books | swords | teaching
I often hear questions about how to design drills and exercises for a HEMA club. Sometimes it comes during discussions in person at events, or sometimes in discussion threads online, but it is quite a common question. There are many instructors who …
How to design drills and exercises for your HEMA clubRead More
I believe that test cutting practice is an important element of our HEMA training. It keeps us honest and ensures that our techniques are effective. It is all too easy to spend time and effort working on mechanics and interpretations that are not …
Are there flourishes in the German longsword sources? Flourishes are solo forms, sequences perhaps a bit like kata, that can be used to practise techniques and generally do training with sword in hand even without a partner – useful if you can …
It is perhaps quite a contentious statement, but I do like to use the Red Dragon synthetic longswords in my club. Not everyone likes them, especially when steel is an option, but I do believe that they serve a number of important purposes and they …
Why I like to use the Red Dragon synthetic longswords in my clubRead More
I recently realised that there are certain longswords that I like borrowing at events. When I travel for teaching, I often ask the organisers if I can borrow a sword, since this makes my travelling easier and usually makes the cost of travelling …
The longswords I realised I like borrowing at eventsRead More
Late last year, I returned to practising karate on a weekly basis (when I haven’t been away teaching, or in self-isolation due to the current coronavirus). I used to practise Shoto Budo karate and now I am taking up Kyokushinkai karate - it has been …
Copyright is a complicated thing. Members of the HEMA community participate in an activity that is inextricably linked with material that may well be copyrighted in some fashion, and therefore it is helpful to understand what copyright is and how it …
Every system has a doctrine, an algorithm or set of instructions that describe the best advice for the vast majority of situations that will occur while you practise that system. When different systems have different doctrines, this (quite …
Copyright is a complicated thing. Members of the HEMA community participate in an activity that is inextricably linked with material that may well be copyrighted in some fashion, and therefore it is helpful to understand what copyright is and how it …
Copyright and the HEMA Community – Part 5: What is “fair use” and how far does it extend?Read More
Is it alright or frowned upon for people to make noise, to scream, or to make a kiai of some sort while practising HEMA? What about in competitions when adrenaline is running high? This is a question that I have seen asked at least a couple of …
Some thoughts about screaming, kiai, and making noise in HEMARead More
I was recently given a copy of the new publication The Art of Fencing: The Forgotten Discourse of Camillo Palladini to read and review. Although rapier is not my main area of expertise, I have read (and edited and published!) several rapier …
Review of “The Art of Fencing: The Forgotten Discourse of Camillo Palladini”Read More
Copyright is a complicated thing. Members of the HEMA community participate in an activity that is inextricably linked with material that may well be copyrighted in some fashion, and therefore it is helpful to understand what copyright is and how it …
Copyright and the HEMA Community – Part 4: Photos of fencers at eventsRead More
I teach several workshops each year on the subject of 16th century Germanic common fencing, because I find it an incredibly interesting subject, and people who attend my lessons seem to find it interesting too. It can be a fun point for comparison …
How to start training 16th century Germanic common fencingRead More
Copyright is a complicated thing. Members of the HEMA community participate in an activity that is inextricably linked with material that may well be copyrighted in some fashion, and therefore it is helpful to understand what copyright is and how it …
Copyright and the HEMA Community – Part 3: Books that are out of printRead More
Is it a good or bad thing to develop a personal style within the practice of HEMA, which is essentially the recreation of fighting systems from the past? If we commit to an authentic reconstruction (or at least, to the attempt to make our …
Developing a personal style within your HEMA practiceRead More
Copyright is a complicated thing. Members of the HEMA community participate in an activity that is inextricably linked with material that may well be copyrighted in some fashion, and therefore it is helpful to understand what copyright is and how it …
Copyright and the HEMA Community – Part 2: Scans of original sourcesRead More
I have been thinking about what I want from my HEMA practice and teaching, and I have set myself some new goals for 2020. This year just past has been a reasonably good year for me personally, but I still found myself dissatisfied with some …
Copyright is a complicated thing. Members of the HEMA community participate in an activity that is inextricably linked with material that may well be copyrighted in some fashion, and therefore it is helpful to understand what copyright is and how it …
Copyright and the HEMA Community – Part 1: What is copyright and how does it work?Read More
Back in April 2019, there was a post in one of the HEMA-related Facebook discussion groups, asking if anyone knew any biographical details about J.D. Aylward, author of such works as The House of Angelo and The English Master of Arms.[1] As he was …
We often talk about the importance of scholarship in HEMA, about the academic side of historical swordfighting. We acknowledge that there are many facets of HEMA and that they all play an important part in reconstructing our martial heritage: getting …
