A small convoy of one car and one van left Renton early on Saturday morning for Dunfermline’s Bruce Festival week end.
Heavy rain was forecast for the week end and we were not disappointed.
As the rain slid away it was replace with very strong winds which was far more of a problem.

Saturday 15th…. Day one…………
Setting up the marquee was in the capable hands of Sir Frank the Quiet, this was not easy in the very windy conditions and required a bit of help from the Duncan, Billy and Elaine plus the events crew and other stall holders etc, everybody mucked in to help each other out.
We were up and ready in time for the 12.00 start.
All the Artizans present were dress in their medieval gear both Lady’s and Knight’s, also we had Stuart Smith dress as a monk right down to the part where he shaved his head, what a dedicated Bowman he is.
This was the first time we had worn our new medieval gear here at Dunfermline and the response from the public was great.

Our Junior Artizan Lady Salina had her first outing to this event and in full medieval dress and jewellery she really looked the part and is also a hard working young girl and is welcomed back anytime she wants.

On the Saturday, Lord Elgin officially opened the event with a rousing speech about King Robert the Bruce.

 After the opening ceremony Lord and Lady Elgin joined the Artizans in our tent.
They had a look around our display and spoke about King Robert living in Renton, they were accompanied their daughter Antonia and two of their grandchildren.

The two boys had a great time trying on armour and helmets.

The Clanranald Society had a wonderful display of archery, jousting and sword play which was Magnificent.
Their skills on horseback are second to none.
Audience participating is a major part of this event and Clanranald at this point have a medieval warfare with all the children taking on the medieval knights it is the highlight of the week end for the kids who love it all.  
A magical medieval weekend had by all.
The music was provided once again by Soar Patrol (Celtic Music) who played a good few sets over the week end, they were sounding great well done guys.

The windy condition got worst during the night
Through the night the wind was so bad it brought down Lark Sycamore Tree, just next to the horse enclosure.
In the morning several tent had been damaged and a few had blown away in some cases.

Sunday 16th……………………………

The day started off once again with the wind causing a few problems at one point raising our marquee right off the ground it got to the stage that we had to strap it down using haulage straps provided by the events crew.

The troops began to arrive to give reinforcement.
Support in the shape of Jim Tannock (treasurer/photographer), dressed up in his medieval gear and looking very dapper.
Jim’s photos are legendary and are also used by other societies

The Falkirk legion of the King’s men came with the arrival of Gordon and Karen again well dressed and enthusiastic
With the numbers now
swelled it gave Stuart and Brenda a bit of time to go networking and have a look around the other groups and stall etc.
The crowd on the Sunday was up from the Saturday as the weather had improved quite a bit from the day before and we had a lot of visitors to our marquee.
It was great to see some familiar faces in the marquee over the week end we had a visit from Jean Britten and her lovely family who came all the way from Turnberry/Carrick in Ayrshire to see this wonderful event and us of course.
It was also great to see Eric and Liz Ramsey on Sunday, they own Carvil textiles highland ware manufacturers, and are the suppliers of The Strathleven Artizans/40 Bowmen of St. Sebastian’s uniforms.

We had the great honour of having in our presence our newest member Natasha to Be known as "Princess Natasha" we first met Natasha at the Great Gathering in Edinburgh and she wanted to know all about us and the Artizans..
Natasha who is from Russia has been living in Scotland for the past 5 years while attending St Andrews and Edinburgh universities.
She made arrangements to come to Dunfermline and be our Princess she looks great in the medieval dress that we gave her and along with a crown. She had a great time going round the arena having her photos taken and letting people know about our marquee she was certainly popular with the photographers...........................

It was once again a great time to meet and catch up with the other societies over the week end which we all did.
The week end is the one of the highlights of the year and is one of the best events to take part in and also well worth a visit and it’s all free.

The Sunday flew in and before we knew it, it was time to pack up and head home.

We would like to thank all the bowmen who came and helped out over the week end they are…………………………….
Stuart Smith….Historian
Brenda Cameron…..Historian
Frank (the Quiet) Boyd……..Committee
Liz Boyd…….Catering….. (Keeping us all fed).
Elaine Graham……Artizan/Artist and Professional Photographer…. (www.ElaineGraham-photography.co.uk).
Duncan Thomson…………Chairman
Gordon Aitken…………..Bowman
Karen Owens….Bowman…Artist
Salina Burns………..Junior Artizan
Jim Tannock………..Treasurer/Photographer/Logistics
Billy Melville.
And a Special THANKS to the following…………
Jim Jones for letting us have on loan “the Great Chair”
Dunfermline Heritage Trust.
Frank Connelly.
And To “Lord Elgin” for his continued support and encouragement.

Yours In Scotland……..Duncan Thomson..Chairman

Roll on 2010…………………………….