Annalist

From Glen Cook Wiki

The member of the Black Company responsible for keeping records. In the very beginning (the first few decades) these were largely prosaic records of equipment and so forth. Over time, the Annals became a living history and the heart of the Company's identity, and presumably the importance of the Annalist increased commensurately. Typically the Annalist also serves other duties in the Company (Croaker is the company physician). Once a month, the Annalist reads a passage from the Annals to the men, generally chosen for its relevance to current situations, rather like a sermon. These sessions contribute greatly to the Company's sense of identity and history. The Annalist must also spend a great deal of time recopying older Annals, which may be written in languages no longer spoken in the Company.

The position of Annalist is an important one, because it is very frequently the first step on the road to the Captaincy. This is perhaps not surprising since the Annalist must be able to read and write, meaning that he must be well educated - literacy is not a common skill in the world of the Black Company.

Croaker is the Annalist for much of the series. Others who take up the pen include the Lady, Murgen, and Sleepy. There are references to a few older Annalists, including Lees, Agrip, Holm, and Straw, all of whom contributed to the Book of Kette set down over 200 years before the start of the series. Croaker says Straw in particular was particularly good, "hell with a pen". Croaker's immediate predecessors as annalist, Miller Ladora and Kanwas Scar, were so lax in their duties that little is remembered from their time.