About Us

The Guilde of Sainte Marie welcomes you to join them in the glittering and captivating Royal Courts of the 16th Century!

The Guilde of Sainte Marie was officially formed in December of 2003 with a core membership of 10 members. We wanted a place to play, and chose first the French courts of the 16th century as our medium. Our first event was Fresno City college in 2004 as the Court of Henri III and Louise, and since then we have done nothing but grow and grow stronger. While Henri III remains our primary court, we now span one nearly one hundred years of history, offering also the courts of Francois I of France, Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and James I of England. We have even played the courts of Edward VI, Mary I, and Lady Jane Grey!

Our Mission Statement

The Guilde of Sainte Marie is a not-for-profit historical reenactment society dedicated to the portrayal of noble class life in the 16th Century during the height of the Renaissance Period. Whether performing as a French or English noble court, we strive to maintain historical accuracy in our characterization, set, costumes, language and staging. Each re-creationist is important in our Guilde, from the household companion to the guard to the courtier to the monarch. As in the time period, each would not exist without the other, and each thrives of the other. We are a family on and off-stage.

Our historical purpose is to teach the rich cultural and personal history of the House of Valois, with a focus on the changes and additions Catherine de Medici brought as a Renaissance queen and mother of three Valois kings. We also focus on teaching the dynamic and intriguing histories of the Houses of Tudor and Stuart.

Our guilde boasts over 100+ combined years in Renaissance Faire and general acting/performing experience. We now have a strong core membership of 10 dedicated and hard-working actors who strive for as close to perfection as is possible when dealing with historical reenactment. Not only do we want to portray our characters in all of their pomp, circumstance and glory, but also we want to show them as real life human beings in their element and lifestyle. We strive to portray the human-interest side of history, and while we want to teach, we want to have fun too! We are by all means not authorities in the period, but consider ourselves students and teachers as one.