Longsword OutlineObserve → assume guard → approach, stepping → seize the initiative → use master strokes to defend. → control the fight → feel the bind → your sword is your shield → be brave.

Table of ContentsLongsword Outline...............................................................................................................................1The Sword............................................................................................................................................5

Parts.................................................................................................................................................5Grip..................................................................................................................................................5

Foot Movements...................................................................................................................................5Steps.................................................................................................................................................5Range / Distance..............................................................................................................................6Timing..............................................................................................................................................6

The Guards...........................................................................................................................................6Primary Guards................................................................................................................................6Secondary Guards............................................................................................................................8

Attack ................................................................................................................................................12Three Wounders.............................................................................................................................12Stokes from Above.........................................................................................................................12

Diagonal....................................................................................................................................12Vertical......................................................................................................................................12Below........................................................................................................................................12

Stokes from Below.........................................................................................................................12Above........................................................................................................................................12Below........................................................................................................................................12

Horizontal strokes..........................................................................................................................12Above........................................................................................................................................13Below........................................................................................................................................13

Thrusting........................................................................................................................................13Slicing............................................................................................................................................13

Under Slice................................................................................................................................13Above Slice...............................................................................................................................13Pressing of the Hands................................................................................................................13

Openings.............................................................................................................................................13Timing and Initiative..........................................................................................................................14Defending...........................................................................................................................................14

Drills..............................................................................................................................................14Defend - Five Strokes.........................................................................................................................15

Stroke of Wrath..............................................................................................................................15 Withdraw (zucken)...................................................................................................................16 Changing Through (durchwechseln)........................................................................................16 Winding....................................................................................................................................16

Crooked stroke...............................................................................................................................16Cross stroke....................................................................................................................................17Squinting Stroke............................................................................................................................18Scalp Stroke...................................................................................................................................19

Three Wrestlings.................................................................................................................................19

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1st Wrestling..............................................................................................................................192nd Wrestling............................................................................................................................203rd Wrestling.............................................................................................................................20

Sword Taking.................................................................................................................................20Speaking Window...............................................................................................................................20

Bound swords............................................................................................................................20Direct threat...............................................................................................................................20

The Eight Windings............................................................................................................................20Doubling and Transmuting............................................................................................................21

Spear Techniques................................................................................................................................21Guards............................................................................................................................................21Attack.............................................................................................................................................21Winding..........................................................................................................................................22Defend............................................................................................................................................22

Armour Techniques............................................................................................................................22Guards............................................................................................................................................22Attack.............................................................................................................................................23Wrestling........................................................................................................................................23Thrusting through..........................................................................................................................23Thrust to Palm................................................................................................................................23Grabbing the Point.........................................................................................................................23Disarming.......................................................................................................................................23Parry from the Across Knee Guard................................................................................................23Defend Against Set Point...............................................................................................................24Strokes with Pommel.....................................................................................................................24

Drills...................................................................................................................................................24Drill 1.............................................................................................................................................24Drill 2.............................................................................................................................................24Drill 3.............................................................................................................................................24Drill 4.............................................................................................................................................24Drill 5.............................................................................................................................................25Drill 6.............................................................................................................................................25Drill 7.............................................................................................................................................25Drill 8.............................................................................................................................................25Drill 9.............................................................................................................................................25Drill 10...........................................................................................................................................25Drill 11...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 12...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 13...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 14...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 15...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 16...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 17...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 18...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 19...........................................................................................................................................26Drill 20...........................................................................................................................................27Drill 21...........................................................................................................................................27Drill 22...........................................................................................................................................27Drill 23...........................................................................................................................................27Drill 24...........................................................................................................................................27

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Drill 25...........................................................................................................................................27Drill 26...........................................................................................................................................28Drill 27...........................................................................................................................................28Drill 28...........................................................................................................................................28Spear Drills....................................................................................................................................28Half Sword Drills...........................................................................................................................28

Manuscripts........................................................................................................................................29Reference............................................................................................................................................29Longsword..........................................................................................................................................30

Contents.........................................................................................................................................31Terminology...................................................................................................................................31Evolution........................................................................................................................................32Morphology...................................................................................................................................32

Blade profile..............................................................................................................................33Blade cross-section...................................................................................................................33Hilts...........................................................................................................................................33

Fighting with the longsword..........................................................................................................33History.......................................................................................................................................34German school of fencing.........................................................................................................35

Bloßfechten..........................................................................................................................35Harnischfechten....................................................................................................................36

See also..........................................................................................................................................36Notes..............................................................................................................................................37References......................................................................................................................................38External links.................................................................................................................................38Further reading...............................................................................................................................38

Oakeshott typology.............................................................................................................................39Contents.........................................................................................................................................39Oakeshott types..............................................................................................................................39

Type X.......................................................................................................................................39Type XI......................................................................................................................................40Type XII....................................................................................................................................40Type XIII...................................................................................................................................40Type XIV...................................................................................................................................41Type XV....................................................................................................................................41Type XVI...................................................................................................................................41Type XVII.................................................................................................................................41Type XVIII................................................................................................................................41Type XIX...................................................................................................................................41Type XX....................................................................................................................................41Type XXI...................................................................................................................................41Type XXII.................................................................................................................................41

References......................................................................................................................................42See also..........................................................................................................................................42External links.................................................................................................................................42

Historical European martial arts.........................................................................................................43Contents.........................................................................................................................................44Early history (before 1350.............................................................................................................44Late Middle Ages (1350 to 1500)..................................................................................................45Renaissance....................................................................................................................................45

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Early Modern period (1600 to 1789).............................................................................................47Baroque (1600-1720)................................................................................................................47Rococo (1720-1789).................................................................................................................48

Development of modern sports (1789 to 1914).............................................................................49Traditional styles............................................................................................................................49Revival...........................................................................................................................................50

Early reconstruction attempts....................................................................................................50Development of the modern HEMA community......................................................................50

See also..........................................................................................................................................51References......................................................................................................................................51Further reading...............................................................................................................................51External links.................................................................................................................................52

German school of fencing..................................................................................................................53Contents.........................................................................................................................................54History...........................................................................................................................................54Disciplines.....................................................................................................................................54First principles...............................................................................................................................55Unarmoured longsword.................................................................................................................56

Basic Attacks.............................................................................................................................57Master-Hews.............................................................................................................................57Guards.......................................................................................................................................58Techniques.................................................................................................................................59

Armoured combat (Harnischfechten)............................................................................................59See also..........................................................................................................................................60Literature........................................................................................................................................60Notes..............................................................................................................................................60External links.................................................................................................................................61

Chivalry..............................................................................................................................................62Contents.........................................................................................................................................62Etymology......................................................................................................................................63History...........................................................................................................................................64

Origins in military ethos...........................................................................................................64Medieval literature....................................................................................................................65Late Middle Ages......................................................................................................................67

Modern debates..............................................................................................................................67See also..........................................................................................................................................67

4

The Sword

Parts

Long edge – Edge of blade pointing away

Short edge – Edge of blade facing

Grip

1. Hands close together

2. Left hand on pommel

3. Right thumb over guard

4. Hands crossed at wrist (left side strokes)

Tight on little finger – lose towards thumb

Foot Movements

Steps

1. Passing step – move one foot forward or backwards

1. Straight pass – move forward

2. Slopping pass – move to the side

2. Gathering step – move forward or backwards keep same foot forward

3. Compass step (triangle step) – turn on one foot

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Range / Distance

1. Approach - zufechten2. War (close combat) - krieg

Timing

Fencing timing – moves in a technique

The GuardsFour Guards (vier leger).

Primary Guards

1. Ox – ochs (thrust). Right ox has left foot forward.

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2. Plough – pflug (thrust). Right plough has left foot forward.

3. Roof – vom tag (strike). Right roof has left foot forward.

Also at the shoulder

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4. Fools – alber (bate). Right fools has left foot forward.

Secondary Guards

1. Longpoint guard – langenort (bate)

2. Barrier guard – schranckhut (strike) like near but with sword running left / right

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3. Near or side guard – nebenhult (strike)

4. Crown guard – kron Sword hilt at head height, point up.

5. Hanging point – hangetort

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6. Wrath guard - zornhut

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6. Middle guard - mittelhut

7. Unicorn

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Attack

Three Wounders

1. Stroke / slash – hauen

2. Thrusting - stechen

3. Slicing – abschneiden

Move after sword – into area that the sword has cleared

Use body weight.

From left or right.

“Approach” (long distance) or “war” (close distance).

Stokes from Above

oberhau

Diagonal

Roof / wrath guard → longpoint → side guard

Vertical

Roof / wrath guard → longpoint → fools guard

Below

Side → hanging point → unicorn

Barrier → longpoint – barrier guard

Stokes from Below

unterhau

Above

Roof → sweep down and up → ox guard

Below

Fools / near / barrier → sweep up → ox guard

Horizontal strokes

Mittelhau

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middle guard → long point → middle guard

Above

Roof → sweep across → roof guard

Below

Near → sweep across → near guard

Thrusting

vier ansetzen

Approach (step forward) or war (remain).

Ox → longpoint (step forward) – straighten blade

Ox → longpoint (remain) – straighten blade

Plough → longpoint (step forward)

Plough → longpoint (remain)

Fools → longpoint (step forward / backwards)

Slicing

War only.

Push sword outwards using body weight.

Under Slice

unterschitt

From ox. Use long or short edge.

Above Slice

oberschitt

From plough. Use long edge.

Pressing of the Hands

From ox, hit the wrists then twist to an above slice.

Openings1. upper right – above belt, right of centre

2. upper left – above belt, left of centre

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3. lower right – below belt, right of centre

4. lower left – below belt, left of centre

Best target – upper first then lower

Timing and Initiative1. Before (attack) – vor

1. follow opponent and attack 1st, use their timing against them – chasing (nachreisen)

2. After (defend – create a threat) – nach

1. Use chasing.

3. Immediately (blade pressure (fühlen) – how to act) - indes

DefendingAttack!

1. foot work – body position.

2. guard to guard.

3. stroke, thrust, slice – failure of one sets up for the next.

4. Four targets – openings.

5. seize the initiative.

Drills

1. Attack : Right Roof → vertical down / slope forward

Defend : Right Roof → ox / slope forward

2. Attack : Right Roof → diagonal down / slop forward

Defend : Right Roof → longpoint / slope forward → left plough

3. Attack : Right Roof → stick above to the leg / slope forward

Defend : Right Roof → longpoint / slope backwards

4. Attack : Right Roof → strike from below / slope forward

Defend : Right Roof → barrier guard / slope forward

5. Attack : Right Roof → vertical down / slope forward

Defend : Fools → ox / slope forward

6. Attack : Right Roof → diagonal from above / slope forward

Defend : Right fools → longpoint / slope forward → plough

7. Attack : Right Roof → down to the legs / slope forward

Defend : Right fools → longpoint / slope backwards

8. Attack : Right Roof → strike from below / slope forward

Defend : Right fools → barrier / slope forward

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Defend - Five Strokes

Use chief techniques (hauptstüke). Test the bind (fühlen) – remain (am schwert) or depart (vom schwert).

Master strokes (meisterhau) defend / attack at the same time

1. Stroke of Wrath (diagonal from above) – zornhau

2. Crooked stroke (horizontal from above also against ox) – krumphau

3. Cross stroke (high horizontal also against roof guard) – zwerchhau

4. Squinting stroke (from above using short edge also against plough) – schielhau

5. Scalp stoke (from above, vertical to out reach low attacks also against fools) - scheitelhau

Stroke of Wrath

Roof → plough

Soft at the bind : thrust along the sword.

Hard at the bind : Sword pushed to the side - come out of the bind.

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Withdraw (zucken)

Pull out of bind.

• Hard to side - Withdraw (zucken) - slop pass to opposite side and attack.

• Soft to side - Take off (abnehmen) – withdraw upwards along sword till cleared the point then strike head.

• Sword pushed down – Snap (schappen) – push pommel forward till snaps out of bind and then strike head.

Changing Through (durchwechseln)

Slide out of bind. Opponent's sword near your point.

• Let blade slid free (durchwechseln).

• Use pommel and hit face.

Winding

When bind not too soft not too hard and sword still threatens you.

Move sword : plough → ox (keep blade contact) → thrust.

