The Bylaws of the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

Copyright 1969 by The Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

Article I: Offices

The Principal Office of the Corporation shall be located in the City of Berkeley, County of Alameda, State of California. The corporation may have other offices as the Board may determine or as the affairs of the corporation may require from time to time.

Article II: Members

1. CLASSES OF MEMBERS: There shall be several classes of members, to be designated as follows:

Class A: Members of the Board of Directors of the Corporation.

Class B: Officers of the Corporation

Class C: Kings

Class D: Queens

Class E: The Nobility

Class F: The Gentry

Class G: Subscribers

Class H: Attendees

And any other such classes as the Board of Directors may see fit to designate.

2. VOTING RIGHTS: Only Class A members shall have voting privileges, each member of Class A being entitled to one vote on matters submitted to a vote of said Class A members.

3. Memberships are not transferrable or assignable.

4. ELECTION OF MEMBERS: Persons may be elected to the varied classes of membership as follows:

(a) Class A members may be elected by the unanimous consent of the Board of Directors.

(b) Class B members may be appointed by the unanimous consent of the Board of Directors.

(c) Class C members shall be elected by armed combat, in regular Crown Tourney, in accordance with the rules of the Lists of the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

(d) Class D members shall be elected solely by Class C members.

(e) Class E members shall be elected by any of the following methods:

(Yes, being a Squire made you Nobility. A pretty serious difference from today...)

(f) Class F members shall be elected by being persons who have not achieved any of the above classes of membership, yet who are recognized as responsible persons of some character; such as Heads of Great Houses, Visiting Dignitaries, Clerics, Yeomen, Untitled Fighters of all manner not covered in the above clauses, their families and retainers.

(g) Class G members shall be elected to membership by their subscribing to the Mailing List of the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

(h) Class H members shall be elected to membership by their attending such functions as the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc., may organize or sponsor, and by their compliance with the rules for such functions (as delineated in Article X), and by their signing any waivers which may be required for such attendance.

(i) Any other classes which may be designated by the Board of Directors shall also have means for election of members to such classes designated by the Board of Directors.

(j) Any person may have membership in more than one of the above classes.

5. TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP: Membership may be terminated in each class by the following methods:

(a) Class A membership may be terminated by resignation, or by a vote of two-thirds of the members of Class A.

(b) Class B membership may be terminated by resignation, or by a vote of two-thirds of the members of Class A.

(c) Class C membership shall be terminated at the end of the term of office.

(d) Class D membership shall be terminated at the end of the term of office.

(e) Class E membership may be terminated by resignation, or, in the case of Class 4(e) (6) above, by dissociation.

(f) Class F membership may be terminated by resignation, or, in the case of retainers, by dissociation.

(g) Class G membership may be terminated by resignation, or by said Class G member's allowing his or her subscription to lapse.

(h) Class H membership may be terminated by resignation, or by non-attendance of such functions as may be arranged by the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc., or by refusal to comply with the rules for such functions, or by refusal to sign any waivers which may be required for attendance at such functions.

(i) Any other classes which may be designated by the Board of Directors shall also have means for termination of membership in such classes desginated by the Board of Directors.

6. REINSTATEMENT: A member may be reinstated by the same procedures provided for election of new members.

Article III: Meetings of Members

1. Annual Meeting: At least once each year the Board of Directors shall call a meeting of the members of Class A for the purpose of the transaction of such business as may come before the meeting.

2. Tournaments: The principal social activity of the Society shall be the Tournament. Tournaments shall be held according to the means of the individual Kingdom, the date and place being designated by the King, his Seneschal, his Herald, his Supreme Autocrat (if he has appointed one), and his Advisors, subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, and shall be conducted under the Rules of the Lists of the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

3. Revels: The secondary social activity of the Society shall be the Revel. Revels shall be held according to the means of the individual Kingdom, the date and place being designated (blah, blah, as above) ... and shall be conducted according to the manner of the Society.

4. Special Meetings: Tertiary social activities of the Society shall fall under the heading of Special Meetings, as shall include participation in other than Society-sponsored events, classes in various aspects of pre-17th Century Western culture, and whatever other activities may be deemed suitable by the Board of Directors, the King, etc., etc., etc. (et ceteras in the original this time!)

