General
Approach
Swordsmanship is far more than learning to swing a
sword. Indeed, swordsmen and Masters at Arms have long
since recognized that it is the spirit that is stronger
than the body; and while technique is important,
we believe that the mental and elements of character are
far more critical both in a tactical sense and in terms
of the long-term benefit of the art.
Similarly, we believe that the weapon arts are
supposed to bring a heightened sense of responsibility
into the student's everyday life, and that their lives
will be improved through the study and balance required
by serious study of the sword.
Lastly, we believe that the skills developed for use
in the salle d'armes or tournament lists should have
some measure of real-world application. After all, no
one carries around a sword nowadays--but the grappling
and knife arts that underscore our course of study
should encourage the student to continue and to extend
their studies into other arts. After careful
consideration, we have altered our course flow to
reflect a "Medieval martial arts" track, since
we believe that this course follows in parallel with
what students of Eastern and other modern martial arts
have established as a norm, calling our form simply
"ARTE DELLA SPADA".
Currently we have four gradiations, each representing
a core skill set:
- Elephant, (Compagno): Fundamentals of Fiore's
longsword, stance, grip, poste, colpi, punte, and
fundamental defenses.
- Tyger (Scholar): Refined fundamentals, Fiore's
giocco larga (long play), 8 seminar hours or 1
breadth course.
- Lion, (Free Scholar): Fiore's giocco stretto
(close play), 1 breadth course, teach 1 elephant
course, 12 additional seminar hours.
- Lynx, (tbd): Fiore's armoured combat or the
Advanced longsword course (based on Vadi), 2 breadth
courses, develop & prepare to teach 1 breadth
course, 16 additional seminar hours.
New Students
It has been my observation that new students need to
touch and feel the sword at an early phased if their
interest is to be sufficiently piqued that they continue
their study.
As such, we follow a course intended to move the
students steadily but relatively quickly towards various
forms of competition, building upon intensively
developed basic skills distilled as closely as possible
from the most famous Medieval Italian Master-at-Arms,
Fiore de Liberi. Fiore's Flos di Battaglia or Flos
Duellatorum provides a very powerful basic course of
study that integrates unarmed, dagger, arming sword,
longsword, spear (or lanza) and poleaxe into
single systematic approach. The same skills mastered in
the unarmed and dagger portions carry over into the
guards and attack principles with all weapons; as such
it is a very good place for students to begin their
study of the Medieval martial arts.
All students are expected to first complete our
introductory course, "Introduction to Medieval
Swordsmanship." This course is designed to provide
a foundation that will at once begin to build core
skills and get the sexy longsword into new students
hands as soon as possible. It covers all material a
novice students within the Schola is expected to be
familiar with; including the unarmed posta, footwork,
the longsword posta with intensive work on transitions,
cutting, principles of defense, and the conceptual
framework around which we believe the fight takes place,
drawing heavily from George Silver and aspects
articulated by the German Liechtenauer school (primarily
Ringeck and the Liechtenauer verse). Ideas such as
initiative, vor, nach and indes are presented as the
students begin to counter their companos in drills,
having the option for focused sparring. The course
follows with a review and some weeks of practice and
preparation for the first rank within the Schola,
Compagno, signified by the badge of Fiore's elephant. At
this point the students will likely be asked to become a
formal member of the Schola.
Students in remote study groups can follow the
curriculem and hone their skills, exchanging video with
Schola instructors to help advance their practice.
ELEPHANT TESTING
- Who was Fiore dei Liberi, when and where did he
teach, and why do we study his work?
- What is the significance and importance of Fiore's
Segno?
- What weapons forms does Fiore's system include?
- Have a solid stance, demonstrating balance in
middle, front and back-weighted positions.
- Have a grip that is in control of the weapon, but
not over-tight.
- Demonstrate the four unarmed poste and how they
are used (English / Italian).
- Demonstrate a working knowledge of each of Fiore's
longsword poste, including how each is classified,
the appropriate distance for each.
- Demonstrate smooth transitions between the poste
with integrated off-line footwork.
- Generate sufficient power to make colpi using
basic cutting techniques stationary and with offline
steps, and to connect colpi together sensibly and
from poste to poste. Be able to cut Tatami mats from
Poste de Donna and Coda Longa.
- Execute punte at targets, demonstrating accuracy
and powered delivery with coordinated footwork.
