As a hopeless dreamer, I shamelessly admit that more than once I have found myself wondering what my life would have been like had I been born in another historical era. Surely you, too, while waiting in a traffic jam, have fantasized about how you would have fared as a Jedi in Star Wars or a gladiator in ancient Rome. But after a childhood spent devouring books and building castles out of cardboard boxes for my brothers’ Playmobil figures, it is clear that my past destiny was to be a lady of the Middle Ages.
If I’m making wishes, of course, not just any lady, but Buttercup herself riding on the back of a white horse while my beloved Westley whispers to me “As you wish” to the chords of Mark Knopfler’s guitar in the background. Yes, there are films that have done a lot of damage and The Princess Bride takes the cake, just ask us girls from the 80s.
Regardless of how I came to have this somewhat puerile fascination with all things medieval, the fact is that I was always looking for a way to transport myself to that era. In my efforts, I have made several trips both within and outside the peninsula without ever achieving my goal, but rather longing for it more and more while strolling through cobbled streets and crossing drawbridges. Until one day, there crossed my path the Belmonte Castle in Cuenca.
And then it was as if the Three Wise Men had returned again this year. I landed right in the Middle Ages, between the 14th and 15th centuries in the middle of the Medieval Combat World Championship, a unique competition that combines sport with history to offer a massive spectacle to the nearly 25,000 souls gathered there for the occasion. Around 500 knights from the most remote lands, equipped with their armor, shields, and weapons made faithfully respecting the shape and weight of those centuries. Everything was perfect: from the silhouette of the fortress set against a pristine blue sky to the smoking bonfires in the camp.
My attention scattered from one place to another in a nervous dance that went from the inquisitive eyes of a hawk to crowns of wildflowers, from the hay bales where swords rest to the page diligently cleaning gauntlets while others wait their turn on the ground. The camps where the combatants stay during the four days of the world championship recreate in an incredibly truthful way medieval life; no detail escapes them, except perhaps some blunder from this century, forgotten in a corner of some tent, mockingly whispering to me the era I come from to try and destroy my dream come true.
That visual orgy that had me intoxicated reached its zenith when our eyes met. It was that exact moment when my beloved Westley passed away and was relegated to an insignificant memory after decades of hegemony. The knight in command of the German team struck his best pose for me and my desires to stay and live in the Middle Ages became a matter of life or death. And there I was, dressed like a common 21st-century urbanite from Madrid with jeans and a digital camera hanging around my neck. Years dreaming of my life as a medieval lady only to not measure up at the precise moment. However, the handsome blond with hints of a supposed Saxon seemed interested.
I didn’t want to break his concentration either, so I lost myself in the crowd looking for the best spot to enjoy the matches and observe my beloved’s role in the fights from a distance. These were very tough, several rounds of five-on-five under the Castilian sun which seemed to have set itself the hard task of melting the steel. It was hard for me to recognize him through the dust and with his helmet on, but his leather belt with the legend The Beast on his back made him easily identifiable. Yes, I had chosen well, he was The Beast… The Spanish fighters fought with honor under the cry Desperta Ferro but they did not achieve victory. Germans, Poles and Americans turned out to be knights eager for a scuffle and with a refined technique for handling movements and blows. And yes, you read Americans; you see, they didn’t have a Middle Ages so to speak, but they are very clever and learn so fast that they ended up winning the world championship.
Before the lists ended, it was necessary to inevitably return to the present and my medieval experience suddenly seemed like a bad joke to me. You can’t go around changing historical eras like that from one moment to the next; these fleeting time travels cannot be good for the body and much less for the heart. My German knight stayed there, sheltered by the castle, waiting for more fights to battle in, they say eager to test himself against a giant from far-off Asia. During the barely two hours of the journey between Belmonte and Madrid, I imagined him sweating under the more than 30 kilos of his armor… I already said before that I was a hopeless dreamer, I’m sorry. There wasn’t even time to give him my mobile number, I thought; this is when I realized that the space-time paradox stood in the way of this budding love story.
Anyway, there are things that end before they have even begun.
– The Medieval Combat World Championship was held from May 1 to 4 at the Belmonte Castle in Cuenca.
– In this castle, some scenes were filmed from the movie El Cid, with Sophia Loren and Charlton Heston.
– Medieval combat is not a game, it is a sport with referees, precise rules and professional leagues.
– There is a historical committee that ensures the authenticity of the armor and weapon recreations. These cannot have an edge so as not to injure the fighters.
– There are different combat modes, from duels to Capture the King, a spectacular and incredible 50-on-50 battle.
– Women also participate of this sport as demonstrated by the three members of the Spanish team.
– If you are interested in learning more about this sport, you can follow the International Medieval Combat Federation.
