It being the duty of all good knights to practice for war so that they may better defend their liege lord when such need arises and so that they may better the Great Order of Chivalry of which they are a part with their deeds,
And tournaments as they used to be held of old being the best way to exercise both prowess and valor,
Therefore shall we, the undersigned, create with the leave of our Noble Sovereign, whom may God defend, this tournament society which is described herein and which shall be called The Company of The Knights of Saint Michael the Defender to the glory of God and the Said King.
1. Members of the Company shall be chosen from those who love well noble deeds of arms, of gentle rank and station without reproach, who ever carry themselves well and courteously, and array themselves properly according to their rank and station.
2. And they must be agreeable to no less than two thirds of the Company, and swear to uphold the rules, purposes, and ordinances of the said Company
1. If a member of the Company wishes to present themselves upon the field to do combat as a Knight or Squire of the Company, they must arm themselves at all points, so well that one might come within a spear-length of them and find no fault with their array. And this shall be set forth more fully elsewhere.
2. And further, they shall display their arms upon shield and banner.
3. The Company may accept poor gentlemen, who can array themselves honestly according to their rank, but have not the harness that a Knight or Squire of the Company should have. And they may attend the deeds of arms, feasts, and festivals of the Company, although they may not take the field as Knights or Squires of the Company. Notwithstanding, so they may not lose their knowledge of the profession of arms, they may take the field in their own person, so long as they do not act so as to bring reproach upon the Company.
4. Members of the Company shall ever behave in the field with valor and courtesy, and with such chivalry that they shall bring honor to the Company.
1. A principal shall be chosen from among the Members of the Company and shall be called the Captain of the Company.
2. The Captain shall act as the spokesman for the Company and as its representative to the general populace.
3. The Captain shall be chosen each year at Michaelmas, that is to say the 29th of September, from among those members of the Company willing to serve, by simple majority vote of the Members of the Company.
1. The clerk may be selected from among any of the companions of the Company.
2. The clerk shall be responsible for the keeping of the membership list and any records or files which pertain to the Company and for recording the decisions made by the company at its meetings.
3. The clerk shall publish the said membership list once per year. The cost for this will be met by contribution from the Members of the Company.
4. Any files or other records kept by the clerk shall be made available to any companion of the Company who requests to see them.
5. The clerk shall be responsible for polling the Members of the Company on matters requiring a vote and reporting the results to the Captain.
2. The term of the Balance King of Arms shall be one year, after which the Members of the Company must vote either to elect a new Balance or to retain the current one for another year.
3. Balance King of Arms may, but need not be, a companion of the Company.
4. The post of Balance King of Arms does not of and by itself confer any level of membership in the Company.
5. Balance King of Arms is responsible for acting as the Company's herald. The duties of the office include, but may not be limited to, speaking for the Company in court, crying event announcements, acting as the Company's herald at tournaments or passages of arms, and such other duties as the Company and the Balance King of Arms deem appropriate.
6. In payment for his services the Balance King of Arms shall receive cloth appropriate for a gown each year. Further, at its yearly tournament the Company shall pay for his place at the feast.
1. Companions of the Company shall be responsible for setting the highest example of chivalry and courtesy at all times.
2. Companions of the Company shall pay such reasonable dues as the Company shall agree upon to cover the common expenses of the Company. And such dues shall be payable each Michaelmass for the following year.
3. The Company shall each year hold a noble Deed of Arms at the Great Encounter called Pennsic.
4. In addition, the Company shall endeavor to hold one other noble Deed of Arms each year, at such time as seems convenient to the Company.
5. The Company shall hold a feast each year on or near Michaelmas the expense of which shall be paid for by contribution of the Members of the Company.
6. Companions of the Company may wear a cloak of gules charged on the left breast with the badge of the company, to wit: a balance scale tipped to dexter or, and may bear the said badge as elsewise pleases them.
2. Three quarters of the Members of the Company shall be considered a quorum, and Members may send their proxy if they are unable to attend.
3. The accused must be given a reasonable chance to attend the meeting, but may not vote.
4. A three quarters majority of the Members of the Company present shall be necessary to declare the accused guilty of the charges; a separate vote is necessary for each charge if there is more than one.
5. If the Members of the Company find the accused guilty they must then vote to determine the appropriate punishment; a three quarters vote is necessary for a given punishment to be applied.