Crooked stroke

Roof → barrier guard with deep slop forward. Target hands. Hit with short edge. Use when unsure of over or under attack. Also barrier → barrier guard.

Also used to attack ox (1st of the four parries (vier versetzen)).

• If hit blade, pull out using changing through

• If strong bind and you beat his stroke, thrust forward.

• If strong bind and you don't beat his stroke, wind to ox and thrust or snap and strike head.

Defend against crooked stroke

wind into plough or snap out of it.

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Cross stroke

Used against vertical attacks from above.

Roof → ox with flat blade, hilt held high. Short (R → L) or long (L → R) edge hits opponents head.

Turn hips with stroke.

Target – any of the four openings. Keep attacking with this attack.

Withdraw same as stroke of wrath.

If too close – use half sword (halbschwert).

Used to attack roof guard (2nd of the four parries (vier versetzen)).

Use as feint (fehler). Attack upper left → before he parries → turn sword and attack lower left with short edge.

Defend against cross stroke

Push hard and go to plough us whole body. If he comes out of the bind strike own cross stroke to neck (twist not step).

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If attacks with 2nd cross stroke, forward → plough and slice under.

Squinting Stroke

Roof → ox. Straight down, short edge, turn right hand over, twist hip. Target – far shoulder / top of head.

Used to attack plough (3rd of the four parries (vier versetzen)). Strike sword → trust to face. Use body weight, turn hips.

Used to attack long point. Over attack → switch to squinting for blade contact as with plough.

If attempt to defend, change through.

Defend against squinting stoke – move out of the way!

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Scalp Stroke

High Roof → head. Vertical stroke, long edge, slight hip turn. Using overrunning (überlaufen).

Used to attack fools (4th of the four parries (vier versetzen)).

Intercepted with crown.

If crown too low, rock over and hit head.

If crown correct, invert to ox → trust.

If too high, change through → trust under hands.

If opponent closes to wrestle, ox → slice under hands → compass backwards → left plough.

Three WrestlingsWrestling – ringen

Murder strikes – mordströße – punches

Push-pull

1st Wrestling

Left hand push on neck, the other pull on leg just above the knee as you move forward. At sword, use leg behind to push.

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2nd Wrestling

Right hand push on neck, the other pull on leg just above the knee as you move forward. At sword, use leg behind to push.

3rd Wrestling

Opponent moving forward. Pull upper body forward, encircle opponent’s arm (grab your own arm). Step forward, use your leg to push on opponent's. Compass step around.

Sword Taking

schwert nehmen

Plough → bind, push with sword, pull pommel / guard with hand.

Plough → grab at bind, thumb down, move pommel clock wise.

Cross stroke bind with plough → grab pommel or grip.

Fool → crown, grab pommel with inverted left hand.

Speaking WindowLong point guard to sense next action. Bound sword or direct threat.

Bound swords

Soft bind → thrust.

Depart from bind → attempts over strike → follow movement and sword bind with long edge.

Departs from bind → attempts middle strike → follow movement and bind with opponents hands and slice.

Attempts to push sword down → chasing (nachreisen) → ox guard

Attempts to push to the side → change through → thrust

Direct threat

Opponent steps right to side to deliver over strike → wind to ox → trust.

Opponent steps left to side to deliver over strike → cross stroke.

Push sword to side → change through → thrust.

Peacock's tail (pfobenzagel) / wheel (das redel) – type of change through. Turn sword in circular motion.

The Eight WindingsEight windings (acht winden) during War to gain leverage. Not to use when opponents point

doesn’t threat you. Stepping important. Use any of the three woundings.

Two hangings (zwei hengen) ox and plough. Change from one to the other as needed

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From Ox.

1St and 2nd windings

Approach → Opponent: right above strike, you : slope right, left ox, catch on short edge → thrust.

If parries, wind to right ox, slope forward left foot, wind sword.

3Rd and 4th windings

Left ox → attack from left side, slope to right ox, block with long edge → thrust.

If parries, slope back to left ox, keep sword contact → trust.

5Th and 6th windings

Right plough, attack : over strike → slope forward to left plough → trust.

If parries, slope forward → back to right plough → trust.

7Th and 8th windings

Left plough → attack: over strike → slope forward to right plough → trust.

If parries, slope forward → back to left plough → trust.

Doubling and Transmuting

Used from any winding. Used together, switching as needed.

Doubling (duplieren)

Used when hard at bind. Strike from right side → bind → turn pommel anti-clockwise → strike upper opening. Opposite for left strike.

Transmuting (mutieren)

Used in soft bind. From bind → ox → strike at lower opening.

Spear Techniques

Guards

Upper (ox) over head

Lower (plough)

Under arm (lance)

Attack

Before trust – from lower guard. If parries, pull spear out and attack other side. Switch to under arm to drive thrust home.

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Winding

From bind, wind to upper guard.

Defend

Move out of the way → compass forward, and trust.

Travel after when opponent leaves the bind.

Parry with left hand. Spear in lance pos.

Armour TechniquesUse half sword (halbscwert) (hold blade with hand).

Half sword (left).

Guards

Upper (ox)

Lower (plough)

Across left knee (fools)

Under arm

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Attack

From lower or upper guard. Take gathering steps forward.

Trust → pull out → trust again. Once hit a gap → under arm and trust more.

Wrestling

Three wrestlings.

Trust to inside → parries → pull out → thrust out side → parries → pass forward right foot behind opponent’s left leg, pommel around right neck → twist and throw backwards.

Counter with third wrestling. Let go of blade.

Thrusting through

Thrust through (durchstechen). Defend against upward thrust from lower guard → downwards thrust from upper guard at the same time → Left wrist blocks opponents left wrist → wind to plough.

Counter: wind to ox.

Thrust to Palm

Defends against downwards thrust upper guard → upwards thrust from lower guard to palm of left hand at the same time.

Grabbing the Point

From the bind, grab opponents sword → push to side → thrust.

From upper guard, thrust down.

Counter: wind sword to upper guard

From lower guard, thrust up

Counter: move forward and wrestle.

Disarming

Both thrust upwards → bind → grab intersection → pommel in clockwise arc, forward passing step (rowing movement) → pommel over right wrist → continue rowing.

Counter with guard transition.

Counter: move pommel in arc (clockwise or anti-clockwise).

Counter: move forward and hit with pommel.

Parry from the Across Knee Guard

Rise upward to block high attack → push sword to the right → thrust to face.

If in strong bind → pommel anti-clockwise over left hand → pull back to break hands free.

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Defend Against Set Point

Counter under arm guard → thrust to left hand or back of gauntlet.

→ point over left hand and push down.

Both in under arm guard : compass step backwards with left foot.

move pommel to centre of chest.

Strokes with Pommel

Stroke with pommel (donnerschlag (thunder stroke), mortschlag (murder stroke), schlachenden ort (battering point)). Strike mainly extremities or sometimes head.

From high or low guard. Faint thrust → let go and use pommel.

Counter : from across left knee guard → raise to high position → deflect off point → move to upper guard and thrust to face.

from across left knee guard → raise to high position → block between hands → move pommel anti-clockwise → yank sword by hilt → thrust.

Opponent strikes to knee → push out from across knee guard → pommel clock wise and over sword → thrust.

Pommels strike to ankle → let go of hilt → pommel downwards → wrestle

Drills

Drill 1

Right plough, step forward → left plough, step forward → right ox, step forward → left ox, slope forward → right plough.

Repeat, moving backwards. Repeat with left plough → left ox and right plough → right ox.

Drill 2

Right roof guard on shoulder, slope forward → left fools, slope forward → right roof over head, slope forward → left fools, turn 180o → right roof at shoulder, slope forward → left fools, slope forward → right overhead roof, slope forward → left fools, turn 180o → right roof at shoulder.

Repeat moving backwards.

Drill 3

Right roof guard on shoulder, slope forward → left ox, slope forward → right plough, slope forward → left fools, slope forward → left roof at shoulder, slope forward → right fools, slope forward → right ox, slope forward → left plough, slope forward → right roof → turn 180o.

Repeat.

Drill 4

Right roof → left near → right near → left ox → right longpoint → left plough → right barrier → left roof → right fools → right crown → turn 180o → left roof → right near → left near

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→ right ox → left longpoint → right plough → left barrier → right roof → left fools → left crown → turn 180o → right roof.

Repeat.

Drill 5

Right roof → diagonal stroke from above, slope forward → left near guard, slope forward → stoke from below → right roof over head, slope forward → vertical stoke from above, slope forward → left fools → left roof, slope forward → diagonal stroke from above, slop forward → right near, slope forward → stroke from below → left ox → left roof, slope forward → stoke from below → right ox → right roof, slop forward → horizontal stroke → left near, slope forward → horizontal stoke → right near → right roof.

Repeat.

Drill 6

Right plough, slope forward → thrust to longpoint → left plough, slope forward → thrust to longpoint → right ox, slope forward → thrust to longpoint → left ox, slope forward → thrust to long point → right plough → right fools, slope forward → thrust to longpoint → left fools, slope forwards → thrust to longpoint → right plough.

Repeat.

Drill 7

Right roof → left ox, slope forward → push weight + sword upwards and outwards → push into plough, compass step left backwards → push into ox, compass step left forward → push into plough, compass step right backwards → right roof

Repeat.

Drill 8

Left plough → cross blades → push on blades and keep pointed at chest.

Repeat with right plough, left and right ox, one in plough the other in ox (left or right).

Drill 9

Cross Stroke

Attack : left roof → vertical down to head, slope forward

Defend : left roof → ox, slope forward, thrust / slice with short edge

Drill 10

Stroke of Wrath

Attack : left roof → diagonal down, slope forward

Defend : left roof → plough, slope forward, thrust

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Drill 11

Attack : left roof → vertical down, slope forward

Defend : left roof → longpoint, slope backwards

Drill 12

Crooked stroke

Attack : left roof → from below, slope forward

Defend : left roof → barrier, slope forwards, hit hands

Drill 13

Attack : left roof → vertical from above to head, slope forward

Defend : left fools → to ox, slope forwards, thrust

Drill 14

Attack : Right roof → diagonal from above at body, slope forward

Defend : Right fools → longpoint → right plough, thrust / slice with long edge

Drill 15

Attack : Right roof → down to leg, slope forward

Defend : Right fools → longpoint, slope backwards, hit hands / slice / trust

Drill 16

Attack : Right roof → under attack

Defend : Right fools, slope forward → right barrier, hit hands

Drill 17

Right roof → strike stroke of wrath

Right roof → strike stroke of wrath → roof → stroke of wrath

Repeat from left

Drill 18

Attack : Approach in right roof→ diagonal over strikes

Defend : Stroke of wrath

vary the bind

Drill 19

Right roof → crooked stroke

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Right barrier → crooked stroke

Right roof → crooked stroke → left roof → crooked stroke

Drill 20

Attack : roof → from above → from under

Defend : roof → crooked to hands, slope forward → if bind, strike or thrust

repeat with random above / below attack

repeat from left then right barrier

repeat all with counter measures.