- Be able to defend with appropriate safety using
poste frontale and slipping the leg.
- Know the hierarchy of defense and how it might be
used in basic defense.
- Be able to displace basic fendente and punte in
front of and behind the attack while stepping off
the line.
- Understand the strong vs weak principle at the
mezzo spada incroisade.
- Have a longsword simulator, mask or helmet,
gambeson, and padded gloves or gauntlets.
Compagno /
Elephant course of study
Out of necessity, the introductory course moves quickly
through concepts that should be focused on and developed
in more detail. Compagnos are strongly encourage, but
are not required to spar. Coursework will consist of
continued development of the foundational elements, plus
study of Fiore's giocco larga plays, which teach the
combatant how to defend and take intiatiative from the
crossed swords (incroisade) position common when an
opponent counters. Compagnos may study alongside the new
students to help refine their grip on the foundational
elements, although increased work will be added as they
puruse the giocco larga module.
Intermediate classes are different in form and will
have at least three sections. The first third will focus
on review of foundational skills, Next will come an hour
of time to work on longswordmanship, including the
4-week focus on each of the selected posta. This will
refine the students comfort in that posta, drilling and
focus-sparring transitions, footowork, attacks and
limiting weaknesses from each position. The last hour
will encourage both focused and free sparring to build
the mental aspects of the fight. For students engaged in
other forms of competitive swordwork, such as SCA or
Adrian tournament combat, students are strongly
encouraged to integrate the historical skills as they
will see an exciting benefit in a relatively short time.
Students are also expected to read and
digest key texts within the medieval Masters at Arms
traditions and be passingly familiar with the major
sources.
TYGER / SCHOLAR TESTING
- Complete the giocco larga class, and have refined
the fundamental skill sets.
- Have successfully taught an Elephant class.
- Have completed an additinal breadth class
(listed on Classes page) and 8 seminar hours
with non-Schola instructors, demonstrating several
techniques learned.
- For tournament qualification, possess an
appropriate helmet, gambeson, hand-defenses and
sparring weapon.
- Elaborate on the significance and importance
of Fiore's Segno
- Identify several other historical treatises and
their significance.
- Demonstrate cutting proficiency against tatami
mats using footwork and multiple cuts.
- Be able to demonstrate any of the skills in the
Elephant test at a higher level of expertise.
- Have internalized Fiore's longsword poste and some
advantages and weaknesses of each.
- Create a unique set of poste transition form in
multiple directions, making use of each of the volta
and at least eight poste.
- Execute all of Fiore's longsword giocco larga plays
and identify the principles underlying each.
- Discuss the differences of defending in front of
and behind an attack.
- Develop a personal salute for use in the school
and in tournaments and dicuss the importance of a
salute.
- be comfortable sparring using the above skills,
demonstrating control and courtesy for other
companions and opponents.
Tygers / Scholars course of
study
Tygers will hopefully continue to advance their
knowledge of Fiore's system, now focusing on an
intensive survey of his close play, abrazarre, daga work
and the giocco stretto principles contained therein.
These principles are added to the giocco stretto
longsword work, making for three modules of study
necessary to complete the module, plus one breadth
course, and 16 hours of seminar attendance with
non-Schola teachers designed for rounding.
Alternatively, regular cross-training classwork or a
second breadth course may be substituted and they must
teach at least one Elephant class.
LION / FREE SCHOLAR TESTING
- Complete the giocco stretto class, and have
refined earlier skill sets.
- Have completed an additional breadth class, plus
12 seminar hours with non-Schola instructors.
- Possess an appropriate helmet, gambeson,
hand-defenses and sparring weapon.
- Elaborate on the significance and importance
of Fiore's Segno as it applies to giocco larga and
giocco stretto work, as well as to the fight as a
whole.
- Demonstrate cutting proficiency against tatami
mats using footwork and multiple cuts, this time
from all stabile and pulsativa poste.
- Execute all of Fiore's abrazarre and selected daga
plays, and identify the principles underlying each.
Demonstrate each of Fiore's giocco stretto longsword
plays also.
- Apply abrazarre or daga plays to defenses against
a punch, knife from the front and back, and gun in
front and back.
