The Order of the Pelican is the peerage dedicated to service. Service is done in many ways by different people. Some organize events, some provide first aid, some provide water, some hold offices, some do heraldry, but Pelicans do a lot of it.
Peerages are the same throughout the Known World. All Kingdoms have the
Award of Arms, the Chivalry, the Laurels, the Pelicans, and Royal titles.
All other awards are local to the Kingdoms or their subdivisions. In
Ansteorra, we have four awards for service at the Kingdom level and Baronial
Service awards. The Kingdom awards are the Award of Arms (AoA), the Sable
Crane of Ansteorra, the Star of Merit, and the Pelican.
While there are many opinions on the qualifications for each of these four
awards, one common description goes like this. For an AoA the candidate
provides general service and learns about the SCA. He or she helps with
event setup and tear down, carries bundles for others, learns how to address
various groups of people, and generally shows he or she has become a
productive member of the local group.
For a Sable Crane, the level of service steps up a bit. The candidate does more of it, travels to more events, and perhaps takes on a office or two. As an officer, he or she reports reliably and does whatever the job requires. People notice that the candidate is always around and always doing service of some kind or another.
For the Star of Merit, we begin to see the candidate becoming a leader in service. He or she is orgainizing others to do service and training people in the various skills needed in each area of service. This usually involves Regional or Kingdom wide work and others can point to the accomplishments of the candidate.
| Count | Group |
|---|---|
| 10 | Barony of Bjornsborg |
| 3 | Barony of Bonwicke |
| 2 | Barony of Bordermarch |
| 2 | Shire of Brad Leah |
| 18 | Barony of Bryn Gwlad |
| 1 | Shire of Crossroads Keep |
| 9 | Barony of Elfsea |
| 2 | Barony of Eldern Hills |
| 1 | Shire of Gates Edge |
| 3 | Shire of Greywood |
| 3 | Barony of Loch Sollier |
| 3 | Province of Mooneschadowe |
| 2 | Barony of Namron |
| 2 | Barony of Ravensfort |
| 3 | Shire of Rosenfeld |
| 2 | Shire of Shadowlands |
| 21 | Barony of Stargate |
| 14 | Barony of Steppes |
| 1 | Shire of Wastelands |
| 1 | Canton of Westgate |
| 8 | Barony of Wiesenfeuer |
For the Pelican, the candidate puts all the skills they have accumulated in service and leadership to bear on Kingdom or Society level projects that make a significant difference to the members of the Kingdom or Society. They must also have attributes of a peer. Those attributes are not well defined. They are the things that make people point them out as examples of what we strive to be in the SCA.
Members of this order have shown themselves as the glue that binds the SCA together.
Pelican Liaison: Mistress Hillary
The most recognized badge of the order, "A pelican in its piety
proper" is symbolic of this service as the pelican sheds its own
blood to feed its young. This is the drawing in the upper left of
this page.
This sacrifice is also seen in another
badge of the order "A pelican vulning itself".
The third badge of this order is
simply a "chapeau". All pelicans may wear this red hat with ermine
trim.
All members of this order may be referred to as "Master" or "Mistress".
