History of Fencing

The topic of Polish sabre is a problematic issue of nowadays Historical European Martial Arts research. There are lots of myths and misunderstandings due to the man simplifications of the subject. This paper introduces the subject again with a broader look and is introdction to an entire research performed for the sake of To Arms! exhibition in Jagiellonian University along with its catalogue published in 2018.

Las espadas y dagas que hoy en día podemos admirar en museos en su día fueron utilizadas como instrumentos de duelo y autodefensa. Gracias al estudio de piezas históricas y de documentación de la época, aplicando los principios de eficiencia y biomecánica orientados al combate con armas, puede recuperarse la esgrima aplicada a dichas armas. Tras un largo proceso de investigación, este manual pretende ofrecer las bases para iniciarse en la práctica de esgrima de espada de taza y daga de vela, también conocida como esgrima de arneses dobles.

https://www.elkar.eus/es/liburu_fitxa/ezpata-eta-daga-eskrima-esgrima-de-espada-y-daga/alejo-suescun-iker/9788478219681

Cet article, publié dans le Volume III de la revue E.Phaistos (https://temptech.hypotheses.org/presentation/314-2), expose quelles hypothèses de normes président à la rédaction des ouvrages traitant d'escrime et d'arts martiaux, en Europe, au XVe siècle.

A look at Bertrand's _Cut and Thrust_ and what he felt British sabre, at the time following a more military tradition, might learn from the Italian school as espoused by his friend Nedo Nadi. [this was written at a time I still had some vague hope that the olympic and classical/traditional fencing camps might work things out]

During the last four decades of the eighteenth century, fencing ceased to be synonymous with duelling and came into its own as a sport in Britain. Once a symbol of “aristocratic vice,” fencing was reborn as an elite leisure activity that exemplified and actively fostered the ideals associated with the era’s new brand of aristocratic martial masculinity. Nobody played a more important role in fencing’s rehabilitation than Domenico Angiolo Malevolti Tremamondo, or, as he was known in England, Domenico Angelo. The son of a prominent merchant from Leghorn, Italy, Angelo studied the courtly arts of fencing, riding, and ballet in Paris with Europe’s leading masters before settling in London in the mid-1750s.1 There he opened an Academy in Soho Square that put fencing squarely on the map of the fashionable world.

This essay is the first and only exploration of what the German Tradition of Chivalric Arts (Ritterlich Kunst)—with its three main lineages of Liechtenauer, Nürnberg, Gladiatoria—meant by masse for fencing and wrestling.  The findings may prove both revealing and riling: My conclusion is that masse meant “mass” in context of those past martial arts.  That simple and obvious equation differs from the current and hitherto uncontested consensus that masse et.al. meant “measure”.  Moreover, said consensus has no regard for whether the context be fechten (fencing) or ringen (wrestling), where multiple meanings for the same word may have existed.  Accordingly, many otherwise smart and talented fencers, wrestlers and scholars may misunderstand what masse really meant in context of Chivalric fencing and wrestling.  Counter to that, I hope to present a definitive and contextual analysis of relevant passages from those major German fechtbücher (fencing/fight-books) which spoke of masse; and accordingly provide a new, alternative and correct understanding for that significant word plus other related and relevant terms of Medieval German fighting arts.

2017, Mémoire de Master dirigé par Hervé Mazurel et Philippe Poirrier, Maître de conférences et Professeur d’Histoire Contemporaine à l’Université de Bourgogne, soutenu en juin 2017

Dans ce mémoire est abordée l’histoire de l’escrime à la baïonnette française
telle qu’elle est transmise, enseignée et pratiquée entre 1871, à la fin du conflit francoprussien,
et la fin de la Première Guerre mondiale. Nous tentons de comprendre,
d’analyser, comment cet art martial de champ de bataille, cette escrime de guerre,
manque de disparaître au lendemain de la reddition de Sedan, et comment la société
française, civile comme militaire, se réapproprie ce sujet. Comment la culture de
l’escrime à l’épée, du duel, et de l’escrime de guerre, ainsi que l’expérience des guerres
extérieures, offrit à l’escrime de guerre, devenue avatar de la stratégie de l’Offensive,
son baroud d’honneur sur les champs de bataille de la Grande Guerre.