5. Notice of Meetings: Notice consists of informing all of the members of Class G who may reside within a given Kingdom of all Society-sponsored events which may occur in that Kingdom, such notice to include time, place, and the nature of the event. Notice shall be given by mail, and shall be deemed delivered when deposited in the US Mail addressed to the members at his address as it appears on the records of the corporation, with postage prepaid.

6. Quorum: In the case of a Tournament, a quorum shall consist of not less than five (5) fighters, exclusive of the King's Dukes, participating in the lists for the Crown. In the case of a Revel, a quorum shall consist of howsoever many persons the King and Queen deem "enough". In the case of Special Meetings, a quorum shall be designated by the King or his Seneschal appropriate to the conduct of the business of the said Special Meeting.

7. Places of Meetings: Meetings may be called at any place suitable to the conduct of the business of the event, subject to the discretion of the Board of Directors.

Article IV: Board of Directors

1. Powers: The affairs of the corporation shall be managed by the Board of Directors.

2. Qualification, Number, and Tenure: There shall be three directors on the Board: although more may be added, at the discretion of the Board, by amendment of these By-laws, but only in such multiples that the number of directors remains uneven. Directors remain on the Board until termination of their membership in Class A.

3. Manner of Acting: An act of the Board consists of an affirmative decision of two-thirds of the members, except as otherwise provided for in the By-laws, such special cases requring unanimous consent.

4. Vacancies: In case of vacancy, the remaining directors may choose a successor, or, if the vacancy does not cause the Board of Directors to number less than three, choose to leave the position vacant.

5. Removal: A majority of the members of Class A may call a special election meeting with 10 days notice to all members of Class A for the purpose of holding a special election of directors.

Article V: Officers

1. Officers: The officers of the corporation shall be a Steward (which is equivalent to President), a Master or Mistress of Arts (which is equivalent to Secretary), a Chancellor of the Exchequer (which is equivalent to Treasurer), a Chronicler, a King of Arms, a Master or Mistress of Sciences, and such other officers as the Board of Directors may from time to time designate. Any two or more offices may be held by the same person, except the offices of Steward and Master or Mistress of Arts.

2. Election, Qualifications, and Term of Office: The officers of the corporation are ex-officio Class B members, and must be elected by the unanimous consent of the Board of Directors. They shall hold office until such time as their Class B membership is terminated.

3. Removal: Any officer elected by the Board may be removed by a two-thirds vote of the Board of Directors at any time.

4. Steward: The Steward is the principal executive officer of the corporation and shall supervise and control all of the business and administrative affairs of the corporation, and shall preside at all meetings of the Officers. He may sign and authorize such instruments as he deems appropriate to the conduct of the Society's proper business, grant charters, and delegate similar responsibilities, but is subject to the discretion of the Board of Directors.

5. Master or Mistress of Arts: The Master or Mistress of Arts shall, in the absence of the Steward, or in the event of his refusal or inability to act, perform the duties of the Steward, and when so performing, shall have all the duties, powers and restrictions of the Steward. In addition, the Master or Mistress of Arts shall be responsible for the artistic well-being of the Kingdoms, and shall act to coordinate the efforts of artists of all kinds, in all arts, so that the total environment may remain well-balanced; and shall be responsible for encouraging especially those artistic pursuits in keeping with the overall aims of the Society.

(Note the careful wording here. Most of the officers are clearly male in the laws, with lots of "he"s. But the MoA is specifically left ambiguous with respect to gender. None of which means anything, but it's an interesting note of the times...)

6. Chancellor of the Exchequer: The Chancellor of the Exchequer shall have charge and custody of and be responsible for all funds and securities of the corporation; receive and give receipts for money due and payable to the corporation from any source, and deposit money in the name of the corporation in such depositories as the Board of Directors may select. He must maintain records and funds of the corporation separately from his own, in order to avoid confusion.