Drill 21

Attack : right roof → crooked stroke, slope forward

Defend : right ox

repeat from left ox

If bind, change through

Drill 22

Right roof → cross stroke

Left roof → cross stroke

Right roof → cross stroke → left ox → cross stroke → right ox → cross stroke → repeat hi and lo

Drill 23

Attack : right roof → straight to head → counter, push to plough → counter second cross stroke

Defend : right roof → cross stroke → counter, hook blade to side with pommel, cross stroke or if too close, half-sword, thrust

Drill 24

Right roof → squinting stroke (keep point to opponent)

repeat from left

Drill 25

Attack (buffalo) : Right roof → pull back, strike hard

Defend : right roof → squinting stroke, hit right shoulder

repeat for left

repeat to sword

27

Drill 26

Attack : right roof → squinting stroke to sword → trust to face

Defend : right plough

repeat with long point defence

Drill 27

Right roof → scalp stoke (cast point forward)

repeat from over head roof

Drill 28

Attack : right roof → scalp stroke

Defend : right fools

repeat but defend with crown

repeat with crown and rush

Spear Drills

Drill 1

upper guard → thrust

lower guard → thrust

upper guard → thrust → compass step

lower guard → trust → compass step

Add transition to lance guard

Drill 2

Attack : upper guard → trust → wind or leave bind

Defend : lower guard → parry

Half Sword Drills

Drill 1

Attack : upper guard → trust → respond, thrust

Defend : lower guard → parry either side (soft or hard)

repeat from lower guard

Drill 2

Attack : upper guard → thrust to face

Defend : across knee guard → parry

repeat from lower guard

Drill 3

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Attack : pommel to head

Defend : across knee guard → parry

repeat with attack to knee

ManuscriptsDöbringger Hausbuch codex Ms 3227a

Ringeck Fechtbuch Ms Dresden C487

Von Danzig Fechtbuch Codex 44 A 8

Jud Lew Codex I.6.4o.3

Paulus Kal CGM 1507

Hans Talhoffer Thott 290 2o Codex icon 394a

Hans von Speyer M I 29

Joachim Meyer

Reference

Christian Henry Tobler. “Fighting With The German Longsword”. Midpoint Trade Books, 2004. ISBN 1891448242, 9781891448249

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Longsword

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Longsword

Swiss longsword, ca. 1500(Morges museum)

Type SwordService history

In service ca. 1350–1550 ADSpecifications

Weight avg. 1.5 kg (3.3 lb)Length avg. 120–150 cm (47–59 in) length avg. 100–122 cm (39–48 in)Width 4.14–3.1 cm, then sharp point

A longsword (also spelled long sword, long-sword) is a type of European sword characterized as having a cruciform hilt with a grip for two handed use and a straight double-edged blade of around 100–122 cm (39–48 in)[1] Current during the late medieval and Renaissance periods, approximately 1350 to 1550 (with early and late use reaching into the 13th and 17th centuries).

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Contents

• 1 Terminology • 2 Evolution • 3 Morphology

• 3.1 Blade profile • 3.2 Blade cross-section • 3.3 Hilts

• 4 Fighting with the longsword • 4.1 History • 4.2 German school of fencing

• 4.2.1 Bloßfechten • 4.2.2 Harnischfechten

• 5 See also • 6 Notes • 7 References • 8 External links • 9 Further reading

Terminology

Historical (15th to 16th century) terms for this type of sword included Spanish espadón, montante or mandoble, Italian spadone or spada longa (lunga), Portuguese montante and French passot. The Gaelic claidheamh mòr means "great sword"; anglicized as claymore it came to refer to the Scottish type of longsword with V-shaped crossguard. Historical terminology overlaps with that applied to the Zweihänder sword in the 16th century: French espadon, Spanish espadón or Portuguese montante may also be used more narrowly to refer to these large swords. The French épée de passot may also refer to a medieval single-handed sword optimized for thrusting.

The French épée bâtarde as well as the English bastard sword originates in the 15th or 16th century, originally in the general sense of "irregular sword, sword of uncertain origin", but by the mid-16th century could refer to exceptionally large swords.[2] The Masters of Defence competition organised by Henry VIII in July 1540 listed two hande sworde and bastard sworde as two separate items.[3] It is uncertain whether the same term could still be used to other types of smaller swords, but antiquarian usage in the 19th century established the use of "bastard sword" as referring unambiguously to these large swords.[4]

The German langes schwert ("long sword") in 15th-century manuals does not denote a type of weapon, but the technique of fencing with both hands at the hilt, contrasting with kurzes schwert ("short sword") used of fencing with the same weapon, but with one hand gripping the blade (also known as half-sword). It is only in the later 16th century that the term langes schwert can be shown to be applied to a type of sword. Contemporary use of "long-sword" or "longsword" only resurfaces in the 2000s in the context of reconstruction of the German school of fencing, translating the German langes schwert.[5]

The term "hand-and-a-half sword" is modern (late 19th century).[6] During the first half of the 20th century, the term "bastard sword" was used regularly to refer to this type of sword, while "long sword" (or "long-sword"), if used at all, referred to the rapier (in the context of Renaissance or Early Modern fencing).[7]

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Evolution

Johannes Lichtenauer, a fencing master of the 14th century, is attributed with the development of a coherent system of combat with the longsword, especially between unarmoured opponents (Blossfechten).

While there are general trends in the medieval evolution of the sword, it was by no means a linear process. The longsword is characterized not so much by a longer blade, but by a longer grip, which indicates a weapon designed for two-handed use. Swords with exceptionally long hilts are found throughout the High Middle Ages, but these remain exceptional specimens, and not representative of an identifiable trend before the late 13th or early 14th century.

The longsword as a late medieval type of sword emerges in the 14th century, as a military weapon of the earlier phase of the Hundred Years' War. It remains identifiable as a type during the period of about 1350 to 1550.[8] It remained in use as a weapon of war intended for wielders wearing full plate armour either on foot or on horseback, throughout the late medieval period. From the late 15th century, however, it is also attested as being worn and used by unarmoured soldiers or mercenaries. By the 16th century, its military use was mostly obsolete, culminating in the brief period where the oversized Zweihänder were wielded by the German Landsknechte during the early to mid 16th century. By the second half of the 16th century, it persisted mostly as a weapon for sportive competition (Schulfechten), and possibly in knightly duels.

Distinct "bastard sword" hilt types develop during the first half of the 16th century. Oakeshott (1980:130) distinguishes twelve different types. These all seem to have originated in Bavaria and in Switzerland. By the late 16th century, early forms of the developed-hilt appear on this type of sword. Beginning about 1520, the Swiss sabre (schnepf) in Switzerland began to replace the straight longsword, inheriting its hilt types, and the longsword had fallen out of use in Switzerland by 1550. In southern Germany, it persisted into the 1560s, but its use also declined during the second half of the 16th century. There are two late examples of longswords kept in the Swiss National Museum, both with vertically grooved pommels and elaborately decorated with silver inlay, and both belonging to Swiss noblemen in French service during the late 16th and early 17th century, Gugelberg von Moos and Rudolf von Schauenstein.[9] The longsword or bastard-sword was also made in Spain, appearing relatively late, known as the espadon or the montante.

Morphology

A basic anatomy of the Renaissance longsword.

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Blade profile

The blade of the longsword is straight and double edged. Over time the blades of longswords become slightly longer, thicker in cross-section, less wide, and considerably more pointed. This design change is largely attributed to the use of plate armour as an effective defense, more or less nullifying the ability of a sword cut to break through the armour system. Instead of cutting, long swords were then used more to thrust against opponents in plate armour, requiring a more acute point and a more rigid blade. However, the cutting capability of the longsword was never entirely removed, as in some later rapiers, but was supplanted in importance by thrusting capability.

Blade cross-section

Different blade cross-sections. At the top, variants of the diamond shape. At the bottom, variants of the lenticular shape.

The two most basic forms of blade cross-section are lenticular and diamond. Lenticular blades are shaped like thin doubly convex lenses, providing adequate thickness for strength in the center while allowing a proper cutting edge. These normally have fullers, which are grooves or channels running down the flats of the blade originating at or slightly below the hilt. The resultant geometry lightens while conversely strengthening the blade. On earlier blades this shape runs almost the entire length of the blade. As points became more acute the fuller stops around one-third from the point and the cross section changes to a diamond shape. The diamond shaped blade slopes directly up from the edges, without the convex curve of the lenticular blade. The central ridge produced by this angular geometry is known as a riser. Many later blades are of diamond section their entire length though with the flats of the diamond hollowed to give increased rigidity for thrusting. These forms were hammered in by the bladesmith and only the surface finish was ground. Only modern reproductions are hollow-ground as the machinery did not exist in the Middle Ages.

Hilts

A variety of hilt styles exist for longswords, with the style of pommel and quillion (crossguard) changing over time to accommodate different blade properties and to fit emerging stylistic trends.

Fighting with the longsword

The expression fechten mit dem langen schwert ("fighting with the long sword") in the German school of fencing denotes the style of fencing which uses both hands at the hilt; fechten mit dem kurzen schwert ("fighting with the short sword") is used of half-sword fighting, with one (gloved) hand gripping the blade. The two terms are largely equivalent to "unarmoured fighting"

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(blossfechten) and "armoured fencing" (fechten im harnisch).

History

1440s illustration of one- and two-handed use of the longsword. Note the sword being used one-handed is drawn shorter and may also be intended as a large knightly sword (CPG 339 fol. 135r).

Example of two handed use vs. half-sword, dating to ca. 1418 (CPG 359, fol. 46v).

Codified systems of fighting with the longsword existed from the later 14th century, with a variety of styles and teachers each providing a slightly different take on the art. Hans Talhoffer, a mid-15th century German fightmaster, is probably the most prominent, using a wide variety of moves, most resulting in wrestling. The longsword was a quick, effective, and versatile weapon capable of deadly thrusts, slices, and cuts.[10] The blade was generally used with both hands on the hilt, one resting close to or on the pommel. The weapon may be held with one hand during disarmament or grappling techniques. In a depiction of a duel, individuals may be seen wielding sharply pointed longswords in one hand, leaving the other hand open to manipulate the large dueling shield.[11] Another variation of use comes from the use of armour. Half-swording was a manner of using both hands, one on the hilt and one on the blade, to better control the weapon in thrusts and jabs. This versatility was unique, as multiple works hold that the longsword provided the foundations for

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learning a variety of other weapons including spears, staves, and polearms.[10] [12] Use of the longsword in attack was not limited only to use of the blade, however, as several Fechtbücher explain and depict use of the pommel and cross as offensive weapons.[13] The cross has been shown to be used as a hook for tripping or knocking an opponent off balance.[10] Some manuals even depict the cross as a hammer.[14]

What is known of combat with the longsword comes from artistic depictions of battle from manuscripts and the Fechtbücher of Medieval and Renaissance Masters. Therein the basics of combat were described and, in some cases, depicted. The German school of swordsmanship includes the earliest known longsword Fechtbuch, a manual from approximately 1389, known as GNM 3227a. This manual, unfortunately for modern scholars, was written in obscure verse. It was through students of Liechtenauer, like Sigmund Ringeck, who transcribed the work into more understandable prose[15] that the system became notably more codified and understandable.[16] Others provided similar work, some with a wide array of images to accompany the text.[17]

The Italian school of swordsmanship was the other primary school of longsword use. The 1410 manuscript by Fiore dei Liberi presents a variety of uses for the longsword. Like the German manuals, the weapon is most commonly depicted and taught with both hands on the hilt. However, a section on one-handed use is among the volume and demonstrates the techniques and advantages, such as sudden additional reach, of single-handed longsword play.[18] The manual also presents half-sword techniques as an integral part of armoured combat.

Both schools declined in the late 16th century, with the later Italian masters forgoing the longsword and focusing primarily on rapier fencing. The last known German manual to include longsword teaching was that of Jakob Sutor, published in 1612. In Italy, spadone, or longsword, instruction lingered on in spite of the popularity of the rapier, at least into the mid-17th century (Alfieri's Lo Spadone of 1653), with a late treatise of the "two handed sword" by one Giuseppe Colombani, a dentist in Venice dating to 1711. A tradition of teaching based on this has survived in contemporary French and Italian stick fighting. (See, for instance, Giuseppe Cerri's Trattato teorico e pratico della scherma di bastone of 1854.) However, there can be no doubt that the heyday of the longsword on the battlefield was over by 1500.

German school of fencing

Bloßfechten

Unarmoured longsword fencers (plate 25 of the 1467 manual of Hans Talhoffer)

Bloßfechten (blosz fechten) or "bare fighting" is the technique of fighting without significant protective armour such as plate, mail

The lack of significant torso and limb protection leads to the use of a large amount of cutting and slicing techniques in addition to thrusts. These techniques could be nearly instantly fatal or incapacitating, as a thrust to the skull, heart, or major blood vessel would cause massive trauma.

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Similarly, strong strikes could cut through skin and bone, effectively amputating limbs. The hands and forearms are a frequent target of some cuts and slices in a defensive or offensive maneuver, serving both to disable an opponent and align the swordsman and his weapon for the next attack.