The following passages from major Fechtbücher (fencing/fight-books) of the German Tradition are meant to show the presence and the relevance of the principle of Indes (Inthereof) as found originally in the Liechtenauer Lineage of Bloszfechten (bare/unarmoured longsword fencing).  The word is a strange combination of genitive article, adverb, preposition and pronoun.  MHD Indes equates with NHD indes or indessen, and was synonymous with MHD underdez and MHD dÿ weile and even MHD mit.  It may translate into NE as meanwhile, meantime; or the suitable instantly, immediately; or the commendable within; but really neither the questionable just as, nor the suicidal simultaneously.  All such have served in various modern translations.  However, I think that Indes is best served by the wholly original translation of:  Inthereof.  That word serves the demands of its unique martial context for a meaning relevant to both time and space.  “Inthereof” provides us a new & superior understanding of Indes.

En el presente trabajo se analizan los datos disponibles sobre la “Esgrima Vulgar” practicada en la Península Ibérica en los siglos XV y XVI, centrándose en su uso civil más que en el militar, y en aspectos administrativos y sociales del oficio de esgrimidor, la reglamentación de las cofradías, los espacios y herramientas de la práctica, los juegos públicos, el estatus de profesionales y practicantes, los principales maestros del periodo, así como un recorrido por la tratadística conservada en la actualidad y de la que se tienen referencias.

This paper discusses the data available on the “Vulgar Fencing” practiced in the Iberian Peninsula in the 15th and 16th centuries, focusing on civilian use rather than in the military, and in administrative and social aspects of the craft of fencer, regulation of the brotherhoods, the spaces and practice tools, public games, the status of professionals and practitioners, the great masters of the period, as well as a tour of the tratadistica preserved today and have references.

This study examined the characteristics and status of the occupation of teaching fencing as a professional fencing master to determine if the occupation is a profession in the United States.  Based on commonly accepted criteria that determine a profession, the study established an evaluation model through the application of grounded theory and applied that model in a qualitative case study to the occupation of fencing master.  This model has potential application to the sport in other nations.  Assessment of the results provides a possible roadmap for action by fencing masters to improve the status of the occupation from paraprofessional to being a true profession.

Michał Starzewski work is one of the most important works on fencing as it  is one of the pioners of Polish fencing authors and is seen as an example of Polish fencing tradition that was slowly fading from the minds of his contemporaries.
The aim of this paper is to analyze the Starzewski treatise "On Fencing" from 1840  based on the fencing traditions of his era.

Article by Jerzy Miklaszewski
Language edition by Andrzej Ławecki

Ce mémoire a été réalisé dans l’objectif de répondre à des questions relatives au combat à cheval dans le contexte de la guerre moderne. Pourtant, il ne s’agissait pas d’étudier la stratégie relative à la cavalerie, ni même l’histoire de l’équitation, ou encore celle de la charge, bien que tous ces sujets soient connexes. C’est l’histoire du corps à corps dans la guerre moderne, dans les affrontements impliquant des cavaliers et plus particulièrement celle de l’escrime de guerre à cheval qui était au centre de cette étude  et plus particulièrement celle de « l’escrime de guerre » à cheval. Bien que le maniement de la baïonnette, de la lance et du sabre à cheval partagent le nom d’« escrime » avec le sport olympique moderne encore pratiqué, l’« escrime de guerre » et l’« escrime civile» sont deux notions bien différentes. Au contraire du sport olympique qu’est l’escrime actuelle, le maniement des armes militaires est défini dans un seul but : être appliqué sur le champ de bataille par les soldats et les officiers dans le but de tuer (ou de blesser suffisamment), lors de combat en période de guerre. C’est cette forme d’escrime, et particulièrement celle pratiquée par la cavalerie, que nous pouvons nommer « escrime de guerre à cheval ». L’étude fut cantonnée à l’armée française, un sujet déjà vaste dont la précision aurait certainement beaucoup perdu, si elle avait été délayée dans la masse des nations européennes du XIXe siècle.
Les questions auxquelles tentait de répondre ce mémoire sont les suivantes :
L’escrime de guerre française à cheval diffère-t-elle vraiment de l’escrime de guerre à pied ? Si oui en quoi, et quelles en sont les spécificités ? Comment s’organise-t-elle, quand apparaît-elle, comment évolue-t-elle et qui sont les acteurs de ces évolutions ? Et enfin : quand et comment disparaît-elle ?
La première partie fut dédiée à la présentation de l’ensemble des caractéristiques du corps à corps à cheval, son contexte, mais aussi les spécificités de l’interaction cavalier/monture. Dans les deux parties suivantes, l’évolution de l’escrime de guerre dans la cavalerie française fut analysée de manière plus chronologique et moins thématique, en commençant par les premières tentatives de création et d’organisation de l’escrime de guerre à cheval, au début du XIXe siècle. Suivirent les différents personnages et organismes qui contribuent à cette création, les premières démarches d’officialisation de la discipline par le ministère, son évolution à travers le XIXe siècle, et enfin son devenir et la place du corps à corps à cheval dans la première Guerre Mondiale, pour arriver enfin à sa quasi-disparition.


