books | swords | teaching
Sword and Shield: Basic principles and technique of medieval buckler combat is a DVD by Roland Warzecha and Tobias Wenzel, published through Agilitas in 2011. The subject is fencing with the medieval sword and buckler in general, as opposed to …
Review of “Sword and Shield” DVD by Roland WarzechaRead More
When people design rules for a HEMA tournament, a common idea is that the competition should simulate a real fight as closely as possible. This always involves a series of assumptions about what a “real fight” is, exactly, and also about how a person …
Obsesseo is a DVD by David Rawlings and the London Longsword Academy, recorded in 2011. The subject is the MS I.33 treatise, an early medieval manuscript from the late 13th or early 14th century that depicts combat using sword and buckler. …
This is a series of interviews with well-known HEMA practitioners from around the world. The subject is the importance of books in the HEMA community. Personally, I think books are immensely important to the community (and in general!), but I am …
This is the second article in a short series, discussing common pieces of advice that sound helpful but in fact can be detrimental to your practice of some HEMA systems.A common piece of advice in some unarmed martial arts is that it is alright …
Unhelpful advice 2: “It is alright to take a hit to give a hit”Read More
This is a series of interviews with well-known HEMA practitioners from around the world. The subject is the importance of books in the HEMA community. Personally, I think books are immensely important to the community (and in general!), but I am …
A story that I have heard from several people and clubs over the years is that when they began training HEMA, they didn’t bother with much protective gear beyond fencing masks, and they just took the bruises that resulted, because they felt tough …
This is a series of interviews with well-known HEMA practitioners from around the world. The subject is the importance of books in the HEMA community. Personally, I think books are immensely important to the community (and in general!), but I am …
I have been using a Black Armoury HEMA jacket since late summer 2016, and I have grown to love the collar solution. It is my go-to jacket to take with me when travelling to events. …
I have been using a SPES “Axel Pettersson” jacket (V1.2) myself since the summer of 2015, although many of my friends and colleagues have been using them since around 2012. I have found it to be an excellent jacket for HEMA purposes, having used it …
I used a PBT “HEMA jacket with inlays” between early 2013 and mid 2015. It was a good jacket for my purposes at the time I bought it, but it wasn’t quite right for me in the long run. It is, however, probably the most comfortable jacket I have used …
Every modern fencing group in the world demands that members wear their fencing masks while working with swords in hand. Most HEMA clubs demand similar behaviour for the purpose of safety of participants. However, there are some groups that, for …
The importance of wearing a fencing mask during trainingRead More
For some years now, I have been mulling over the decision I made about six years ago to take a break from karate in order to study historical fencing in more depth. I didn't have the time or the finances to study both disciplines at the same time, so …
This is the first article in a short series, discussing common pieces of advice that sound helpful but in fact can be detrimental to your practice of some HEMA systems.A common piece of advice in HEMA is to stand in profile, with your side …
Unhelpful advice part 1: “Make yourself a smaller target”Read More
Keith Farrell and Robert Schwartz fencing with the longsword at Edgebana. Photo by Thomas Naylor, 2015.This is the second part of a short series of articles on safety features on swords. It builds upon the definitions that I gave …
In the last five years, the HEMA community has seen a veritable explosion of new manufacturers, suppliers, and producers of equipment. In fact, there are currently more HEMA-specific gloves on the market than one has fingers to be protected![1] This …
This is the first part of a short series of articles on safety features on swords, and so this first part sets out some useful definitions that will become more important in the next article in the series. It was originally posted on Encased in …
Black Fencer basket-hilted broadsword. Photo from the Black Fencer website.This is a follow-up to my original review of the Black Fencer synthetic broadsword, an item which I have used for training, sparring, and for competition since the summer …
Review of the Black Fencer basket-hilted broadswordRead More
Black Fencer "sharp simulator" longsword. Photo from the Black Fencer website.I have recently had the opportunity to do play with the Black Fencer “sharp simulator” longsword. This is a rather odd-looking item, with serrated edges (very …
Review of the Black Fencer “sharp simulator” longswordRead More
Black Fencer montante. Photo from the Black Fencer website.I have recently had the opportunity to do some work with the Black Fencer montante V4, which is a synthetic training sword of suitable dimensions and balance to practise systems written …