Harnischfechten

Page of the Codex Wallerstein showing a half-sword thrust against a two handed sword's Mordstreich (Plate 214)

Harnischfechten, or "armoured fighting" (German kampffechten, or Fechten in Harnisch zu Fuss lit. "fighting in armour on foot"), depicts fighting in full plate armour.[19]

The increased defensive capability of a man clad in full plate armour caused the use of the sword to be drastically changed. While slashing attacks were still moderately effective against infantry wearing half-plate armor, cutting and slicing attacks against an opponent wearing plate armour were almost entirely ineffective in providing any sort of slashing wound as the sword simply could not cut through the steel, although a combatant could aim for the chinks in a suit of armour, sometimes to great effect.[20] Instead, the energy of the cut becomes essentially pure concussive energy. The later hardened plate armours, complete with ridges and roping, actually posed quite a threat against the careless attacker. It is considered possible for strong blows of the sword against plate armour to actually damage the blade of the sword, potentially rendering it much less effective at cutting and producing only a concussive effect against the armoured opponent.

To overcome this problem, swords began to be used primarily for thrusting. The weapon was used in the half-sword, with one or both hands on the blade. This increased the accuracy and strength of thrusts and provided more leverage for Ringen am Schwert or "Wrestling at/with the sword". This technique combines the use of the sword with wrestling, providing opportunities to trip, disarm, break, or throw an opponent and place them in a less offensively and defensively capable position. During half-swording, the entirety of the sword works as a weapon, including the pommel and crossguard. One example how a sword can be used this way is to thrust the tip of the crossguard at the opponent's head right after parrying a stroke. Another technique would be the Mordstreich (lit. "murder stroke"), where the weapon is held by the blade (hilt, pommel and crossguard serving as an improvised hammer head) and swung. (see the fighter on the right of the picture).[20]

See also

• Historical European martial arts • Oakeshott typology • Ricasso • Side-sword • Claymore • Waster • Jian

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• Katana • Tachi • Training

Notes

1. ̂ Loades, Mike (2010). Swords and Swordsmen. Great Britain: Pen & Sword Books. ISBN 978-1-84884-133-8.

2. ̂ Qui n'étoit ni Françoise , ni Espagnole, ni proprement Lansquenette, mais plus grande que pas une de ces fortes épées ("[a sword] which was neither French, nor Spanish, nor properly Landsknecht [German], but larger than any of these great swords." Jacob Le Duchat (ed.), Oeuvres de Maitre François Rabelais, Jean-Frédéric Bernard, 1741, p. 129 (footnote 5).)

3. ̂ Joseph Strutt The sports and pastimes of the people of England from the earliest period: including the rural and domestic recreations, May games, mummeries, pageants, processions and pompous spectacles, 1801, p. 211.

4. ̂ Oakeshott (1980). 5. ̂ A nonce attestation of "long-sword" in the sense of "heavy two-handed sword" is found in

Principles of stage combat (1983). Carl A. Thimm, A Complete Bibliography of Fencing & Duelling (1896) uses "long sword (Schwerdt) on p. 220 as direct translation from a German text of 1516, and "long sword or long rapier" in reference to George Silver (1599)on p. 269. Systematic use of the term only from 2001 beginning with C. H. Tobler, Secrets of German medieval swordsmanship (2001), ISBN 978-1-891448-07-2.

6. ̂ attested in a New Gallery exhibition catalogue, London 1890. 7. ̂ see e.g. A general guide to the Wallace Collection, 1933, p. 149. 8. ̂ Oakeshott, Ewart. The Sword in the Age of Chivalry. Boydell Press 1994. Page 56. 9. ̂ Oakeshott (1980), p. 133. See also Peter Finer, "Two further silver-encrusted swords

possessing pommels of this type can be seen in the Schweizerisches Landesmuseum, Zurich (inv. nos LM 16736 and 16988). The first belonged to Hans Gugelberg von Moos (recorded 1562–1618), and the second to Rudolf von Schauenstein (recorded 1587–1626), whose name appears on its blade along with the date 1614."

10.^ a b c Rector, Mark. Medieval Combat: A Fifteenth-Century Illustrated Manual of Swordfighting and Close-Quarter Combat. Green Hill Books, 2000. Page 15–16.

11. ̂ Rector, Mark. Medieval Combat: A Fifteenth-Century Illustrated Manual of Swordfighting and Close-Quarter Combat. Green Hill Books, 2000. Plate 128–150.

12. ̂ Lindholm, David. Fighting with the Quarterstaff: A Modern Study of Renaissance Technique. The Chivalry Bookshelf, 2006. Page 32.

13. ̂ Rector, Mark. Medieval Combat: A Fifteenth-Century Illustrated Manual of Swordfighting and Close-Quarter Combat. Green Hill Books, 2000. Plate 67, 73–74.

14. ̂ Hans Tallhoffer "Fechtbuch" 15. ̂ Ringeck, Sigmund. MS Dresd. C 487 16. ̂ Lindholm, D. & Svard, P. Sigmund Ringneck's Knightly Art of the Longsword Paladin

Press, 2003. Page 11. 17. ̂ Talhoffer, Hans. Thott 290 2 18. ̂ dei Liberi, Fiore. Flos Duellatorum. 19. ̂ Clements, John. Medieval and Renaissance Fencing Terminology 20.^ a b Lindholm, David & Svärd, Peter. Signmund Ringeck's Knightly Arts of Combat. Paladin

Press, 2006. Page 219.

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References

• Cvet, David M.. Study of the Destructive Capabilities of the European Longsword. Journal of Western Martial Art. February 2002.

• Dawson, Timothy. A club with an edge. Journal of Western Martial Art. February 2005. • Hellqvist, Björn. Oakeshott's Typology - An Introduction. Journal of Western Martial Art.

November 2000. • Melville, Neil H. T.. The Origins of the Two-Handed Sword. Journal of Western Martial

Art. January 2000. • Shore, Anthony. The Two-Handed Great Sword - Making lite of the issue of weight. Journal

of Western Martial Art. October 2004.

External links

• "Oakeshott's Typology of the Medieval Sword: A Summary", Albion Armorers, inc. 2005, retrieved May 22, 2010.[1] This quick survey lists the types and sample illustrations of the Oakeshott Typology. Extremely useful, but note, the webpage updates the statistics of the original Oakeshott Typology, with the findings from later research.

Further reading

• Clements, John. Medieval Swordsmanship: Illustrated Methods and Techniques. Paladin Press, 1998. ISBN 1-58160-004-6

• Clements, John et al. Masters of Medieval and Renaissance Martial Arts: Rediscovering The Western Combat Heritage. Paladin Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1-58160-668-3

• Lindholm, David & Peter Svärd, Sigmund Ringeck's Knightly Art of the Longsword, Paladin Press (2003), ISBN 1-58160-410-6

• Lindholm, David, & Peter Svärd. Knightly Arts of Combat - Sigmund Ringeck's Sword and Buckler Fighting, Wrestling, and Fighting in Armor. Paladin Press, 2006. ISBN 1-58160-499-8

• Oakeshott, R. E., European weapons and armour: From the Renaissance to the industrial revolution (1980), 129-135.

• Thomas, Michael G. The Fighting Man's Guide to German Longsword Combat, SwordWorks (2007), ISBN 1-906512-00-0

• Tobler, Christian H. Secrets of German Medieval Swordsmanship (2001), ISBN 1-891448-07-2

• Tobler, Christian H. Fighting with the German Longsword (2004), ISBN 1-891448-24-2 • Windsor, Guy. The Swordsman's Companion: A Modern Training Manual for Medieval

Longsword (2004), ISBN 1-891448-41-2 • Zabinski, Grzegorz & Bartlomiej Walczak. The Codex Wallerstein: A Medieval Fighting

Book from the Fifteenth Century on the Longsword, Falchion, Dagger, and Wrestling. Paladin Press, 2002. ISBN 1-58160-339-8

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Oakeshott typology

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Oakeshott typology was created by historian and illustrator Ewart Oakeshott as a way to define and catalogue the medieval sword based on physical form. It categorizes the swords of the European Middle Ages (roughly 11th to 15th centuries) into 13 main types labelled X to XXII. Ewart Oakeshott introduced it in his The Archeology of Weapons: Arms and Armour from Prehistory to the Age of Chivalry in 1960.

The system is a continuation of Jan Petersen's typology of the Viking sword, introduced in De Norske Vikingsverd ("The Norwegian Viking Swords", 1919), modified in 1927 by R. E. M. Wheeler into a typology of nine types labelled I to IX.

Contents

• 1 Oakeshott types • 1.1 Type X • 1.2 Type XI • 1.3 Type XII • 1.4 Type XIII • 1.5 Type XIV • 1.6 Type XV • 1.7 Type XVI • 1.8 Type XVII • 1.9 Type XVIII • 1.10 Type XIX • 1.11 Type XX • 1.12 Type XXI • 1.13 Type XXII

• 2 References • 3 See also • 4 External links

Oakeshott types

Type X

Oakeshott X describes the type of sword common in the late Viking age, remaining in use up to the 13th century. They feature broad and flat blades, with an average length of some 80 cm (2.6 feet) and with a fuller, generally very wide and shallow, running almost the entire length, but fading out shortly before the point. The point is typically rounded. The grip has the same average length as the earlier Viking swords (some 9.5 cm or 3.7 inches). The tang, usually very flat and broad, tapers sharply towards the pommel. The cross is generally of square section, about 18 to 20 cm long (7 to 7.8 inches), tapering towards the tips, in some rare cases slightly curved. It is narrower and longer

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than the typical Viking type, representing a transitional type to the knightly sword of the high Middle Ages. 10th-century Norsemen knew this type and called it gaddhjalt (spike hilt). The pommels usually take a Brazil-nut form, and sometimes also a disk-shape. [1]

In 1981, Oakeshott introduced the a subtype Xa, including swords with similar blades but a narrower fuller, originally classified under type XI. Many of the type X blades have the inlaid ULFBERHT mark.

Type XI

Tapering point, in use ca. 1100–1175. Subtype XIa has a broader, shorter blade.

Type XII

Typical of the High Middle Ages, these swords begin to show a tapering of the blade with a shortened fuller, resulting in improved thrusting characteristics while maintaining good cutting capabilities. A large number of medieval examples of this type survive. It certainly existed in the later 13th century, and perhaps considerably earlier, since the Schweizerisches Landesmuseum in Zurich possesses an example that has a Viking Age-type hilt, but clearly a type XII blade. The subtype XIIa (originally classified as XIIIa) consists of the longer, more massive greatswords that appear in the mid-13th century, probably designed to counter the improved mail armour of the time, and the predecessor of the later longswords. The earliest known depiction of a type XII sword in art forms part of the Archangel Michael statue in Bamberg Cathedral, dating to circa 1200. The Maciejowski Bible (circa 1245) depicts other examples.

Single handed transitional swords of Type XII have a grip about 4.5 inches (11 cm) in length,[1]

A long grip is found on the XIIa, similar to the one of XIIIa, an early 'great sword' type. The XIIa was originally a part of the XIIIa classification, but was decided to "taper too strongly" and to be "too acutely pointed" to fit appropriately.[2]

Type XIII

This typifies the classical knightly sword that developed during the age of the Crusades. Typically, examples date to the second half of the 13th century. Type XIII swords feature as a defining characteristic a long, wide blade with parallel edges, ending in a rounded or spatulate tip. The blade cross section has the shape of a lens. The grips, longer than in the earlier types, typically some 15 cm (almost 6 inches), allow occasional two-handed use. The cross-guards are usually straight, and the pommels Brazil-nut or disk-shaped (Oakeshott pommel types D, E and I).

Subtype XIIIa features longer blades and grips. They correspond to the knightly greatswords, or Grans espées d'Allemagne, appearing frequently in 14th century German, but also in Spanish and English art. Early examples of the type appear in the 12th century, and it remained popular until the 15th century. Subtype XIIIb describes smaller single-handed swords of similar shape.

Very few examples of the parent type XIII exist, while more examples of the subtype XIIIa survive. A depiction of two-handed use appears in the Tenison psalter. Another depiction of the type appears in the Apocalypse of St. John manuscript of circa 1300.

