A Boast is basically a flowery and official sounding introduction of the Royalty/Nobility to an assemblage of people be they of your own Kingdom, some other Kingdom or possibly even the entire Known World at an event like Pennsic. Not only is a boast an announcement of, Hey people here comes the King and Queen, get out of the way, be quiet and pay attention but also it provides an opportunity to embellish the reputation and glory not only of the Royals but the kingdom they are from. A boast if done well should, get the peoples attention, introduce and then embellish the reputation of the Royals it is directed at and be neither too long as to boar the crowd and seem pretentious nor too short as to leave awkward dead space as you walk in silent parade before the people.

The typical boast is divided into three main sections of getting the peoples attention and respect, introducing who it is you are boasting about and then somehow adding to or embellishing upon the reputation of these people and the Kingdom/Barony they represent. The attention grabber is the easiest part in most cases with a loud and carrying voice a simple Oh Yay Oh Yay Oh Yay or an appropriate wording for the situation. (in Ealdormere Oh Yay should be reserved for Royalty and High Nobility when they are about the Crowns Business. At other times saying “my good lords and ladies, good gentles all” or some similar generic wording should be used.) This should get the crowds attention and in most cases will trigger an automatic response to arise and make ready.

Next you need to introduce who it is exactly you are boasting about or introducing to the people. You may need to talk this over with the Royals/Nobles particularly if their Persona/Culture uses one or more of the non standard forms of address. King and Queen is the normal convention but not always the case and you should endeavor to introduce the royals by the Title appropriate to their chosen culture and desires. The introduction part and Boast or embellishments can in some cases all be rolled into one but basically for the intro portion you need to be clear in getting across the name and title of who you are boasting. The Rank and Title should be mentioned at least once and the first, given or commonly used name should be included. It is tradition not only in the SCA and Ealdormere but mundanely as well that last or family names not be used as a form of address for Royalty and High Nobility as they are assumed to be of the Kingdom/Barony etc. they represent. We say “King John or King Henry” and not “King John Plantagenet or King Henry Tudor” in real life and likewise in the SCA it would be simply King William and not King William Macfarlane etc. In some cases you may wish it or your Royals/Nobles may ask it of you to include other names but if possible try to work these into part of the boast rather than as part of the introductions. “King William dread king of these lands and chief of clan Macfarlane” for instance would be suitable if demanded of you.

Now you have the name of the person you need to add in what the rank or title is and what group it is they are representing. In the SCA we deal with Kingdoms, Principalities and Baronies for the most part. The exact title may change but these are the 3 basic group divisions with Nobles/Royals to be boasted. In your introduction you should endeavor at least once to make mention of the group in question. This could include simply the name of the group “King of Ealdormere” or any of the other terms of reference common to the Kingdom (North, Northland, Trillium lands, Wolves or Lupine references etc.) as long as they are clear and well known euphemisms consistent or unique to the Kingdom or group in question. These terms can also be embellished with terms used that refer to their position rather than simply saying it outright to add some variety and spice up things somewhat. “King & Queen of Ealdormere” says it clearly but “Holders of the Lupine Thrones” also spells out perfectly clearly to all who hear it (in Ealdormere at least) that your talking about the same people and it is much more picturesque and unique.

Finally you need to embellish or boast of the reputation of the person you are introducing and add to their reputation or mystique. Here again your Royals/Nobles may have things they wish to have said about them or favoured titles and or wordings they wish used. Adding these in will not only add to the boast and reputation of the persons asking it of you but will stand you in good stead with the Royal/Noble who asked it of you. Even better if you can get some insight into these people yourself and simply surprise them by including it unasked for. The types of things that can be said here are almost limitless and varied based on the individual in question and in some cases the audience the boast is intended for. In period times it would be usual to try and boast of the Crowns generosity, good will and kindness to the people of their Kingdom while extolling their ferocity, skill and reputation upon the field of battle to their potential enemies. Likewise in the SCA we tend to try and extol the good of our Royals/Nobility unto our own people and save the threats and saber rattling to instill fear into our enemies. Of course some amount of fear in ones own people can be a good thing so combining a little of both never hurts either and some Royals may wish to have this as part of their “act” and ask that it be included in all their boasts and introductions.

Something to keep in mind when boasting is the position (Crown versus Consort) of the person you are tailoring the boasts for. Generally we think in terms of the King as the person who won crown by their skill and prowess at battle and the Queen as the kinder gentler inspiration to the King. However this may not always be the case and making a Warrior Queen by Right of her Own Sword into the Queen of love beauty and all things frilly while promoting her consort to the rightful ruler of the land may earn you their scorn rather than any praise. Simply remember should we ever be graced with a Queen in her own right that the Ruler goes first and they should be boasted of in terms of their skill and prowess while the Consort is second and can be referred to in terms of how they inspired the Ruler to win the crown for them.

Now you simply need to put all the parts together and you have a boast fit for a king.. or queen as the case may be. Get the peoples attention, introduce who ever it is your talking about and tell the crowd how great these people are according to the context desired. Now from what has been said it should be easy to pick from the examples below what one is intended to instill a sense of love and respect from our people and what one is better suited to the battlefields of war to make the enemy shake in fear.

Oh Yay Oh Yay Oh Yay, Good people of Ealdormere, Arise and make way for your kind and benevolent rulers and Sovereigns, King _______, by sword arms might warrior of the Northlands and ________ his Queen by Inspiration and beauty, shinning Northern Star

Oh Yay Oh Yay Oh Ya, Make way, Make way as the mighty Scarlet Banner casts its shadow across these lands, do honour unto the Dread Wolf King _________, Ruler of the Northern realms of Ealdormere feared warrior of the Trillium lands and _________ his one true Queen and inspiration upon the field of battle.

Keep in mind who you are boasting, make the words fit the person, their title and the occasion and away you go. Keep in mind you want to get the message across but not be so long winded as to loose the peoples attention and try to avoid using the same wordings and boasts over and over again for the same reason. The idea is to expand and build up the people your boasting for and not to make them appear stale stagnant and the same time and time again. Try keep the wordings fresh and different each time especially if you have to boast the same people several times at the same event. Boasts for things like feasts can be lighter and shorter while court boasts should instill a sense of power and ceremony to things about to transpire. As a last ditch effort when caught short or unprepared simply announce the names and titles of the people your boasting in “Arise and Make way for ______ & ________ , King and Queen of Ealdormere.”