7. Chronicler: The Chronicler shall maintain the Mailing List of the Society, publish the official organ of the Society, _Tournaments Illuminated_, and act as a center and clearinghouse for communications between the members and between the Kingdoms. He shall be responsible for seeing to it that the Seneschal of each Kingdom has a mailing list for that Kingdom, and shall maintain a mailing service of which said Seneschals may avail themselves if they do not have proper equipment for notifying the Class G members of their Kingdoms of events in accordance with the above rules for notification of meetings. The Chronicler shall have charge and keeping of such machinery and equipment as the corporation may own for the purpose of effecting the above notifications and maintenance. The Chronicler shall be responsible for making sure the Mailing List is not used for any purpose not concerned with the Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc., but it shall be his prerogative to decide what shall so constitute "concern with the Society, etc.", subject to the approval or disapproval of the Board of Directors.

8. King of Arms: The King of Arms shall be the head of the College of Heralds. It shall be his responsibility to direct the use of arms and other heraldic devices within the Society, and he shall maintain a record of all such arms as are submitted to him, complete with an history of such members as do submit said arms and devices, and the reasons for the use, style, granting, etc., of such arms and devices. he shall keep an history of the Society, and he shall maintain communications with the Heralds of all the Kingdoms, directing them on matters of Heraldry, on the keeping of court records, on the nature of protocol, on such problems as may be brought before him by them, and on court ceremony. Courts of Chivalry come under his jurisdiction, and he shall be empowered to plead causes with the Board of Directors on behalf of the various kinds and classes of members.

9. Master or Mistress of Sciences: The Master or Mistress of Sciences shall be responsible for the scientific well-being of the various Kingdoms and of the Society in general. He shall direct and authorize such research projects as he may deem suitable to the purposes of the Society, and shall present the results of such researches to the Chronicler for publication, thereby to benefit the membership. He shall act to coordinate the efforts of those engaged in scientific activities (such as, but not limited to, historical, research, construction of weapons and other artifacts, etc.), so that the total environment may remain well-balanced; and shall be responsible for encouraging especially those scientific pursuits in keeping with the overall aims of the Society.

Article VI: Contracts, Cheques, and Funds

1. Contracts: The Board may authorize any officer or agent of the corporation, in addition to officers so authorized by these By-laws, to enter into any contract or execute any instrument in the name of the corporation, and such authority may be general or confined to specific instances. Such authority must be given in writing, dated, and signed by at least two members of the Board of Directors.

2. Cheques, Drafts, etc: All cheques, drafts, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness issued in the name of the corporation shall be signed by such officers or agents of the corporation, and in such manner, as shall from time to time be determined by the Board of Directors. In the absence of such determination, such instruments shall be signed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and counter-signed by the Steward.

3. Gifts: The Board of Directors may accept on behalf of the corporation any contribution, gift, bequest or devise for the general purposes of or for any special purpose of the corporation.

Article VII: Books and Records

The corporation shall keep correct and complete books and records of account and shall keep minutes of the proceedings of the meetings of its Board of Directors, and shall keep in the custody of the Chronicler a record giving the names and addresses of the members, which record shall not be copies (sic) or viewed by any person except the officers, except with the permission of the Board of Directors. All books and records may be inspected by any member or his agent, for any reasonable purpose at any reasonable time; however, the lists of names and addresses of members shall not be made available to the public without prior written approval of the Board of Directors.

Article VIII: Fiscal Year

The Fiscal Year of the corporation shall begin on the first day of January and end on the last day of December in each year.

Article IX: Amendments to By-Laws

These By-Laws may be altered, amended, or repealed and new By-Laws may be adopted by the unanimous consent of the Board of Directors. Such amendments and alterations must be made in writing, and must immediately be placed in the records of the Society, and appended to copies of the By-Laws available to the membership.

Article X: Rules for Attendance of Meetings

Anyone may attend meetings of the Society designated as social activities (as in Article III, Clauses 2 and 3), provided he or she is willing to wear pre-17th Century dress, of any period or culture, sign waivers which may be required for such attendance, and to behave as a Lady or Gentleman. No one shall be admitted to such functions who is not in pre-17th Century dress, or who has not made some attempt at pre-17th Century dress, the acceptability of said attempt to be judged ultimately by the King. s.kuleuven.ac.be/~dirk/ada-belgium/" ADD_DATE="786997605" LAST_VISIT="801362319">The Ada-Belgium Organization