The "greatsword" within the context of the late medieval longsword is a type of "outsize(d) specimen", specifically the Type XIIIa. The weapons were referred to by a variety of names, as in Grans espées d'Allemagne or "big swords of Germany".[3]

The larger subtype XIIIa sword has a grip approximately 6.5–9 in (17–23 cm) long.[4]

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Type XIV

Ewart Oakeshott describes swords of Type XIV classification as "...short, broad and sharply-pointed blade, tapering strongly from the hilt, of flat section (the point end of the blade may, in some examples, have a slight though perceptible mid-rib, with a fuller running about half, or a little over, of its length. This may be single and quite broad or multiple and narrow. The grip is generally short (average 3.75") though some as long as 4.5"; the tang is thick and parallel-sided, often with the fuller extending half-way up it. The pommel is always of "wheel" form, sometimes very wide and flat. The cross is generally rather long and curved (very rarely straight)."

Type XV

Tapering blade with diamond cross-section and a sharp point. In use ca. 1300–1500. Type XVa have longer, narrower blades, for example the fencing swords of the school of Johannes Liechtenauer.

Type XVI

Blade length ca. 70-80cm. Subtype XVIa have a longer blade with a shorter fuller (usually running down 1/3 and rarely exceeding 1/2 of the blade). The grip is often extended to accommodate one and a half or two hands.

Type XVII

Long, tapering blade, hexagonal cross section, two-handed grip. Heavy swords, weighing more than 2 kg, used to pierce armour. In use ca. 1360–1420.

Type XVIII

Tapering blades with broad base, short grip, diamond cross-section. The subtype XVIIIa have narrow blades with a longer grip. Subtype XVIIIb have a longer blade and long grip and were in use ca. 1450–1520. Subtype XVIIIc: broad blade of ca. 90 cm.

Type XIX

15th century swords for one-handed use, with broad flat blades, parallel edges, narrow fullers, ricasso.

Type XX

14th to 15th century "hand and a half" swords, often with two fullers. Subtype XXa have narrower blades.

Type XXI

Cinquedea-like swords, late 15th century. Somewhat longer and less broad than the cinquedea.

Type XXII

Broad flat blades, two short, narrow fullers, around 1500.

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References

1. ̂ Oakeshott, Ewart. The Sword in the Age of Chivalry. Boydell Press 1994. Page 37. 2. ̂ Oakeshott, Ewart. Records of the Medieval Sword. Boydell Press 1991. Page 89. 3. ̂ Oakeshott, Ewart. The Sword in the Age of Chivalry. Boydell Press 1994. Page 43. 4. ̂ Oakeshott, Ewart. The Sword in the Age of Chivalry. Boydell Press 1994. Page 42.

See also

• Classification of swords

External links

• Oakeshott institute • myArmoury.com features

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Historical European martial arts

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The first page of the Codex Wallerstein shows the typical arms of 15th-century individual combat, including the longsword, roundel dagger, sword-and-buckler, halberd, spear, and staff.

Historical European martial arts (HEMA) refers to martial arts of European origin, used particularly arts formerly practised, but having since died out or evolved into very different forms.

While there is limited surviving documentation of the martial arts of Classical Antiquity (such as Ancient Greek wrestling or Gladiatorial combat), surviving dedicated technical treatises or combat manuals date to the Late Middle Ages and the Early Modern period. For this reason, the focus of HEMA is de facto on the period of the half-millennium of ca. 1300 to 1800, with a German and an Italian school flowering in the Late Middle Ages and the Renaissance (14th to 16th centuries), followed by Spanish, French, English and Scottish schools of fencing in the modern period (17th and 18th centuries). Arts of the 19th century such as classical fencing, and even early hybrid styles such as Bartitsu may also be included in the term HEMA in a wider sense, as may traditional or folkloristic styles attested in the 19th and early 20th centuries, including forms of folk wrestling and traditional stick fighting methods. The term Western martial arts (WMA) is sometimes used in this wider sense including modern and traditional disciplines. During the Late Middle Ages, the longsword had a position of honour among these disciplines, and sometimes Historical European Swordsmanship (HES) is used to refer to swordsmanship techniques specifically.

Modern reconstructions of some of these arts arose from the 1970s and have been practiced systematically since the 1990s.

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Contents

• 1 Early history (before 1350) • 2 Late Middle Ages (1350 to 1500) • 3 Renaissance • 4 Early Modern period (1600 to 1789)

• 4.1 Baroque (1600-1720) • 4.2 Rococo (1720-1789)

• 5 Development of modern sports (1789 to 1914) • 6 Traditional styles • 7 Revival

• 7.1 Early reconstruction attempts • 7.2 Development of the modern HEMA community

• 8 See also • 9 References • 10 Further reading • 11 External links

Early history (before 1350

There are no known manuals predating the Late Middle Ages (except for fragmentary instructions on Greek wrestling, see P.Oxy. III 466), although Ancient and Medieval literature (e.g. Icelandic sagas and Middle High German epics) record specific martial deeds and military knowledge; in addition, historical artwork depicts combat and weaponry (e.g. the Bayeux tapestry, the Morgan Bible). Some researchers have attempted to reconstruct older fighting methods such as Pankration and gladiatorial combat by reference to these sources and practical experimentation, though such recreations necessarily remain more speculative than those based on actual instructions.

Fol. 4v of the I.33

The so-called MS I.33 (also known as the Walpurgis or Tower Fechtbuch), dated to between ca. 1290 (by Alphonse Lhotsky) and the early-to-mid-14th century (by R. Leng, of the University of Würzburg), is the oldest surviving fechtbuch, teaching sword and buckler combat.

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Late Middle Ages (1350 to 1500)

Longsword guards (1452 manuscript)

The central figure of late Medieval martial arts, at least in Germany, is Johannes Liechtenauer. Though no manuscript written by him is known to survive, his teachings were first recorded in the late 14th century MS 3227a. From the 15th century into the 17th, numerous Fechtbücher (German "fencing-books") were produced, of which some 55 are extant; a great many of these describe methods descended from Liechtenauer's.

Normally, several modes of combat were taught alongside one another, typically unarmed grappling (Kampfringen or abrazare), dagger (Degen or daga, often of the rondel variety), long knife (Messer) or Dussack, half- or quarterstaff, pole arms, longsword (langes Schwert, spada longa, spadone), and combat in plate armour (Harnischfechten or armazare), both on foot and on horseback. Some Fechtbücher have sections on dueling shields (Stechschild), special weapons used only in judicial duels.

Important 15th century German fencing masters include Sigmund Ringeck, Peter von Danzig, Hans Talhoffer and Paulus Kal, all of whom taught the teachings of Liechtenhauer. From the late 15th century, there were "brotherhoods" of fencers (Fechtbruderschaften), most notably the Marx brothers (attested 1474) and the Federfechter.

An early Burgundian French treatise is Le jeu de la hache ("The Play of the Axe") of ca. 1400.

The earliest master to write in the Italian was Fiore dei Liberi, commissioned by the Marquis di Ferrara. Between 1407 and 1410, he documented comprehensive fighting techniques in a treatise entitled Flos Duellatorum covering grappling, dagger, arming sword, longsword, pole-weapons, armoured combat and mounted combat. The Italian school is continued by Filippo Vadi (1482–1487) and Pietro Monte (1492, Latin with Italian and Spanish terms)

Three early (before Silver) natively English swordplay texts exist, all very obscure and of uncertain date; they are generally thought to belong to the latter half of the 15th century.

Renaissance

Further information: Elizabethan Fencing

In the 16th century, compendia of older Fechtbücher techniques were produced, some of them

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printed, notably by Paulus Hector Mair (in the 1540s) and by Joachim Meyer (in the 1570s).

In the 16th century German fencing had developed sportive tendencies. The treatises of Paulus Hector Mair and Joachim Meyer derived from the teachings of the earlier centuries within the Liechtenauer tradition, but with new and distinctive characteristics. The printed fechtbuch of Jacob Sutor (1612) is one of the last in the German tradition.

In Italy, the 16th century is a period of big change. It opens with the two treatises of Bolognese masters Antonio Manciolino and Achille Marozzo, who describe a variation of the eclectic knightly arts of the previous century. From sword and buckler to sword and dagger, sword alone to two-handed sword, from polearms to wrestling (though absent in Manciolino), early 16th century Italian fencing reflects the versatility that a martial artist of the time was supposed to achieve.[1]

Towards the mid-century, however, polearms and companion weapons beside the dagger and the cape gradually begin to fade out of treatises. In 1553, Camillo Agrippa is the first to define the prima, seconda, terza and quarta guards (or hand-positions), which would remain the mainstay of Italian fencing into the next century and beyond.[2] From the late 16th century, Italian rapier fencing attained considerable popularity all over Europe, notably with the treatise by Salvator Fabris (1606).

• Antonio Manciolino (1531) (Italian) • Achille Marozzo (1536) (Italian) • Angelo Viggiani (1551) (Italian) • Camillo Agrippa (1553) (Italian) • Jerónimo Sánchez de Carranza (1569) (Spanish) • Giacomo Di Grassi (1570) (Italian) • Giovanni Dall’Agocchie (1572) (Italian) • Henry de Sainct-Didier (1573) (French) • Angelo Viggiani (1575) (Italian) • Frederico Ghisliero (1587) (Italian) • Vincentio Saviolo (1590) (Italian)

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Early Modern period (1600 to 1789)

Students fencing with rapier and dagger, ca. 1590

Baroque (1600-1720)

Academie de l-Espee (Girard Thibault, 1628)

During the Baroque period, wrestling fell from favour among the upper classes, being now seen as unrefined and rustic. The fencing styles practice also needed to conform with the new ideals of elegance and harmony.

This ideology was taken to great lengths in Spain in particular, where La Verdadera Destreza "the true art (of swordsmanship)" was now based on Renaissance humanism and scientific principles, contrasting with the traditional "vulgar" approach to fencing inherited from the medieval period.

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Significant masters of Destreza included Jerónimo Sánchez de Carranza ("the father of Destreza", d. 1600) and Luis Pacheco de Narváez (1600, 1632). Girard Thibault (1630) was a Dutch master influenced by these ideals.

The French school of fencing also moves away from its Italian roots, developing its own terminology, rules and systems of teaching. French masters of the Baroque period include Le Perche du Coudray (1635, 1676, teacher of Cyrano de Bergerac), Besnard (1653, teacher of Descartes) and Philibert de la Touche (1670).

In Italy, 17th century swordsmanship is dominated by Salvator Fabris, whose De lo schermo overo scienza d’arme of 1606 exerted great influence not only in Italy but also in Germany, where it all but extinguished the native German traditions of fencing. Fabris was followed by Italian masters such as Nicoletto Giganti (1606), Ridolfo Capo Ferro (1610), Francesco Alfieri (1640), Francesco Antonio Marcelli (1686) and Bondi' di Mazo (1696).

The Elizabethan and Jacobean eras produce English fencing masters, such as George Silver (1599) and Joseph Swetnam (1617). The English verb to fence is first attested in Shakespeare's Merry Wives of Windsor (1597).

The French school of fencing originates in the 16th century, based on the Italian school, and develops into its classic form in the Baroque period.

Rococo (1720-1789)

Academic fencing (1725 etching)

In the 18th century Late Baroque / Rococo period, the French style of fencing with the smallsword and later with the foil (fleuret), in origin a training weapon for smallsword fencing.

By the year 1715, the rapier had been largely replaced by the lighter smallsword throughout most of Europe, although treatments of the former continued to be included by authors such as Donald McBane (1728), P. J. F. Girard (1736) and Domenico Angelo (1763).

In the course of the 18th century, the French school became the western European standard to the extent that Angelo, an Italian-born master teaching in England, published his L'Ecole des Armes in French in 1763. It was extremely successful and became a standard fencing manual over the following 50 years, throughout the Napoleonic period. Angelo's text was so influential that it was chosen to be included under the heading of "Éscrime" in the Encyclopédie of Diderot.

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Development of modern sports (1789 to 1914)

Academic fencing (1831 painting)

Transition to modern sports fencing: sabre fencing around 1900.

In the course of the long 19th century, Western martial arts became divided into modern sports on one hand and applications that retain military significance on the other. In the latter category are the methods of close-quarter combat with the bayonet besides use of the sabre and the lance by cavalrists.

Apart from fencing with bladed weapons, European combat sports of the 19th century include boxing, numerous regional forms of folk wrestling, and numerous styles of stick fighting.

Wrestling, javelin, fencing, archery, and boxing continue some of the martial arts of Europe in modified sport form.

