here Vanguard Reenactment is a thirteenth-century medieval reenactment group based in Hartlepool, County Durham. We are one of the largest independent reenactment groups in the country and are extremely proud of the variety of talented combatants we boast among our ranks.
Vanguard has typically leaned into the combat side of the hobby. We practice regularly every Sunday with a variety of different weapons and fighting styles in a system which we’ve developed and perfected over the past ten years since our group was founded.
That being said, we are not slack when it comes to the living history side of things. We boast an expansive living history camp which accompanies us to our many shows up and down the country. Officially, the date we portray is 1295, the back end of the thirteenth century during Edward I, Hammer of the Scots’ reign.
Let’s take a look at some of the interesting features of some of our shows in preparation for our appearance at Murton Park on the 19th and 20th of July!
Combat
The crown jewel of a Vanguard Reenactment show is our realistic and thrilling combat experience which we practice every week for. Brutal yet brilliant, we combine elements of more competitive full contact combat sports, such as Buhurt, with the more traditional style of a reenactment event. This has helped us develop our own style of combat which we believe to find a fine balance of historical accuracy, safety, and most importantly, fun to watch.
We would always recommend you to check out our own social media pages where we post pictures and videos of our combat as well as other aspects of our reenactment ventures. We would encourage you to come along to one of our displays to see our combatants in person doing what they do best – showing off.
Weapons & Armour
One of the most exciting parts of the hobby is being able to collect shiny bits of equipment for instance steel rods with grips and tin hats. Our group has amassed a large collection among of lots of different arms and armour. All of them are period accurate to the thirteenth century and we proudly show off to members of the public.
Feel free to approach and ask us about any of the pieces of kit you see on display. We’re all nerds and know plenty about the equipment on show. We have anything from swords to maces. Bows and arrows. Greathelms and kettle helms.
The Forge
A recent addition to our living history experience has been our authentic and working forge, manned by our own blacksmith. We’ve found the forge to be a wonderful addition to our living, breathing camp. With members of the public being very much impressed by this immersive and interesting historical blacksmithing interpretation.
Also, many of our own members are intrigued by the forge. They ask our smith for odd jobs and tasks to tink away at during the course of the day. When they’re not fighting, of course.
Thanks for reading! This is just a glimpse into some of the things we have on offer as a group.
We hope to see you at Murton Park where we’ll be on display on the 19th and 20th of July.