Résumé de la première partie :

Des chevaux et des lames

Il est plus difficile d’aborder le corps-à-corps à cheval qu’à pied, la raison en est simple : les rôles de l’infanterie sont mieux définis, et moins pluriels que ceux de la cavalerie, de plus, l’entité fantassin est plus simple à appréhender que l’entité-cavalier. En effet, là où un seul individu, un homme qui plus est, compose le « fantassin », « le cavalier », lui, est une entité double, composée d’un homme et d’un cheval, c’est-à-dire de deux mammifères aux fonctionnements différents mais capables de communiquer à l’aide de l’outil technique nommé équitation.
Là où le fantassin, au corps-à-corps, possède ses propres jambes et est donc relativement libre de ses mouvements, le cavalier, lui, doit compter sur les jambes de son partenaire, qui n’est pas forcément à sa place au milieu d’une mêlée… Les traités d’escrime de guerre à cheval vont donc devoir prendre en compte ces facteurs supplémentaires (ou tout du moins essayer) pour être efficaces dans les différentes situations dans lesquelles le cavalier est amené à combattre : lors du choc (assez rare), de la poursuite où l’application de techniques peut être facilitée par l’absence de résistance, et surtout lors des affrontements d’escarmouche, de « petite guerre », situation privilégiée de mêlée et de corps-à-corps à cheval.
Nous avons également évoqué la diversité des sabres, et l’apparition des lances, qui peuvent influencer la conception des méthodes d’escrime. L’équitation est aussi un paramètre très variable, surtout au cours du XIXe siècle, ce qui explique sans doute sa dissociation de l’escrime, malgré l’idée partagée par l’ensemble des acteurs que ces deux arts sont intimement liés pour le combat à cheval.
Finalement, nous avons décrit les situations qui mènent au corps à corps, les particularités du cavalier dans cette situation, et bien sûr, ses équipements. « Quand » et « où », « par qui » et « avec quoi », il ne reste donc qu’à nous plonger dans le « comment », avec les méthodes d’escrime de guerre elles-mêmes.


Résumé de la deuxième partie :

