The rivalry and banter between the Jousting knights was back in full flow this weekend as thousands experienced a day in mediaeval England at the first of the Loxwood Joust’s two weekends of mediaeval fun and revelry.
Celebrating Queen Katheryn Adelina 1 of Loxwood’s first year on the throne, the best knights in the land were invited to attend a mêlée on the battle field and Sir Thomas of Loxwood returned to defend both his Queen’s lands, and his title in the Jousting Arena when pitted against his arch enemy Sir Hector of Horsham.
And, Sir Alexander Iden of Kent had been invited by Queen Katheryn to this year’s tournament before his real intentions to overthrow the Loxwood Kingdom were made clear. As a result, visitors to this spectacular event saw two magnificent full contact battles each day with 200 fully armoured knights, 70 archers and 20 gunners displaying their skills, strength and training as they went into combat with their authentic mediaeval weaponry.
And the excitement continued in the jousting arena as the four Jousting Knights powered down the tilt with a thunder of hooves, before their clashing lances splintered on impact. By far the fastest man on the field, Sir Like took on Sir Hector with his roguish humour and impressive swordsmanship and bade him to yield before being declared as the tournament’s jousting champion.
Emma Barker who was attending the Loxwood Joust for the first time said ”What a fantastic day, such a great day out for all the family. It was really good to see the children interacting with the weapons experts, so it really was “learning with fun”. The stalls and entertainment were brilliant, the melee was very realistic and the jousting stunning. Well done to everyone involved, we will definitely be coming back next year.”
With the activities and entertainment taking place every half hour from 10am to 6pm there really was something for everyone and the new knight school proved to be a huge success. The Bards were roaming the Loxwood Kingdom’s meadows and woodlands spinning fine tales and spreading the hearsay of Loxwood, whilst the witches, faerie goddess mother, wandering minstrels and children’s kingdom activities were once again the favourites of many.
Maurice Bacon, organiser of the Joust commented “We have had an amazing weekend with all of our new attractions being really popular and Queen Katheryn and our new History of Loxwood story, that is now running through the various threads of the event, has also been very well received. We always aim to make the full mediaeval experience really come to life for our visitors, and this weekend we have achieved that with a large array of characters, food, drink and historic accuracy that is fun, engaging and thrilling for people of all ages.”
The second weekend of the Loxwood Joust takes place on the 10th and 11th August and advance tickets are on sale at www.loxwoodjoust.co.uk . The Loxwood Joust is excellently located just off the B2133 between Wisborough Green and Loxwood and has ample Free Parking.