THL Eachna of Clonmakate

I am known as THL Eachna of Clonmakate in the Society of Creative Anachronism, and live in the Kingdom of Meridies.  The name “Eachna” is an early Celtic name.  Eachna was the daughter of a King of the Irish province of Connacht.  She had great fashion sense and was a beautiful rider.  Though I was unable to get the name "Eachna" approved by the Heralds as she was a real person.  So my approved name is Eghmurkagh, which as close to Eachna as we could find.  Eghmurkagh is an anglicized version of a Celtic name and was taken from the rolls in London from around 1600.  "Clonmakate" is the name of the flax plantation given to my husband’s family when William of Orange (known as “King Billy” in Northern Ireland) conquered Ireland.  They were Scottish mercenaries and moved from Ayr in Scotland to Ireland with King Billy’s army.  His family still lives there and we visited them in February, 2020.

Eachna is a Tudor lady living in the English countryside around Coventry.  She is the wife of a wool merchant, and they are improving their business every year.  Though I currently dress as a working woman, as our finances improve my attire may move up to Middle Class. The gown I am wearing in the above picture is a 16th Century Loose Gown that I made from information located in Janet Arnold's Patterns of Fashion.  I made it as an Arts and Sciences project, not to wear at events.  

My interests in the SCA are many and varied.  I enjoy many types of embroidery, including crewel, blackwork, goldwork, and  needlepoint, knitting, cooking, costuming, and all things Tudor.  I enjoy entering my works in Arts and Science Competitions, and I love to share my knowledge by teaching.  I am also an Equestrian Marshal and one of only a handful of Driving Marshals in the SCA. 

Mundanely I recently retired after working for the government for over 40 years.  And I have several horses and ponies.  I own a fabulous German Riding Pony that I drive, Dragon's Lair Mazurka.  I enjoy competing in Combined Driving with her.  Last year I bought Signe, a Norwegian Fjord, which is an historic breed of draft pony.  They have been purebred in Norway for centuries, and are very rare in the US.  Then there are the minis: a poor little mini pony who was starved and abused that we named Tyrion, and a cute mini named Beau that I bought as part of a pair of driving ponies.  Unfortunately the other half of the mini team died from colic last November, and I haven't decided what to do with the remaining mini. We all live together with two rescue dogs and two rescue cats on D’Yankee Farm in Middle Georgia.