Fencing in the 19th century transformed into a pure sport. While duels remained common among members of the aristocratic and officer classes, they became increasingly frowned upon in society during the course of the century, and such duels as were fought to the death were increasingly fought with pistols, not bladed weapons.

Traditional styles

Styles of stick fighting include walking-stick fighting (including Irish bata or shillelagh, French la canne and English singlestick or cane) and Bartitsu (an early hybrid of Eastern and Western schools popularized at the turn of the 20th century).

Some existing forms of European stick fighting can be traced to direct teacher-student lineages from the 19th century. Notable examples include the methods of la canne and Bâton français, Portuguese Jogo do Pau, Italian Paranza or Bastone Siciliano and some styles of Canarian Juego del Palo.

In the 19th century and early 20th century, the greatstick (pau/bâton/bastone) was employed by

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some Portuguese, French and Italian military academies as a method of exercise, recreation and as preparation for bayonet training.

A third category might be traditional "folk styles", mostly folk wrestling. Greco-Roman wrestling was a discipline at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Inclusion of Freestyle wrestling followed in 1904.

Revival

Many individuals and groups in various parts of the world, as well as institutions such as the Higgins Armory Museum, are engaged in attempting to reconstruct Historical European Martial Arts using various training methods. Nineteenth and early twentieth century teachers whose martial arts are presently being reconstructed include Edward William Barton-Wright, the founder of Bartitsu;[3] combat savate and stick fighting master Pierre Vigny; London-based boxer and fencer Rowland George Allanson-Winn; French journalist and self defence enthusiast Jean Joseph-Renaud; and British quarterstaff expert Thomas McCarthy.

Early reconstruction attempts

Early attempts at reconstructing the discontinued traditions of European systems of combat date to the late 19th century. In Germany, Karl Wassmannsdorf conducted research on the German school that is still referred to today and Gustav Hergsell reprinted three of Hans Talhoffer's manuals. In France there was the work of the Academie D'Armes circa 1880-1914. In England, Egerton Castle and Alfred Hutton wrote pioneering books on the history of swordsmanship, and Cyril Matthey republished Silver's Paradoxes of Defence and Brief Instructions. All three took an interest in the practical side of interpretation, giving public demonstrations of reconstructed techniques. Italy had Jacopo Gelli and Francesco Novati, who published a facsimile of the "Flos Duellatorum" of Fiore dei Liberi, and Giuseppe Cerri, whose book on the Bastone drew inspiration from the two-handed sword of Achille Marozzo. Spain had Baron Leguina, whose bibliography of Spanish swordsmanship is still a standard reference today.

Throughout the 20th century a small number of researchers, principally academics with access to some of the sources, continued exploring the field of historical European martial arts from a largely academic perspective. Interest in physically interpreting the texts was largely dormant during the post-war period however due to a number of factors, including limited access to the historical texts, distance and a lack of effective communication. In 1972, James Jackson published a book called Three Elizabethan Manuals of Fence. This work reprinted the works of George Silver, Giacomo di Grassi, and Vincentio Saviolo. In 1975, Martin Wierschin published a transcription of Sigmund Ringeck's Fechtbuch, along with a glossary of terms and a bibliography of German fencing manuals. In turn, this led to the publication of Hans-Peter Hils' seminal work on Johannes Liechtenauer in 1985.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Patri J. Pugliese began making photocopies of historical treatises available to interested parties, greatly spurring on research. 1994 saw the rise of the Hammerterz Forum, a publication devoted entirely to the history of swordsmanship. During the late 1990s, translations and interpretations of historical sources began appearing in print as well as online.

Development of the modern HEMA community

Since the early 2000s, there have been flourishing Historical European Martial Arts communities in Europe, North America and the wider Anglosphere. Since 1999 a number of these groups have held the Western Martial arts Workshop (WMAW) in the United States.[4] In 2000 The Association for

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Renaissance Martial Arts (ARMA) held the Inaugural Swordplay Symposium International conference and since 2003 has held the ARMA International Gathering every two to three years. The Fiore-oriented Schola Saint George has hosted a Medieval Swordsmanship Symposium annually in the United States since 2003. Internationally, the Schola Saint George also has branches in Western Australia, Russia, England, Sweden, and Latvia. The Higgins Armory Museum is a major center of research and teaching in HEMA.

In 2001 the Historical European Martial arts Coalition (HEMAC) was created to act as an umbrella organization for groups in Europe. Since 2002, HEMAC has organized the annual International Historical European Martial arts Gathering in Dijon, France. In 2003, the Australian Historical Swordplay Federation became the umbrella organization for groups in Australia, and an annual Australian Historical Swordplay Convention has been hosted and attended by diverse Australian groups since 1999. The HEMA Alliance is a martial arts federation containing dozens of HEMA schools and clubs from around the world, providing insurance and research accreditation to its members.

See also

• Combat reenactment • Spanish school of swordsmanship • Fencing • German school of swordsmanship • Italian school of swordsmanship • Swordsmanship • Martial arts manual

References

1. ̂ Tom Leoni, The Complete Renaissance Swordsman, Freelance Academy Press, 2010 2. ̂ Tom Leoni, Venetian Rapier, Freelance Academy Press, 2010 3. ̂ "Bartitsu". 4. ̂ Gregory Mele, ed., In the Service of Mars: Proceedings from the Western Martial Arts

Workshop 1999–2009, Volume I, Freelance Academy Press, 2010

Further reading

• Domenico Angelo, The School of Fencing: With a General Explanation of the Principal Attitudes and Positions Peculiar to the Art, eds. Jared Kirby, Greenhill Books, 2005. ISBN 978-1853676260

• Sydney Anglo. The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe. Yale University Press, 2000. ISBN 0-300-08352-1

• Terry Brown. English Martial Arts. Anglo-Saxon Books, 1997. ISBN 1-898281-29-7 • John Clements. Medieval Swordsmanship: Illustrated Methods and Techniques. Paladin

Press, 1998. ISBN 1-58160-004-6 • John Clements. Renaissance Swordsmanship: The Illustrated Book of Rapiers and Cut-and-

Thrust Swords and Their Use. Paladin Press, 1997. ISBN 0-87364-919-2 • John Clements, et al. Masters of Medieval and Renaissance Martial Arts: Rediscovering The

Western Combat Heritage. Paladin Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1-58160-668-3 • William Gaugler. The History of Fencing: Foundations of Modern European Fencing.

Laureate Press, 1997. ISBN 1-884528-16-3

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• Hans Heim and Alex Kiermayer. The Longsword of Johannes Liechtenauer, Part I (DVD). Agilitas TV, 2005. ISBN 1-891448-20-X

• Jared Kirby (ed.), Italian Rapier Combat - Ridolfo Capo Ferro, Greenhill Books, London, 2004. ISBN 1853675806

• David James Knight and Brian Hunt. Polearms of Paulus Hector Mair. Paladin Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1-58160-644-7

• Tomasso Leoni. The Art of Dueling. The Chivalry Bookshelf, 2005. ISBN 1-891448-23-4 • Tom Leoni. Venetian Rapier. Freelance Academy Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-9825911-2-3 • Tom Leoni. The Complete Renaissance Swordsman. Freelance Academy Press, 2010. ISBN

978-0-9825911-3-0 • David Lindholm and Peter Svärd. Sigmund Ringeck's Knightly Art of the Longsword. Paladin

Press, 2003. ISBN 1-58160-410-6 • David Lindholm and Peter Svärd. Knightly Arts of Combat - Sigmund Ringeck's Sword and

Buckler Fighting, Wrestling, and Fighting in Armor. Paladin Press, 2006. ISBN 1-58160-499-8

• David Lindholm. Fighting with the Quarterstaff. The Chivalry Bookshelf, 2006. ISBN 1-891448-36-6

• Gregory Mele, ed. In the Service of Mars: Proceedings from the Western Martial Arts Workshop 1999–2009, Volume I. Freelance Academy Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-9825911-5-4

• Brian R. Price , ed. Teaching & Interpreting Historical Swordsmanship. The Chivalry Bookshelf, 2005. ISBN 1-891448-46-3

• Christopher Thompson. Lannaireachd: Gaelic Swordsmanship. BookSurge Publishing, 2001. ISBN 1-59109-236-1

• Christian Henry Tobler. Secrets of German Medieval Swordsmanship. The Chilvarly Bookshelf, 2001. ISBN 1-891448-07-2

• Christian Henry Tobler. Fighting with the German Longsword. The Chivalry Bookshelf, 2004. ISBN 1-891448-24-2

• Jason Vail. Medieval and Renaissance Dagger Combat. Paladin Press, 2006. ISBN 978-1-58160-517-4

• Guy Windsor. The Swordsman's Companion: A Modern Training Manual for Medieval Longsword. The Chivalry Bookshelf, 2004. ISBN 1-891448-41-2

• Grzegorz Zabinski and Bartlomiej Walczak. The Codex Wallerstein: A Medieval Fighting Book from the Fifteenth Century on the Longsword, Falchion, Dagger, and Wrestling. Paladin Press, 2002. ISBN 1-58160-339-8

External links

• A Chronological History of the Martial arts and Combative Sports 1350–1699 by Joseph R. Svinth

• Western Martial Arts Illustrated A magazine about HEMA and related arts

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German school of fencing

German School of Fencing

page of Mscr. Dresd. C 93 by Paulus Hector Mair (1540s)Also known as Deutsche Fechtschule, German Swordsmanship, Kunst des FechtensFocus longsword, messer, dagger, polearms, grappling

Country of origin Holy Roman Empire

Famous practitionersJohannes Liechtenauer, Hans Talhoffer, Paulus Hector Mair, Sigmund Ringeck

Olympic sport NoThe German school of fencing (Deutsche Fechtschule) is the historical system of combat taught in the Holy Roman Empire in the Late Medieval, Renaissance and Early Modern periods (14th to 17th centuries), as described in the Fechtbücher ("combat manuals") written at the time. Despite the name, the German school of fencing was practiced throughout Europe[citation needed]. During the period in which it was taught, it was known as the Kunst des Fechtens, or the "Art of Combat".[1] It notably comprises the techniques of the two-handed Zweihänder (two hander), but also describes many other types of combat, notably mounted combat, unarmed grappling, fighting with polearms, with the dagger, the messer with or without buckler, and the staff.

Most of the authors are, or claim to be, in the tradition of the 14th century master Johannes Liechtenauer. The earliest surviving treatise on Liechtenauer's system is contained in a manuscript dated to 1389, known as Ms. 3227a. More manuscript treatises survive from the 15th century, and during the 16th century, the system was also presented in print, notably by Joachim Meyer in 1570. The German tradition is eclipsed by the Italian school of rapier fencing by the early 17th century.

Fencing with the German longsword has been one focus of historical martial arts reconstruction since the late 19th century (Alfred Hutton).

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Contents

• 1 History • 2 Disciplines • 3 First principles • 4 Unarmoured longsword

• 4.1 Basic Attacks • 4.2 Master-Hews • 4.3 Guards • 4.4 Techniques

• 5 Armoured combat (Harnischfechten) • 6 See also • 7 Literature • 8 Notes • 9 External links

History

The history of the German school spans roughly 250 years, or eight to ten generations of masters (depending on the dating of Liechtenauer), from 1350 to 1600. Our earliest source, Ms. 3227a of 1389 already mentions a number of masters, considered peers of Liechtenauer's, Hanko Döbringer, Andres Jud, Jost von der Nyssen, and Niklaus Preuss. Probably active in the early 15th century were Martin Hundsfeld and Ott Jud, but sources are sparse until the mid 15th century.

The mid 15th century mark the peak and decline of the "Society of Liechtenauer" with Peter von Danzig, Sigmund Ringeck and Paulus Kal. Kal's contemporary Hans Talhoffer was possibly involved with the foundation of the Brotherhood of St. Mark who enjoyed a quasi-monopoly on teaching martial arts for the best part of a century, from 1487 until 1570.

Late 15th centuries masters include Johannes Lecküchner, Hans von Speyer, Peter Falkner, and Hans Folz. With the 16th century, the school becomes more of a sport and less of a martial art designed for judicial duels or the battlefield. Early 16th century masters include Hans Wurm and Jörg Wilhalm.

