Ye Olde Martial Arts

A renaissance has begun in all things Medieval. The popularity of knights, jousting, and sword play has never been at such peak save for when they were in actual practice many centuries ago. An interest into the western or more properly the European Martial Arts has stemmed from the passion moviegoers and medievalists hold for the weaponry of old. For some time the market has been dominated by the Asian martial arts: Kenjistu, Jujitsu, Kong Fu, Karate, Tai Kwon Do and etc. I have nothing against the Eastern forms of combat, but it is unfortunate that the treatises of the West have been obscured for so long. It's sad people have believed for many decades that the medieval warriors were uncivilized bludgeoners who used crude tools to brutally beat their foes into submission. Finally, through a revival of the European Martial Artes, people are learning that these warriors weren't neanderthals with swords, but clever men who used unique tools and tactics to vanquish their enemies. The weapons themselves have been re-examined and the treatises have been found to be as intricate and complicated as those in the East.

Skeptics might wonder how I came upon such knowledge. Support for my claims may be questioned. I myself am a student of a European Martial Artes master named Steaphen Fick. He is a knight and champion of the sword. He was trained in Germany and Scotland in the Long Sword and has learned from other masters the treatises of Spadda de Filo (Italian Side Sword) and Rapier. Sir Steaphen has been training pupils like myself for twenty five years. His skill with the sword is something to behold. Immediately under his instruction many mythos about the weapons, armor, and tactics of the medieval warrior have been debunked. One of greatest revelations is that a Long Sword, the sword of the medieval knight (usually in a cruciform and sometimes crescent shape) did not weigh 10-20 lbs, but instead weighed a mere 2 lbs.

I was quite surprised when I began my training with the long sword to learn that the guards and cuts are intrinsic and that you don't switch from blocking to offending or attacking. The real goal is not to lung and strike your opponent, It's to let him make a mistake and drive him into your blade. The footwork alone for long sword and sidesword is a steep learning curve. It requires precision, tactics, intuition, strategy, and careful planning. Sword fighting is more like a chess match than dancing with a blade in hand. You have to understand that you are "the most important person in the world," and that you must always be aware of yourself and your opponent. You don't charge into peril blindly, you only live once and if you aren't careful you will perish. Even though we use dull steel swords (beginners use wooden wasters/swords), they can still cleave your skull and tare right through your skin and bone. In fact, the Germans liked to dull their long swords so they could hack more instead of slice. Regardless if It's sharp, it is still steel coming at a high velocity into your flesh.

I cannot reveal all of the secrets of my master, but I would like to share an ideology that is imperative to any swordsman or swordswoman. My master says, "You must be offensive-defensive and defensive-offensive." He means that you don't just focus on protecting yourself or on assailing your opponent. You do both at the same time. This requires a focused mind and it breaks all lies that knights and the like weren't multi-taskers.

I must confess that if you start down the path of becoming martially trained in the sword, you will find that all films are flawed and that the choreography in your favorite sword fights is more fantasy than reality. At first you will find yourself criticizing these films, but later you will realize It's all in good fun and that you can train in the true treatises; that you can know how to properly wield a medieval weapon and still enjoy watching Hollywood performers play around with them like toys.

My Swordmaster's School: http://swordfightingschool.com/