Camlann Medieval Festival

– presented at Camlann Medieval Village in Carnation, Washington

12:noon to 5:00 pm |  every weekend  |  May 2023  – to –  January, 2024

The 26th Annual Camlann Medieval Festival features in-character interpreters who have taken on roles of medieval persons living in a small village in the year 1376.  Camlann is dedicated to offering the public powerful personal experiences of history, including multiple learning and performing arts opportunities, built upon research of rural communities in 14th century England, to provide a deeper understanding of the relationship between those historical events and western society today.

Camlann Medieval Festival Admission: 

 Adults                      $10.00

  60 yrs & over          $6.00

 12 yrs & under        $6.00

    5 yrs & under          free

  Feast &Festival        $50-$60.00

Children 12 & under must be with an adult at all times.

No pets/radios/flash/videos please

Mayday, ‘somour games’, was a popular holiday in the middle ages, a celebration of Sumer is i-cumen in. Bringyng in the May was the traditional form of this celebration.  Young folk and others would venture into the woods before daybreak, or the night before, to gather wild flowers, greenery, and hawthorn boughs. Sometimes the young men would carry back a tree trunk, stripped of branches, to be redecorated with flowers and long ribbons.  Many towns had a year-round Maypole in their village square around which villagers would enjoy dancing, games, contests, choosing a May Queen, and feasting.

  Come join us in our 18th annual festival of merriment, feasting and the beauty of Spring in the countryside.  Medieval clothing is encouraged, but optional.  Greens, yellows and a chaplet for your hair are preferred on this occasion.

Camlann, in its 26^th year, re-creates the every-day experience of a 14th century rural village typical of Somerset, England:

a Living History Museum project for the interpretation, and enjoyment of medieval culture.

Why is medieval culture important to us in the 21st century ?   Not only colorful and fascinating, the accomplishments of the middle ages are the bedrock foundations of western society.  Our language, values, customs, religions, governments, legal systems, calendars, science, tools, the arts, fashions, even our personalities, are all deeply rooted in European and Middle Eastern traditions in those formative times.  

.    Camlann offers a unique opportunity for schools, organizations, families, and individuals to explore the complexity of our heritage and the traditions which continue to enrich our lives today.  Camlann’s authentic architecture, food, clothing, and demonstrations allow visitors to walk a few important steps in the shoes of our ancestors.

.  Camlann’s goal is not to promote a return to the past, but is to enrich the quality of our lives today, through a re-discovery of traditional arts and values worth preserving in times of rapid change … to understand the wider world we are a part of … to encourage involvement in live performance and handmade crafts … to understand an era when man and the environment were more directly bound together … to make the world of the scholar relevant to the general public … to challenge historical stereotypes … to give our young generation a stake in their heritage.