Le creuset Napoléonien

Bien que les vétérans, les stratèges et les théoriciens de l’art de la guerre aient recommandé dès le XVIIIe siècle un apprentissage sérieux et efficace de l’escrime au sabre à cheval, il fallut attendre les années 1820 pour que la question fasse l’objet d’études sérieuses par le ministère de la Guerre. Pourtant, avant le choix crucial d’une méthode commune à l’ensemble des corps de cavalerie de l’armée française, des tentatives d’enseignement de cette escrime existaient, bien qu’essentiellement dépendantes des volontés et compétences locales ; elles prenaient la forme de traductions de textes germanophones, d’adaptations de l’escrime civile, ou simplement d’enseignements de l’escrime à pied à l’épée en espérant que cela suffise à préparer les cavaliers pour le combat au sabre à cheval. Certains officiers instructeurs, comme Mottin de la Balme, rechignaient même à enseigner l’escrime, estimant que donner cette maîtrise aux soldats reviendrait à les exposer à un risque de violence, de duel entre eux, ou pire, à mettre les officiers en danger.
Mais certains, officiers, écuyers, vétérans de l’armée napoléonienne ou de ses adversaires, essayèrent progressivement, dès le tout début du XIXe siècle, de proposer différentes visions de ce que devait être, selon eux, l’escrime à cheval. Que ce soit par la traduction de l’allemand, l’adaptation de l’escrime à l’épée ou la mise par écrit de pratiques transmises à l’oral, les méthodes se multiplièrent, et avec elles la rivalité, les rivalités et la course pour l’officialisation. Pendant quatorze ans, de 1816 à 1829, le capitaine Alexandre Müller et le général Durfort s’affrontèrent à coup de procès, de publications, de critiques construites ou de diffamations, de coups bas parfois, pour faire reconnaître officiellement leurs théories respectives (finalement fort semblables), jusqu’à la victoire finale de Durfort, et la lente agonie de Müller.
Leurs disputes, impliquant l’ensemble du monde de la cavalerie, participèrent sans doute à un retard de développement de cet art, en comparaison de l’escrime à la lance, adoptée et institutionnalisée en un éclair.
En moins d’un an, cette arme jusqu’alors disparue de la cavalerie française fut réintroduite, avec la création de nouveaux régiments de chevau-légers lanciers. L’Empereur ayant constaté et apprécié l’efficacité des lanciers polonais demanda au colonel des Polonais de sa garde de rédiger une méthode d’escrime à la lance, simple, efficace, et qui fut adaptée et ajoutée au règlement de manœuvres en à peine quelques mois, sans résistance, sans procès, et sans longue rivalité.
Par la suite, ces deux escrimes évoluèrent de concert, toujours alimentées par des tentatives plus individuelles d’amélioration, formant une partie indispensable de l’enseignement du cavalier, et ce jusqu’à la fin du XIXe siècle.


Résumé de la Troisième partie :

Du manège aux tranchées

Là où la défaite de 1871 eut un impact important sur l’escrime à la baïonnette et sur le corps-à-corps dans l’infanterie, la cavalerie, elle, traversa cette épreuve avec plus de résilience.
Ce fut la lance qui fit tampon, dans les années 1870 comme dans les années 1920 et ce fut elle qui devint obsolète la première. Pourtant, elle perdura, elle aussi, et revint en force au début du XXe siècle.
Comme pour sa cousine de l’infanterie, l’escrime de guerre à cheval fut discutée, évaluée, modifiée et adaptée au gré des conflits extérieurs, et de l’observation des guerres modernes. Son instruction fut débattue, tantôt réduite, tantôt augmentée et des moyens conséquents furent injectés dans sa diffusion au sein des différents régiments.
La cavalerie disposait en effet d’un atout que n’avait pas l’infanterie : si, pour les fantassins, le corps-à-corps n’était qu’une éventualité qui termine la charge, pour les cavaliers, la charge et surtout le choc (physique ou psychologique) était le mode d’action considéré comme « principal », jusqu’en 1914. Or, l’arme blanche est l’outil, et le seul outil, du choc.
L’influence de la culture de la cavalerie et des récits de combats à l’arme blanche dans la culture populaire française est énorme. Dans l’imaginaire français, la cavalerie est éternellement comparée à la gloire des chevauchées napoléoniennes, qui ne se passent jamais du sabre ou de la lance. Un prisme qui a permis de diminuer l’ampleur du choc que fut la Première Guerre mondiale pour la cavalerie française.
Et là où l’escrime à la baïonnette connut un lent déclin avant de disparaître quasi-complètement, le sabre à cheval, lui, survécut aux années 20. Il s’adapte, son escrime se ramasse, les gardes prennent en compte l’évolution technologique, et c’est finalement au cours de la Deuxième Guerre mondiale qu'auront lieu les dernières charges, les derniers engagements au corps-à-corps pour la cavalerie.
Si l’escrime de guerre à cheval a connu un destin différent du corps à corps à pied, c’est sans doute grâce au caractère adaptable et polyvalent de la cavalerie. En s’adaptant à l’évolution des outils et des techniques militaires, elle résista plus longtemps à l’influence du développement matériel de la guerre moderne.

