appledore are few and far between. Not only are puns not proscribed, they are prescribed as a prerequsite for the prerequsites of high office in Appledore. There is, however, a mundanity tax, also known as the "none-such-name" tax, of one copper levied for each occasion on which someone is called by a mundane rather than a personna name at an event. Appledore is a Dragon Preserve with hunting forbidden, in deference to a former resident, Zoran Dolmar of Dragonhead.
The Land
The environs of Appledore encompass the South Okanagan with picturesque mountains dotted with pine, vast orchards and vineyards, and Tir Righ’s only desert. As one enters the shire from the north, the well traveled highroad passes through ranchlands and down to the southern end of Skaha Lake and the village of Okanagan Falls. There, one can stop at Tickleberry’s for a well-deserved treat and discover just what a “tickleberry” is.
Further south one enters the “Golden Mile” with its numerous and excellent wineries including local favourites such as Burrowing Owl Estate Winery, Gehringer Brothers Estate Winery, Hawthorne Mountain Vineyards, Tinhorn Creek Vineyards, and Silver Sage Winery.
The town of Oliver is the centre of Appledore, surrounded by orchards and farms and nurturing a burgeoning Arts community. It is in Oliver that one finds Skunk Hollow, the estate of the Honourable Lord Malcolm of Lamont and the Honourable Lady Olwen Pen Aur, who play host to Golden Swan and Scholars of St. Thomas Aquinas among other events plus weekly meetings and fight practices.
Traveling south one eventually comes to the town of Osoyoos which sits astride the warmest lake in Canada. Up Anarchist Mountain to the east one can travel to Bridesville, Rock Creek, and Midway before entering the lands of our good cousins in Frozen Mountain. To the west one will come to Keremeos with its abundance of fruit and vegetable stands, and Princeton, the gateway to the west.
The lands of Appledore with its long days of sunshine and warm summer nights offer visitors and our populace a rich harvest of fruits, berries, and vegetables with local vendors offering an abundance of local produce from the first warm days of May through to the first frost in the autumn. Even in October, though the nights are crisp, visitors to Golden Swan enjoy warm days and ripe apples fresh off the tree.
Champion
Appledore seeks a well rounded Champion, one who scores highest in a series of competitions, including but not limited to; Archery; Armoured Combat; Arts; Bardic; Rapier Combat, and; Sciences.
- Current and Past Champions
- Molly Modine, AS XLI (2006)
- Lord Oric of the Black Forest, AS XL (2005)
- Sevrin Lord de Savage, AS XXXIX (2004)
- HL Bruz of the Black Hand, AS XXXIIX (2003)
- Andrew Williams, AS XXXVII (2002)
- Finn McClarty, AS XXXVI (2001)
Current Officers
- Arts & Sciences Minister - Lady Kendra
- Chatelaine - Duncan Ross
- Deputy Chatelaine - Sayyida Habibi
- Chief Constable - Lord William Ramshead
- Chronicler - Honourable Lady Keinna de Savage
- Recording Scribe - Honourable Lady Olwen Pen Aur
- Web Ministers - Honourable Lady Olwen Pen Aur & Lady Glynne-Rose of Wyndhaven
- Dean of Pages - Sayyid 'Abd al-Hakim al-Bahr ibn Da'ud al-Ghazis
- Exchequer - Lady Glynne-Rose of Wyndhaven
- NSCA Representative - Lady Glynne-Rose of Wyndhaven
- Herald - Molly Modine
- Knight Marshal - Sayyid 'Abd al-Hakim al-Bahr ibn Da'ud al-Ghazi
- List Keeper - Lady Isobel MacAlpine
- Seneschal - Sevrin Lord de Savage
- Deputy Seneschal - Honourable Lady Olwen Pen Aur
Major Events
- Early Britain Ithra
- Golden Swan Tournament - October
- Scholars of St. Thomas Aquinas - Spring