In the mid 16th century, there were first attempts at preservation and reconstruction of the teachings of the past century, notably by Paulus Hector Mair. The foundation of the Federfechter in 1570 at Vienna falls into this late period. The final phase of the tradition stretches from the late 16th to the early 17th century, with masters such as Joachim Meyer and Jakob Sutor. In the 17th century, rapier fencing of the Italian school becomes fashionable, with treatises such as Salvator Fabris', and the German tradition, falling into disfavour as old-fashioned and unrefined among the baroque nobility, was discontinued.

Disciplines

Master Johannes Liechtenauer based his system of fencing upon the use of the Longsword. He used this weapon to exemplify several overarching martial principles that also apply to other disciplines within the tradition. Ringen (wrestling/grappling) was taught, as well as fighting with the messer, and staff. Also part of the curriculum were fighting with the dagger Degen (mainly the roundel dagger) and with pole weapons. Two other disciplines besides Blossfechten involved the sword: fencing with (single-handed) sword and buckler (or a large shield in the case of judicial combat

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according to Swabian law), and armoured fighting (Harnischfechten), the latter reserved for nobility.

First principles

Johannes Liechtenauer's teachings as recorded in 3227a are introduced by some general principles (foll. 13-17). The anonymous author explicitly states that Liechtenauer had cast his teaching in opaque verses intended to hide their meaning from the unitiated. He stresses that there is "only a single art of the sword" which had been the same for centuries, and which is the kernel and foundation of all arts of combat.

• the principle of taking the shortest and most direct line of attack (of das aller neheste vnd kors körtzste / slecht vnd gerade czu) disregarding flourishes or flashy parrying techniques ( mit dem höbschen paryrn vnd weit vmefechten).

• the difficulty of explaining techniques in words, and the importance of direct instruction and intensive training, offering the aphorism that "exercise is better than art, because exercise without art is useful, but art without exercise is useless" (15r).

• the importance of footwork and stance (15v) and of correct distance (mosse, 15v) and speed of motion (16r)

• the importance of taking the offensive (vorslag, 14v, 16r-16v), with a fixed plan of attack • the tactical importance of hiding the intended action from the opponent (16r)

The text goes on to present the core principles of successful swordsmanship in eight rhyming couplets (17v):

1. the help of GodCzu allem fechten / gehört dy hölfe gotes von rechte

2. a healthy body and a good weaponGerader leip vnd gesvnder / eyn gancz vertik swert pesundr

3. the principles of offensive and defensive and of hard and soft

Vor noch swach sterke / yndes das wort mete czu merken

4.-5. a list of basic techniques (discussed below)

Hewe stiche snete drücken / leger schütczen stöße fülen czückenWinden vnd hengen / rücken striche sprönge greiffen ringen

6. speed and courage paired with wariness, deceit and cleverness

Rascheit vnd kunheit / vorsichtikeit list vnd klugheit

7. correct distance, concealing one's intentions, reason, anticipation and dexterity

Masse vörborgenheit / vernunft vorbetrachtunge fertikeit

8. training and confidence, speed, agility and good footwork

Vbunge vnd guter mut / motus gelenkheit schrete gut

A characteristic introductory verse of Liechtenauer's, often repeated in later manuscripts, echoes classic 14th-century chivalry, addressing the student as "young knight" (jung ritter), notwithstanding that during most of its lifetime, the German school was very much in bourgeois hands:

(fol 18r) Jung Ritter lere / got lip haben frawen io ere / So wechst dein ere / Uebe ritterschaft und lere / kunst dy dich zyret und in krigen sere hofiret "Young knight, learn to love God and revere noble ladies, so that your honour grows. Practice knighthood and learn the art that dignifies you, and brings you honour in wars."

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Unarmoured longsword

The principal discipline is unarmoured fencing with the longsword (Blossfechten).

At the basis of the system are five 'master-hews' (Meisterhäue) or 'hidden hews' from which many masterful techniques arise, twelve 'chief pieces' ("hauptstücke") that categorize the main components of the art, and five words (fünf Wörter) dealing with concepts of timing and leverage.

At the centre of the art lies emphasis on swiftness, as well as balance and good judgement:

(fol. 20r) vor noch swach stark Indes / an den selben woertern leit alle kunst / meister lichtnawers / Und sint dy gruntfeste und der / kern alles fechtens czu fusse ader czu rosse / blos ader in harnuesche

"'Before', 'after', 'weak', 'strong', Indes ('meanwhile'), on these five words hinges the entire art of master Lichtenauer, and they are the foundation and the core of all combat, on foot or on horseback, unarmoured or armoured."

The terms 'before' (vor) and 'after' (nach) correspond to offensive and defensive actions. While in the vor, one dictates his opponent's actions and thus is in control of the engagement, while in the nach, one responds to the decisions made by his opponent. Under Liechtenauer's system, a combatant must always strive to be in control of the engagement—that is, in the vor. 'Strong' (stark) and 'weak' (swach) relate to the amount of force that is applied in a bind of the swords. Here, neither is better than the other, but one needs to counter the opponent's action with a complementary reaction; strength is countered with weakness, and weakness with strength. Indes means "meanwhile" or "interim", referring to the time it takes for the opponent to complete an action. At the instant of contact with the opponent's blade, an experienced fencer uses 'feeling' (fühlen) to immediately sense his opponent's pressure in order to know whether he should be "weak or "strong" against him. He then either attacks using the "vor" or remains in the bind until his opponent acts, depending on what he feels is right. When his opponent starts to act, the fencer acts "indes" (meanwhile) and regains the "vor" before the opponent can finish his action.[2]

pflug and ochs, as shown on fol. 1r of Cod. 44 A 8 (1452)

fol. 2r, showing vom tag and alber

What follows is a list of technical terms of the system (with rough translation; they should each be

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explained in a separate section):

Basic Attacks

Liechtenauer and other German masters describe three basic methods of attack with the sword. They are sometimes called "drei wunder", "three wounders", with a deliberate pun on "three wonders".

• Hauen, "hews": A hewing stroke with one of the edges of the sword. • Oberhau, "over hew": A stroke delivered from above the attacker. • Mittelhau, "middle hew": A stroke delivered from side to side. • Unterhau, "under hew": A stroke delivered from below the attacker.

• Stechen, "stabbing": A thrusting attack made with the point of the sword. • Abschneiden, "slicing off": Slicing attacks made with the edge of the sword by placing the

edge against the body of the opponent and then pushing or pulling the blade along it.

Master-Hews

Called "five hews" in 3227a, later "hidden hews", and in late manuals "master hews". These likely originated as secret surprise attacks in Liechtenauer's system, but with the success of Liechtenauer's school, they may have become common knowledge. All five are attacks from the first phase of the fight (zufechten) and long range, accompanied by triangular stepping.

• Zornhau : 'wrath-hew'

A powerful diagonal hewing stroke dealt from the vom Tag guard that ends in the Wechsel guard on the opposite side.[3] When a Zornhau is used to displace (Versetzen) another oberhau the impact and binding of the blades will result in the hew ending in a lower hanging at the center of the body.[4] This strike is normally thrown to the opponent's upper opening.

• Krumphau : 'crooked-hew'

A vertical hew from above that reaches across the direct line to the opponent, traveling left from a right position and vice versa. The motion of the blade resembles a windshield wiper. Krumphau is almost always accompanied with a wide diagonal sideways step. The Krumphau breaks the guard Ochs.

• Zwerchhau : or Twerhau 'thwart-hew'

A high horizontal hew, with the 'short' (backhand) edge when thrown from the right side and with the 'long' edge when thrown from the left side. The Zwerchau breaks the guard vom Tag.

• Schielhau : 'squinting-hew'

A short edge (backand) hew dealt from the vom Tag guard that ends in an upper hanger on the opposite side and usually targets the head or the right shoulder.[4] It is basically a twist from vom Tag to opposite side Ochs with one step forward, striking simultaneously downwards with short edge. The Schielhau breaks the both the Pflug and Langen Ort guards and can be used to counter-hew against a powerful Oberhau.

• Scheitelhau : 'part-hew'

A vertical descending hew that ends in the guard Alber. This hew is dealt to the opponent's

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upper openings, most often to the opponent's head, where the hair parts (hence the name of the hew). Through the principle of überlauffen, “overrunning” or “overreaching”, a Scheitelhau is used to break the guard Alber.[4]

Guards

Basic Guards

• vom Tag : 'from the Day'

a basic position with the sword held either on the right shoulder or above the head. The blade can be held vertically or at roughly 45-degrees.[5] The word Tag is often mistranslated as "roof".

• Ochs : 'ox'

a position with the sword held to either side of the head, with the point (as a horn) aiming at the opponent's face.

• Pflug : 'plough'

a position with the sword held to either side of the body with the pommel near the back hip, with the point aiming at the opponent's chest or face. Some historical manuals state that when this guard is held on the right side of the body that the short edge should be facing up and when held on the left side of the body the short edge should be facing down with the thumb on the flat of the blade.[6]

• Alber: 'fool'

In the Fool's Guard, the point of the sword is lowered to the ground, appearing to "foolishly" expose the upper parts of the body and inviting an attack. Although the Fool's Guard exposes the upper openings it does provide excellent protection to the lower openings. From the Fool's Guard an attack or displacement can be made with the false edge of the sword or the hilt of the sword can be quickly raised into a hanging parry.

Additional Guards: Liechtenauer is emphatic that the above four guards are sufficient, and all guards taught by other masters may be derived from them. Later masters introduce richer terminology for variant guards:

• Zornhut : 'wrath guard' • Wechsel : 'change' • Nebenhut : 'near guard' or 'side guard' • Eisenport : 'iron door', mentioned in 3227a as a non-Liechtenauerian ward, identical to the

porta di ferro of the Italian school • Schlüssel : 'key' • Einhorn : 'unicorn', a variant of Ochs • Schrankhut : 'barrier guard'

The following are transitional stances that are not properly called guards.

• Hengetort : 'hanging point' • Kron : 'crown', the sword hilt is held out about head height with the point up. Kron is used at

the bind and is usually a prelude to grappling.

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• Langort : 'long point', the sword point is extended straight out at the opponent. Many of the cuts pass through this transitional guard and it is the natural ending of a thrust.

Techniques

Other terms in Liechtenauers system (most of them referring to positions or actions applicable in mid-combat, when the blades are in contact) include:

• Duplieren: 'doubling', the immediate redoubling of a displaced hew. • Mutieren: 'mutating', change of attack method, changing a displaced hew into a thrust, or a

displaced thrust into a hew. • Versetzen: 'displacement' or 'parrying'[2] (upper/lower, left/right), to parry an attack with

ones own weapon. • Nachreisen: 'after-traveling', the act of attacking an opponent after he has pulled back to

attack, or an attack after the opponent has missed, or an attack following the opponent's action.[2]

• Überlaufen: 'over-running' or 'overrunning', the act of countering a hew or thrust made to below with an attack to above.

• Absetzen: 'off-setting', deflecting a thrust or hew at the same time as stabbing. • Durchwechseln: 'changing-through', name for various techniques for escaping a bind by

sliding the sword's point out from underneath the blade and then stabbing to another opening.

• Zucken: 'tugging' a technique used in a strong bind between blades in which a combatant goes weak in the bind so as to disengage his blade from the bind and stabs or hews to the other side of the other combatant's blade. This technique is based upon the concept of using weakness against strength.

• Durchlauffen: 'running-through', a technique by which one combatant "runs through" his opponent's attack to initiate grappling with him.

• Händedrücken: 'pressing of hands', the execution of an Unterschnitt followed by an Oberschnitt such that the wrists of the opponent are sliced all the way around.

• Hängen: 'hanging' (upper/lower, left/right) • Winden: 'Winding' The combatant moves the strong of his blade to the weak of the

opponent's blade to gain leverage while keeping his point online with the opponent's opening. There are 8 variations.

