St. Crispin’s Day speech and medieval armor in San Diego!

Performers in medieval chain mail and shining breastplate armor pose inside the main entrance of the San Diego Central Library downtown!
Performers in medieval chain mail and shining breastplate armor pose inside the main entrance of the San Diego Central Library downtown!

Check out a few pics of a certifiably cool event I witnessed at noon today! There was a pop-up performance of the St. Crispin’s Day speech from Shakespeare’s play Henry V! Complete with medieval costumes and shining armor!

The short performance honored the birthday (and death day) of Shakespeare, and was put on in the Central Library’s lobby as part of the San Diego Public Library’s First Folio multi-month extravaganza. Shakespeare’s rousing fictional speech by King Henry V–meant to inspire his English army in 1415 before the Battle of Agincourt, where he faced a vastly larger French army–was recited at several libraries around San Diego.

The enthusiastic performers were all great! And super friendly! I spoke to them and learned about their love for the Age of Chivalry. They make their own armor and other items associated with medieval life. They are deeply interested in the history of the Middle Ages and learning how to craft objects with historical authenticity. According to their website, Chivalry Today, they offer a variety of presentations, workshops and activities to introduce chivalry into your education, business and life. They provide quality historical interpretive programs for schools studying Medieval and Renaissance history.  Click on the above link to check these guys out!

(If I may provide some constructive criticism of the library, which I otherwise love. I arrived early because I wasn’t sure where exactly in downtown’s large Central Library the performance would take place. I asked five different library employees. Not one of them knew. One severe lady at the reference desk after searching for about five minutes on her computer told me there was no such event. Ouch. Worse, it appeared I was the only person to intentionally show up for the performance. The others in the small audience arrived after an announcement over the library public address system. Isn’t a library essentially about maximizing communication?  Hello!  We live in the age of the internet!  Okay, my rant is over.  I love you guys.)

Reciting Shakespeare's rousing speech by King Henry V, urging his English army to bravely fight the French at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415.
Reciting Shakespeare’s rousing speech by King Henry V, urging his English army to bravely fight the French at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415.
At the end of the short pop-up performance, banners are raised by the small troupe in the lobby of the San Diego Central Library.
At the end of the short pop-up performance, banners are raised by the small troupe in the lobby of the San Diego Central Library.
Henry V inspires his troops in the Age of Chivalry, while historical commentary is provided in a modern library. The performance was part of an ongoing summer-long First Folio celebration of Shakespeare.
Henry V inspires his troops in the Age of Chivalry, while historical commentary is provided in a modern library. The performance was part of an ongoing summer-long First Folio celebration of Shakespeare.

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Do you like to read short pieces of thought-provoking fiction? You might enjoy checking out Short Stories by Richard.

Published by

Richard Schulte

Downtown San Diego has been my home for many years. My online activities reflect my love for writing, blogging, walking and photography.

4 thoughts on “St. Crispin’s Day speech and medieval armor in San Diego!”

  1. The local library here has a calendar they put out monthly, paper ones, at the desk, but when I have attempted to look up an event on the main website, I couldn’t find the event info and had to call the local library. Seems to me they would want to list each branch’s events for the month on the main website?!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The event was listed on the First Folio website–I don’t know where else. Modern communication requires emails and active social media. I don’t know the whole story–I haven’t looked into it–but I found it completely astounding that I was seemingly the only person in all of San Diego who showed up for this cool event.

      Liked by 1 person

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