Jerónimo Sánchez de Carranza ha pasado a la historia como el autor de la llamada ciencia de la verdadera destreza, método de uso de las armas basado en componentes matemáticos, geométricos, filosóficos y teológicos, que posteriormente fue continuado por otros insignes maestros de armas como Luis Pacheco de Narváez. La verdadera destreza de las armas creada por Carranza era lo opuesto a la llamada esgrima, a la cual dicho autor consideraba un conjunto de tretas propias del vulgo sin ningún rigor científico. Sin embargo, la fama de Carranza como creador de esta ciencia, que fue el origen de la llamada escuela de esgrima española y que en la actualidad se practica como esgrima antigua o histórica, ha eclipsado su labor como militar y político.

Abstract:

L’argomento di questa tesi nasce dall'esperienza congiunta di rievocazione storica ed archeologia sperimentale che ho maturato con gli anni. Appassionato di rievocazione dal 2007,
ho praticato (e continuo tuttora a praticare) la scherma ed il reenactment relativi a svariati periodi della storia della Sardegna: il periodo medioevale (giudicale), quello romano-imperiale e da ultimo quello nuragico. La necessità di avere maggiori informazioni, non disponibili tramite le fonti scritte, iconografiche e archeologiche legate sopratutto a quest’ultimo periodo, mi ha portato con gli anni a pormi ulteriori quesiti sull’argomento. Quella dei nuragici era una società pacifica? In caso contrario come combattevano i suoi guerrieri? Che tipo di struttura gerarchico-militare avevano? Le risposte a queste domande diventavano sempre più impellenti man mano che mi confrontavo con il pubblico (e spesso con i pregiudizi legati a questo lontano periodo). Desideroso di avere delle risposte, coadiuvato dall’esperienza di artigiano-archeotecnico del bronzo che porto avanti nei ritagli di tempo, ispirato da studi sulla cosiddetta “archeologia del combattimento” e dalle tecniche forensi applicate nell'archeologia, sono giunto a conclusione che solo studiando i resti umani di quegli
uomini vissuti 3000 e più anni fa, avrei potuto ricavare maggiori risposte alle mie domande.
Nel presente lavoro ho esaminato i casi più noti in letteratura di reperti scheletrici con visibili segni traumatici, ponendo particolare attenzione ai periodi preistorici. Come paragone
per lo studio dei reperti nuragici è stato utilizzato lo scheletro di un presunto soldato medioevale, il quale presentava diversi traumi da combattimento. I resti ossei nuragici consistono in tre crani appartenenti a tre diverse sepolture collettive localizzate in aree della Sardegna tra loro molto distanti. Per questi tre casi si è provveduto a determinare il tipo di trauma osservato, che tipo di arma ha provocato la ferita e lo scenario ipotetico dell’aggressione che ha interessato ciascun individuo. Lo studio di questi casi ha permesso una ricostruzione delle modalità di combattimento più verosimili per tale periodo; queste hanno
permesso di dedurre quali ferite e in quali aree del corpo si potrebbero riscontrare più frequentemente i traumi. La riproduzione dei traumi mediante prove d’archeologia sperimentale (test di taglio) hanno permesso di capire quali lesioni potrebbero essere prodotte da alcune specifiche armi dell’età del Bronzo. Come ultima analisi sono stati elencati i principali casi di trapanazioni craniche per poter determinare se tali pratiche siano da mettere in relazione a traumi conseguenti ad episodi violenti o a pratiche etnoiatriche.

The subject of this thesis was born from a joint of historical reenactment and experimental archeology that I have gained over the years. Fond of living history since 2007, I practiced (and still continuing to practice) the fencing and the reenactment related to various periods of the history of Sardinia: the medieval period (Judicial), the Roman Empire and finally the nuragic one (Age of Bronze). The need to have more information, not available through the written sources, iconographic and archaeological related especially in the latter period, led me through the years to ask me more questions on the subject.
Nuragics was that of a peaceful society? Otherwise how his warriors fought? What kind of hierarchical-military had? The answers to these questions became more compelling as I compared them with the public (and often with the prejudices related to this distant period). Eager to get answers, aided by the experience of bronze artisan-archaeotecnic that I carry in my spare time, inspired by studies on the so-called "archeology of combat" and forensic techniques applied in archaeology, I have come to the conclusion that only by studying the human remains of those men lived 3000 years and more ago, I could get more answers to my questions.
In this paper I have examined the best known cases in the literature of skeletal remains with visible signs of trauma, paying particular attention to prehistoric times. As a comparison for the study of the nuragic finds, was used the skeleton of a supposed medieval soldier, who presented several combat trauma. The skeletal nuragic remains consist of three skulls belonging to three different collective burials located in areas of Sardinia each other very distant. For these three cases, it was decided to determine the type of trauma observed, what kind of weapon caused the wound and the hypothetical scenario of the attack that affected each individual. The study of these cases has allowed a reconstruction of how to combat the most plausible for that period; These have enabled us to deduce which wounds and in which areas of the body could be encountered more frequently trauma. Reproduction of trauma by tests of experimental archeology (test cutting) has allowed us to understand what injuries could be produced by a number of specific Bronze Age weapons. As the final analysis were listed the main cases of cranial drilling to determine whether such practices are to be related to trauma resulting from violent incidents or etnoiatric practices.

Quevedo es, seguramente, el autor más popular del siglo de Oro, por delante incluso de Cervantes y Lope de Vega; y esto se debe en buena a medida a que el imaginario popular siempre disfrutó imaginándolo espadachín y fanfarrón, a la vez hábil con la palabra y con la espada. Dicha imagen se construyó solo y exclusivamente sobre las anécdotas que el abad Juan Pablo de Tarsia, recogió en su panegírico sobre el poeta castellano 1 , y a partir de ahí los apasionados de Quevedo la difundieron no sin cierta falta de perspectiva. La más relevante de ellas es la que se refiere a su disputa con el maestro de armas D. Luis Pacheco de Narváez en la que, según Tarsia, este fue vencido con la espada por el poeta. Sobre esta falsa afirmación la tradición ha construido la idea de que Quevedo era hábil con la espada, atribuyéndole al maestro de armas todo tipo de características negativas, que se contraponen con el simpático calavera, que es Quevedo. Pero la verdad, es otra. Quiero, antes de empezar, aclarar los motivos que me llevan a escribir este artículo porque, para ser sincero, siempre he esperado que esta tarea la acometieran investigadores más preparados que yo en el terreno académico. Si finalmente me he decidido a hacerlo es porque tengo la impresión de que, al final, el que realmente siente la necesidad de limpiar el nombre del ilustre baezano soy yo, posiblemente porque, como él, me dedico a enseñar esgrima, y la esgrima que practico y enseño se basa en el método que él desarrolló y escribió hace cuatrocientos años. Si, en su día, elegí seguir su método-y el de sus continuadores-fue porque, a medida que adquiría experiencia con la espada, me daba cuenta de su desarrollo teórico era increíblemente exacto, preciso y verdadero. No he encontrado ni en la tradición española ni en ninguna otra un método teórico tan útil para explicar y entender lo que ocurre durante una frase de armas ni para enseñarlo a otros, que es a lo que me dedico.

In 1653 Padoan fencing Master Francesco Alfieri publish his "L'Arte di ben maneggiare la spada", dealing with rapier, rapier and dagger and rapier and cloak. It also included a smaller text dealing with the spadone (double handed sword).
This is a bilingual transcription and translation into Portuguese of Alfieri's work.

Sloane Manuscript 2530 is a collection of records of the Masters of Defence, a guild based in London from at least 1540 CE through possibly as late as 1631 CE.  Among the records are descriptions of the certification examinations, termed Prizes, used by the Masters to rank members of the guild.  An analysis of those records shows that the most frequently used weapons in the playing of Prizes were the Long Sword, Sword and Buckler, Back Sword, Staff, Two Handed Sword, Rapier and Dagger, and Sword and Dagger (in order of popularity).  Although the use of the Rapier and Dagger by Masters in challenges dates at least to the reign of King Edward VI (1547-1553), showing that the Masters were not, as commonly asserted, opposed to the weapon, it can first be documented in Prizes in 1578.  Those interested in teaching English historical swordplay in this period can use this information to guide the selection of weapons in their curriculum.

The non-lethal simulated training of lethal reality, whether it be single combat or war, was historically a question of life and death. We provide an analytical framework for evaluating historical precedents in fight simulations by focussing on two key questions: What was the philosophy guiding the conception of reality-in particular, did historical practitioners see reality as deterministic, and if not, how did they see it? And how did the simulations deal with the elements of quantity, quality, timing, and information? The analysis shows that our ancestors' perception of the reality of fighting changed over time, as their interpretations of reality for the world at large changed. Considerable intellectual effort and ingenuity were invested into attempts to understand reality and formulate corresponding realistic simulations, making these ludic artefacts reflective, sometimes iconic for, and occasionally ahead of their historical-cultural context. Seemingly irrational phenomena, such as the persistence of lethal duelling, had perfectly pragmatic elements.

This research project starts out with the premise that the symbolic orders of any society should include constant typological distinctions, such as 1) spatial order, 2) movement order, and 3) speech order. All these orders involve time-dependent configurations of symbols, which are represented in systems of 1) proxemic, 2) kinetic, and 3) verbal signs. The results of this semiotic analysis are summarized in my postdoctoral thesis, which I presented to the faculty of sociology and history at the University of Constance (Germany). The study examined processes of standardization and differentiation of verbal and nonverbal behavioral patterns (such as dance, fencing, greeting, politeness in speech and comportment, etc.) in the context of establishing diplomatic and court ceremonial in Germany, Ottoman Empire, Russia and France. Communicative practices in Eastern and Western Europe have been studied comparatively. The phenomenon of the so-called modernization of behavior has been considered with regard to the dissolution of traditional forms of community and the emergence of formal and bureaucratic structures of communication. The author has attempted to develop sociological frameworks in order to explain cases of unsuccessful nonverbal communication as well as the continuity of visual stereotypes in the 17-20 cent. from Peter the Great up to  Stalin.

Behind the friendly passes which form the climax of Shakespeare's Hamlet lurks the social epidemic of the duel with rapiers. The bout between Hamlet and the combined forces of Laertes and Claudius is a duel in spirit if not technicality, and would have been recognised as such by an Elizabethan audience. The duel had more than its fair share of opponents in England, including Sir Francis Bacon, who saw the duel as a foreign import that threatened English tradition and promoted a culture of socially acceptable murder. Siding with this patriotic strain of opposition, Shakespeare utilises the consuming emotion of wrath to undermine Hamlet's method of seeking revenge while maintaining the legitimacy of revenge itself.

This paper will examine the ways in which Shakespeare constructs the rapier and the duel as foreign, including the way by which they are championed by Laertes and the spectre of the 'French Death' himself, Lamord. Hamlet begins the play aligned with the traditions of English chivalry, but the ferment of wrath and melancholy that overthrows his "noble mind" and drives him towards the foreign rapier and the civil slaughter which concludes the play. Only the death of Claudius is able to purge Hamlet of the virulent emotional poison which infects his psyche, restoring him to to the status of chivalric English hero.

Numerous treaties and methods regarding fencing are known today, either written by experts, veterans of sword-masters, or by the ministry or war and its branches: the schools of Joinville and Saumur. Some are destined to horse riders, others to officers. Each of these methods has its own particularities and, due to the abundance of treaties, discerning the qualities, the flaws, and the overall interest of a specific method can seem complicated. An attempt is made below to answer: why were the methods of French saber in the nineteenth century conceived and Why were they made this way, and what connection do they share with the French military world. These texts are compared and analyzed to uncover their function regarding the Army. From this analysis, three types of fencing will emerge, sometimes opposite, sometimes complementary; war fencing: conceived to be applicable on the battlefield-duel fencing (that was less official but still popular in nineteen century France)-and finally, recreational fencing, most often taking the form of a sport.

This article addresses the evolution of French bayonet fencing, teachings and methods over the course of World War I, under both historiographical and technical approaches. After a brief summary of the existent methods at the start of the War, we will explore the evolutions underwent by this Martial Art, brought by the changing nature and warfare and the various inputs of experienced fighter.