Lion / Free Scholar course of
study
Lions, symbolized by Fiore's lion, have exemplified
audatia in their study of Fiore's principles. It is now
expected that they will broaden their study and advance
their art through studies of other matieral. The core
components are either Fiore's spada en arme (armoured
combat) or a study of Vadi's principles. Ideal
candidates will have completed both segments, and will
have studied another tradition sufficiently so that they
can teach a segment within the Schola.
LYNX TESTING
- Complete a study of the advanced principles within
Filippo Vadi's Arte Gladiatoria Dimicandi, and/or
Fiore's Spada en arme (armoured combat) and
demonstrate skills from these modules.
- Have 16 additional non-Schola seminar hours.
- Compare and contrast Vadi's signo and Fiore's
segno.
- Discuss the relationship of the core principles as
they relate to the breadth weapons study.
- Present teaching materials for the Breadth course
to be taught to Schola members.
- Demonstrate increased cutting proficiency against
tatami mats using footwork and multiple cuts, this
time from all stabile and pulsativa poste.
- Develop a new cascading drill that makes use of
Vadi's principles as outlined in his opening
chapters.
- Apply abrazarre or daga plays to defenses against
a punch, knife from the front and back, and gun in
front and back.
Competition
Unlike many in the WMA community, we firmly believe in the benefits that participating in tournaments and competitive engagement
brings.
The Medieval Tournament
Medieval tournaments did not necessarily include the complete corpus of techniques we study in a WMA context, as members of groups such as the SCA and ECS can attest. However, now as with the historical tournament
entempreneurs, tournaments can be structured to emphasize specific things.
Medieval tournaments seem to have often been structured in such a way as to emphasize the taking and delivering of blows--a concept
eschewed by fencing masters. Whether this is a historical legacy from the earlier middle ages or whether blows were still used in the 14th and 15th century remains an open question.
Medieval Tournaments as conducted by the Company of Saint George
within the SCA emphasize this medieval spirit, adding the proper context for the tournament in terms of correct historical equipment and a literary framework drawn as historical touranments often were from takes of medieval romance. These tournaments are often conducted with batons (though sometimes with rebated weapons as well) and use counted blows, usually disallowing grapples, pommel strikes, and even thrusts. This is
not fantasy role-playing, it is working in the medieval tradition as closely as possible, emphasizing sincerity of character and the chivalric virtues as well as prowess--fighting skill.
A great deal of information can be found on
tournaments and tournament companies at the Knighthood, Chivalry & Tournaments Resource Library
website. Additionally, valuable insights
have been added by a number of recent books and articles,
including:
Armoured WMA Tournaments
Armoured WMA tournaments, by contrast, are designed by purpose to provide a framework first for the showcasing and testing of techniques found in the fighting treatises, second for working through the mental aspects of the fight, and third for celebrating the chivalric virtues. As mentioned above, no solid connection between the fighting treatises and the body of feats of arms has yet been established; so this form, while valid for its purpose, is different from its historical roots in terms of objective, and hence often of tone.
Excellent tournaments have been recently held by the Chicago Swordplay
Guild and will hopefully continue to be held at WMAW events whether in Toronto, New York or Chicago (the cities the event rotates through). A great deal has been learned since 2001, and while there is still goodly distance to go, the progress of the community as a whole is encouraging. The Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts (AEMMA) is also active in this regard; we share some significant differences in approach, but we are also allies in the development of tournament formats for use by WMA sponsors.
The Schola Saint George tries to hold tournaments as
often as possible, such as the SF branch's "Day on
the Green" pas d'armes, and as part of our International Swordsmanship Symposia.
Schola students, when ready, are strongly encouraged to
participate. See the photos page for pictures of our instructors
and compagni engaged in WMA tournaments!
Blossfechten Tournaments: Starting Point
All historical tournaments seem to have been conducted armoured, even the behourd, which used batons and armour of linen or leather. Most of the techniques within the fighting treatises, however, are for use with unarmoured opponents; but the benefits of competition are still extremely valuable. Hence, the modern "blossfechten" tournaments that we are beginning to explore.
Here, the lightest armour possible is worn with lightly padded or aluminum weapons.
Scholars within the Company receive, when deemed ready, our blessing to participate in blossfechten tournaments in the WMA community; since little armour is required, it provides an excellent way to step combatants towards the armoured or medieval tournament at a low cost and with the mental benefits accruing from a much earlier stage.
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