Whenceforth Inspiration?

Greetings traveler, and well met! And thanks to thee for visiting our Guildhall. Mayhaps better called a digital guildhall? Virtual guildhall? Works for me.

Our Company name is, by admission, quite a mouthful. “The Company of Merchant Adventurers and Guardians of Sterling”. Try fitting all of that on a business card! Why, then, the extended moniker?

Once upon a time, not so long ago, our little troupe of background support playtrons were created out of another organization, whose name we won’t dredge up on these pages purely out of respect for those who were part of that group. The newly formed guilde was named, simply, the “Guardians of Sterling” – referencing our fictional village of Sterling, nestled away within the confines of Sterling Forest and merely a waystop on the traveling caravan that was Her Majesty’s court and entourage. We existed, we had a role…but very little identity within this storyline. Our shire had a Sheriff; at a point we even had a Constable. So who, then, were we Guardians of?

Our story needed to…become. And in considering our roles, our varied identities and garb and personalities, it would make sense that our shared story needed to encompass all of the possibilities that we, as individual members, were.

That’s when we discovered the existence of Merchant Companies. In simplest terms: during these ages of exploration and expansion (and colonization and exploitation, yes; let’s not pretend otherwise!), various Companies were formed from the 14th through the 19th centuries to invest and profit from the trade to be had with the “discovery” of the New World, across the ocean to the West. The first such group simply went by The Merchant Adventurers, and were the primary investors whose capital funded the Pilgrims voyage on the Mayflower. The joint-stock company they invested in hoped to make a profit from the fur trade, from fishing, and from any other method they could invent.

Other examples? The Virginia Company of London. The British East India Company (those of the infamous tea party). The Hanseatic League. The Royal African Company. The Hudson’s Bay Company – which still exists today, only now you know them as the multi-billion dollar corporate owner of Sak’s Fifth Avenue and other retail outlets.

One remnant of that period does still exist in representative form of its earliest roots: The Company of Merchant Adventurers of the City of York, a guildhall you can visit today in the City of York. Old, not New 😉

The Hall exists as the base for the remaining 160 members of the Company and acts as a historic monument to their 600+ year history. Our tribute is an infant by comparison – perhaps a dozen years of existence, and not nearly the breadth of standing and influence as The Company of York has had. Still, knowing we have these forebears to look up to as inspiration for our own storyline is an honor. We can only hope to maintain the traditions and respect they’ve led the charge of.

If you’re ever in York, or simply want to give them a virtual look-see: