The Art of Swordsmanship

The Art of Swordsmanship PDF

Author: Hans Lecküchner

Publisher: Boydell & Brewer

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 482

ISBN-13: 1783270284

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English translation of one of the most significant medieval texts on fighting with swords.

Medieval Combat

Medieval Combat PDF

Author: Hans Talhoffer

Publisher: Frontline Books

Published: 2014-04-30

Total Pages: 255

ISBN-13: 1473835178

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“[A] remarkable how-to . . . offers freeze-frame instructions on medieval martial arts using swords, shields, poleaxes, daggers and wrestling” (Publishers Weekly). Written by German fencing master Hans Talhoffer in 1467, this book illustrates the intricacies of the medieval art of fighting, covering both the “judicial duel” (an officially sanctioned fight to resolve a legal dispute) and personal combat. Combatants in the Middle Ages used footwork, avoidance, and the ability to judge and manipulate timing and distance to exploit and enhance the sword’s inherent cutting and thrusting capabilities. These skills were supplemented with techniques for grappling, wrestling, kicking and throwing the opponent, as well as disarming him by seizing his weapon. Every attack contained a defense and every defense a counterattack. Talhoffer reveals the techniques for wrestling, unarmored fighting with the long sword, poleaxe, dagger, sword and buckler, and mounted combat. This unparalleled guide to medieval combat, illustrated with 268 contemporary images, provides a glimpse of real people fighting with skill, sophistication and ruthlessness. This is one of the most popular and influential manuals of its kind. “This superb treatise, amply illustrated, provides valuable insight into the real world of medieval combat. Magnificent!” —Books Monthly

The Art of Sword Combat

The Art of Sword Combat PDF

Author: Joachim Meyer

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2016-08-31

Total Pages: 143

ISBN-13: 147387677X

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This sixteenth-century German guide to sword fighting and combat training is a crucial source for understanding medieval swordplay techniques. Following his translation of Joachim Meyer’s The Art of Combat, Jeffrey L. Forgeng was alerted to an earlier version of Meyer’s text, discovered in Lund University Library in Sweden. The manuscript, produced in Strasbourg around 1568, is illustrated with thirty watercolor images and seven ink diagrams. The text covers combat with the longsword (hand-and-a-half sword), dusack (a one-handed practice weapon comparable to a sabre), and rapier. The manuscript’s theoretical discussion of guards sheds significant light on this key feature of the historical practice, not just in relation to Meyer but in relation to medieval combat systems in general. The Art of Sword Combat also offers an extensive repertoire of training drills for both the dusack and the rapier, a feature largely lacking in treatises of the period and critical to modern reconstructions of the practice. Forgeng’s translation also includes a biography of Meyer, much of which has only recently come to light, as well as technical terminology and other essential information for understanding and contextualizing the work.

The Martial Ethic in Early Modern Germany

The Martial Ethic in Early Modern Germany PDF

Author: B. Tlusty

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2011-03-29

Total Pages: 386

ISBN-13: 0230305512

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For German townsmen, life during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was characterized by a culture of arms, with urban citizenry representing the armed power of the state. This book investigates how men were socialized to the martial ethic from all sides, and how masculine identity was confirmed with blades and guns.

The School of Fencing

The School of Fencing PDF

Author: Domenico Angelo

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2017-01-30

Total Pages: 138

ISBN-13: 1473882982

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Domenico Angelo's book, complete with diagrams, embodies the ideas of an era. Philip Stafford in The Times Literary Supplement This is a fascinating read and surprisingly up to date. Every fencer will learn from it . . . Very highly recommended. The Sword. If there is one book on smallsword technique that a person should have in their collection, Angelos treatise is certainly that book. JL Forgeng in Man At Arms magazine. Domenico Angelos The School of Fencing was first published in 1763 as LEcole des armes and was one of the most popular and influential treatises of its time. Today, it remains essential reading for any historical swordfighter, student of martial arts, or military historians, giving the reader access to one of the great masters of the art. This modern edition is annotated by Maestro Jeannette Acosta-Martinez, who is currently the foremost expert in the French small sword. Her additions to this edition help clarify Angelos text for the modern reader. This edition also includes an Introduction by the editor, Jared Kirby, which gives a short history of Angelos life.

The Sword

The Sword PDF

Author: Lisa Deutscher

Publisher: Boydell & Brewer

Published: 2019

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 1783274271

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A multidisciplinary overview of current research into the enduringly fascinating martial artefact which is the sword.

The Swordsman's Companion

The Swordsman's Companion PDF

Author: Guy Windsor

Publisher: Swordschool Ltd

Published: 2013-10-08

Total Pages: 172

ISBN-13: 9526793420

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A ground-breaking and enduringly popular guide to medieval Italian knightly combat. This book, first published in 2004, started a generation of swordsmen along their path to martial expertise. It includes instruction on both theory and practice, background material about the great swordsmen Fiore dei Liberi and Philippo Vadi, and advice on what equipment to purchase. Essential reading for anyone interested in swords, martial arts, or history!