The Group for Early Modern Cultural Analysis (GEMCA) of the UCLouvain plans to sponsor one session on “Fencing Manuals and Scholasticism” at the annual meeting of the Renaissance Society of America in Dublin (March 30 2022 April 2 2022).
This session is conceived as a concluding part of the on going Schol’Art project The early modern theories of letters and arts in the light of Scholasticism (France Italy, 1500-1700). This interdisciplinary project is based on the collaboration of historians of art, French literature, Neo Latin literature, and philosophy Its starting point is the now well established observation that Scholasticism, far from ending with the medieval period, provided a lively intellectual framework for modernity Without denying the specificities of Humanist influence, and without losing sight of the ruptures introduced by modernity, it is now clear that Scholasticism played a decisive role during the Early Modern period. 
If it is now generally accepted that this important intellectual background influenced the other fields of knowledge and arts, these interactions remain largely unexplored. The Schol’Art project was conceived from this perspective aiming at the relations of, on the one hand, Scholastic philosophy (i e logic, ethics, physics and metaphysics) and theology, and, on the other hand, the theories of literature and art of the Early Modern period The hypothesis has proved fruitful, and the methodological foundations for such an inquiry have been laid. It is now opportune to widen the field by opening to other objects of study.
The RSA session “Fencing Manuals and Scholasticism” proposes to take one step in this direction by addressing the Late Medieval and Renaissance fencing manuals as an object of study. This choice is based on two main reasons. First, the corpus of fencing manuals mainly German and Italian underwent a remarkable expansion during the 15 th and 16 th centuries. In this sense, this corpus is a good source for describing the complexity of a period characterized by the development of technical knowledge, and during which Scholasticism as a traditional framework of education and knowledge is confronted with other emerging models Second, the recurring concern of the authors of fencing treatises to confer sufficient legitimacy on their discipline relies, especially within the prefaces, on philosophical or theological references, clearly pointing to the Scholastic background More in particular, some authors address this issue of legitimacy by discussing, in Aristotelian terms, the status of fencing as an art or a science Finally, the corpus is centrally concerned with the crucial issue of the rationalization of a bodily practice Here again the Scholastic background appears to be noteworthy
The questions regarding the relations between Scholastic texts and fencing manuals can be divided into two main types. On the one hand, there are material relations. In this extent, topics may include the intellectual background of the authors of the fencing treatises, contexts of writing and diffusion, as well as stylistic and formal issues ( organisation of the treatises, etc) On the other hand, there are conceptual relations In this case, it is important to note features of the Scholastic treatment of notions such as, for instance, the concept of time, or the already mentioned status of fencing as an art or a science, according to Aristotelian criteria.

From the late eighteenth century the British military produced official ‘fight books’ outlining the methods with which the cavalry were to use their swords. As these ‘fight books’ were military manuals for instructors, designed to turn trainees into effective soldiers they are, for the most part, clear and precise compared to the sometimes esoteric nature of earlier ‘fight books’. In addition, as they coincided with the introduction of standard patterns of cavalry swords the exact types of swords employed can be established. Hence, unusually in fight book studies, a full picture of why these works were produced, who they were aimed at, how widely they were disseminated and what exact forms of weapons these precise techniques were to be employed with can be known. The existence of contemporary accounts and other supplementary evidence can also help us understand how such ‘fight books’ were received and how effectively the theory contained within was borne out in practice on the battl...

Encuadrado en el marco cronológico de finales del siglo XV y el primer tercio siglo del XVI,  realizaremos una breve panorámica de cómo era el Arte de la Esgrima en la Península Ibérica en el contexto de la Primera Circunnavegación a la Tierra. Aún anclado al curso bajomedieval veremos el modus operandi de los maestros del oficio, su sistema práctico, los espacios de desarrollo de su actividad además de cómo se comportó ante la aparición del proceso humanístico aplicado al oficio de las armas.

This is the transcription, partly adapted for print, from a talk I delivered at Northwest Armizare's Thundermark Deed, an armored combat event that brings together historical fencers, members of the SCA, and others (the inaugural deed was held March, 30, 2019).

I've not had time to record it, so in lieu of that I've mixed the visuals with text in one place. This is a very introductory examination of the issues in using transcriptions and translations, especially with regard to historical fencing sources. While I refer to the Walpurgis Ms. I 33, the core example in this lecture centered upon the four extant/known Mss. of Fiore de Liberi's 15th cen. martial system, Armizare.

*I share this gladly, but if you refer to it please cite me.

Jim BT Emmons, "Parchment, Pommel-Strikes, and PDFS--How to Read Medieval Fith Manuals," Part 1: The Art of Translation, 30 March 2019, Thundermark Armored Deed hosted by Northwest Armizare, Sherwood, Oregon, USA