Armoured combat (Harnischfechten)

Halbschwert against Mordstreich in the Codex Wallerstein (Plate 214)

Combat in full plate armour made use of the same weapons as Blossfechten, the longsword and dagger (possibly in special make optimized for piercing the openings in armour), but the techniques were entirely different. Attacking an opponent in plate armour offers two basic possibilities:

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percussive force, or penetration at joints or unprotected areas. Penetration was extremely unlikely even with thrusting attacks. Percussion was realized with the Mordstreich, attacks with the hilt holding the sword at the blade, and penetration into openings of the armour with the Halbschwert, which allowed stabbing attacks with increased precision. From the evidence of the Fechtbücher, most armoured fights were concluded by wrestling moves, with one combatant falling to the ground. Lying on the ground, he could then be easily killed with a stab into his visor or another opening of the armour.

See also

• Historical European Martial Arts • Italian school of fencing • Kampfringen

Literature

• Clements, John. Masters of Medieval and Renaissance Martial Arts: Rediscovering The Western Combat Heritage. Paladin Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1-58160-668-3

• Heim, Hans & Alex Kiermayer, The Longsword of Johannes Liechtenauer, Part I -DVD-, ISBN 1-891448-20-X

• Knight, David James and Brian Hunt, Polearms of Paulus Hector Mair , ISBN 978-1-58160-644-7 (2008)

• Lindholm, David & Peter Svard, Sigmund Ringeck's Knightly Art of the Longsword, ISBN 1-58160-410-6 (2003)'

• Schulze, André (ed.), Mittelalterliche Kampfesweisen - Mainz am Rhein. : Zabern • vol. 1: Das Lange Schwert, 2006. - ISBN 3-8053-3652-7 • vol. 2, Kriegshammer, Schild und Kolben, 2007. - ISBN 3-8053-3736-1 • vol. 3: Scheibendolch und Stechschild, 2007. - ISBN 978-3-8053-3750-2

• Thomas, Michael G., Fighting Man's Guide to German Longsword Combat, ISBN 978-1-906512-00-2 (2008)

• Tobler, Christian Henry, Fighting with the German Longsword, ISBN 1-891448-24-2 (2004) • Tobler, Christian Henry, Secrets of German Medieval Swordsmanship (2001), ISBN 1-

891448-07-2' • Tobler, Christian Henry, In Saint George's Name: An Anthology of Medieval German

Fighting Arts (2010), ISBN 978-0-9825911-1-6

Notes

1. ̂ The Early Modern German fechten translates to the English etymological equivalent, to fight. In Modern German, fechten has come to mean "fencing", but translating fechten as "fencing" in a pre-16th century context is an anachronism; the English verb "to fence" in the sense of "fighting with swords" arises in the 1590s, in Shakespeare, in reference specifically to the Elizabethan Art of Defence.

2. ^ a b c Abnemen 3. ̂ A Zornhau may be thrown from another guard, such as Ochs, but in doing so the person

will move through the vom Tag guard. 4. ^ a b c The Mastercuts – What They Are and What They Aren’t by Bartholomew Walczak

and Jacob Norwood. 5. ̂ The Basic Guards of Medieval Longsword by John Clements - note the depictions of vom

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Tag. 6. ̂ The Basic Guards of Medieval Longsword by John Clements.

External links

• The Wiktenauer The world's largest database of historical German fighting manuals • Call to Arms: The German Longsword by Bill Grandy

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Chivalry

Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is the traditional code of conduct associated with the medieval institution of knighthood. It was originally conceived of as an aristocratic warrior code — the term derives from the French term for horseman — involving individual training and service to others. Over time its meaning has been refined to emphasize more ideals such as knightly virtues, honour and courtly love, and less the martial aspects of the tradition.

The Knight's Code of Chivalry was a moral system that stated all knights should protect others who can not protect themselves, such as widows, children, and elders. All knights needed to have the strength and skills to fight wars in the Middle Ages. Knights not only had to be strong but they were also extremely disciplined and were expected to use their power to protect the weak and defenceless. Knights vowed to be loyal, generous, and "noble bearing". Knights were required to tell the truth at all times and always respect the honour of women. Knights not only vowed to protect the weak but also vowed to guard the honour of all fellow knights. They always had to obey those who were placed in authority and were never allowed to refuse a challenge from an equal. Knights lived by honor and for glory. Knights were to fear God and maintain His Church. Knights always kept their faith and never turned their back on a foe. Knights despised pecuniary reward. They persevered to the end in any enterprise begun. The main vow from the knights was that they shall fight for the welfare of all.[1]

Historian Johan Huizinga remarks in his book The Waning of the Middle Ages, "the source of the chivalrous idea, is pride aspiring to beauty, and formalized pride gives rise to a conception of honour, which is the pole of noble life."[2]

The term chivalry is sometimes also used to refer to the medieval mounted men-at-arms with whom this code was associated.

Contents

• 1 Etymology • 2 History

• 2.1 Origins in military ethos • 2.2 Medieval literature • 2.3 Late Middle Ages

• 3 Modern debates • 4 See also • 5 Notes • 6 Bibliography • 7 External links

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Etymology

A knight being armed.

In English, the word is first attested in 1292, as a loan from Old French chevalerie ("knighthood"), an abstract noun formed in the 11th century based on chevalier ("knight" or "horseman"), ultimately from Medieval Latin caballārius[3] ("horseman"); cavalry is from the Italian form of the same word, loaned via Middle French into English around 1540.[4]

Between the 11th century and 15th centuries medieval writers often used the word shivalry, in meanings that changed over time, generally moving from the concrete meaning of "status or fee associated with military follower owning a war horse" towards the moral ideal of the Christian warrior ethos propagated in the Romance genre which became popular by the 12th century, and the ideal of courtly love propagated in the contemporary Minnesang and related genres.

By the 15th century, the term had become mostly detached from its military origins, not least because the rise of infantry in the 14th century had essentially confined knightly horsemanship to the tournament grounds, and essentially expressed a literary ideal of moral and courteous behavior.

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History

Origins in military ethos

"Stitching the Standard" by Edmund Blair Leighton: the lady prepares for a knight to go to war.

Regardless of the diverse written definitions of chivalry, the medieval knightly class was adept at the art of war, trained in fighting in armor, with horses, lances, swords and shields. Knights were taught to excel in the arms, to show courage, to be gallant and loyal and to swear off cowardice and baseness.[5]

Related to chivalry was the practice of heraldry and its elaborate rules of displaying coats of arms. When not fighting, chivalric knights typically resided in a castle or fortified house, while some knights lived in the courts of kings, dukes and other great lords. The skills of the knight carried over to peacetime activities such as the hunt and tournament.

Christianity had a modifying influence on the classical concept of heroism and virtue, nowadays identified with the virtues of chivalry.[6] The Peace and Truce of God in the 10th century was one such example, with limits placed on knights to protect and honor the weaker members of society and also help the church maintain peace. At the same time the church became more tolerant of war in the defense of faith, espousing theories of the just war; and liturgies were introduced which

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blessed a knight's sword, and a bath of chivalric purification.The first noted support for chivalric vocation, or the establishment of knightly class to ensure the sanctity and legitimacy of Christianity was written in 930 by Odo, abbot of Cluny in the Vita of St. Gerald of Aurillac, which argued that the sanctity of Christ and Christian doctrine can be demonstrated through the legitimate unsheathing of the “sword against the enemy.” [7] In the 11th century the concept of a "knight of Christ" (miles Christi) gained currency in France, Spain and Italy.[5] These concepts of "religious chivalry" were further elaborated in the era of the Crusades, with the Crusades themselves often being seen as a chivalrous enterprise.[5] Their ideas of chivalry were also further influenced by Saladin, who was viewed as a chivalrous knight by medieval Christian writers.

Medieval literature

From the 12th century onward chivalry came to be understood as a moral, religious and social code of knightly conduct. The particulars of the code varied, but codes would emphasize the virtues of courage, honor, and service. Chivalry also came to refer to an idealization of the life and manners of the knight at home in his castle and with his court.

Medieval courtly literature glorifies the valor, tactics and ideals of ancient Romans.[5] For example the ancient hand-book of warfare written by Vegetius called De Re Militari was translated into French in the 13th century as L'art de chevalerie by Jean de Meun. Later writers also drew from Vegetius such as Honore Bonet who wrote the 14th century L'arbes des batailles, which discussed the morals and laws of war. In the 15th century Christine de Pizan combined themes from Vegetius, Bonet and Frontinus in Livre des faits d'armes et de chevalerie.

In the later Middle Ages, wealthy merchants strove to adopt chivalric attitudes - the sons of the bourgeoisie were educated at aristocratic courts where they were trained in the manners of the knightly class.[5] This was a democratization of chivalry, leading to a new genre called the courtesy book, which were guides to the behavior of "gentlemen". Thus, the post-medieval gentlemanly code of the value of a man's honor, respect for women, and a concern for those less fortunate, is directly derived from earlier ideals of chivalry and historical forces which created it.[5]

The medieval development of chivalry, with the concept of the honor of a lady and the ensuing knightly devotion to it, not only derived from the thinking about the Virgin Mary, but also contributed to it.[8] The medieval veneration of the Virgin Mary was contrasted by the fact that ordinary women, especially those outside aristocratic circles, were looked down upon. Although women were at times viewed as the source of evil, it was Mary who as mediator to God was a source of refuge for man. The development of medieval Mariology and the changing attitudes towards women paralleled each other and can best be understood in a common context.[9]

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Knights of Christ by Jan van Eyck

When examining medieval literature, chivalry can be classified into three basic but overlapping areas:

1. Duties to countrymen and fellow Christians: this contains virtues such as mercy, courage, valor, fairness, protection of the weak and the poor, and in the servant-hood of the knight to his lord. This also brings with it the idea of being willing to give one’s life for another’s; whether he would be giving his life for a poor man or his lord.

2. Duties to God: this would contain being faithful to God, protecting the innocent, being faithful to the church, being the champion of good against evil, being generous and obeying God above the feudal lord.

3. Duties to women: this is probably the most familiar aspect of chivalry. This would contain what is often called courtly love, the idea that the knight is to serve a lady, and after her all other ladies. Most especially in this category is a general gentleness and graciousness to all women.

These three areas obviously overlap quite frequently in chivalry, and are often indistinguishable.

Different weight given to different areas produced different strands of chivalry:

1. warrior chivalry, in which a knight's chief duty is to his lord, as exemplified by Sir Gawain

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in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle 2. religious chivalry, in which a knight's chief duty is to protect the innocent and serve God, as

exemplified by Sir Galahad or Sir Percival in the Grail legends. 3. courtly love chivalry, in which a knight's chief duty is to his own lady, and after her, all

ladies, as exemplified by Sir Lancelot in his love for Queen Guinevere or Sir Tristan in his love for Iseult

Late Middle Ages

Chivalry underwent a revival and elaboration of chivalric ceremonial and rules of etiquette in the fourteenth century that was examined by Johan Huizinga, in The Waning of the Middle Ages (1919, 1924), in which he dedicates a full chapter to "The idea of chivalry". In contrasting the literary standards of chivalry with the actual warfare of the age, the historian finds the imitation of an ideal past illusory; in an aristocratic culture such as Burgundy and France at the close of the Middle Ages, "to be representative of true culture means to produce by conduct, by customs, by manners, by costume, by deportment, the illusion of a heroic being, full of dignity and honour, of wisdom, and, at all events, of courtesy. ...The dream of past perfection ennobles life and its forms, fills them with beauty and fashions them anew as forms of art".[10]

Modern debates

There are a number of questions historians debate related to chivalry. In his monumental study of Chivalry, The Broad-Stone of Honour, Kenelm Henry Digby offered the following definition: 'Chivalry is only a name for that general spirit or state of mind which disposes men to heroic actions, and keeps them conversant with all that is beautiful and sublime in the intellectual and moral world.' It is still debated as to what extent the exploits of notable knights and historical figures such as Saladin, Godfrey of Bouillon, William Marshal and Bertrand du Guesclin set new standards of knightly behavior, or were instead reflections of existing models of conduct.[5] Another common debate is whether, since knights bore arms, the ranks of knights were open to anyone who had the physical requirements and skills, or restricted to only those who were born into knightly families.[5]

See also

• Bushido • Chinese knight-errant • Chivalric order • Chivalric romance • Chivalry-Now • Court of Chivalry • Courtly love • Domnei • Don Quixote • Feliciano de Silva • Furusiyya • Gender role • Jomsvikings • Nine Worthies

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• Pas d'Armes • Spanish chivalry • Warrior code • The Book of the Courtier • Court of Chivalry

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