This is my current translation of the staff and halberd chapter in Jakob Sutor’s fechtbuch from 1612. It is a relatively short treatise, and is somewhat similar to Meyer’s method, so it can serve as quite a good starting point for beginners.
I worked from Marlon Boettger’s transcription of the treatise:
- Jakob Sutor (1612), New Kůnstliches Fechtbuch, pp. 91-108
Making my own translation has been difficult, since it has not been the easiest or most straight-forward text to translate, and it has required quite significant divergence in places from what was written in order to render what I think was meant and intended. Hopefully the results will be a bit easier to read and to interpret.
I have chosen to leave technical terms untranslated, to avoid imposing any unwanted interpretation or baggage on the terms. However, I realise that some people do prefer to see everything translated, including technical terms, so I have offered suggestions in the footnotes.
Please note that this translation is released under copyright, and that while I am more than happy for people to use it for their own training and study, you must contact me to request permission to use it in any publication or for any commercial use.
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Translation
<p.91>
Fourth part of this book,
From the chapter on fencing with the staff and halberd.
A short description of the engagements[1] and defences with the staff, and of its divisions
There are four engagements.
- The first engagement is done with the front or outer part of the staff.
- The second is in front of the hand that is foremost on the staff.
- The third is in the middle of the staff.
- The fourth is done through Einlauffen[2] with the rearmost point of the staff.
Further, when engaging with the first part of the staff, use the strikes and the flying thrusts.
With the second kind of engagement, you can do Bleiben[3], Winden[4], and Nachreisen[5].
With the third and fourth engagements, you can do Einlauffen and Ringen[6].
The defences with the staff
As with the engagements, there are four defences.
- The first is done with the front part of your staff, to both sides.
- The second is done in front of the hand.
- The third in in the middle.
- The fourth is done with the rear point.
The Leger with the staff
Thirdly, there are five main Leger[7]:
- The Oberhut[8], outstretched straight above you, on both sides;
- The Underhut[9], on both sides;
- The Nebenhut[10];
- The Mittelhut[11];
- And the Steurhut[12].
<pp.92-93>
Techniques with the staff
When you position yourself in the Nebenhut, stand with your right foot forward and hold your staff with the middle part by your left hip, such that the rear point is towards your opponent and the front point is out behind you. Show your opponent your right side, as in the image.
Item: the fencer on the left of the image lies in the Steurhut with their left foot forward, holding the staff with outstretched arms with the front point at the ground before their left foot and with the rear point up in front of their face.
Item: do this Hut[13] like so. Stand with your right foot forward and hold your staff behind you, also with the front point to the ground, and so you are ready to strike.
Example: in the Zufechten[14], hold your staff with your right hand and rear point at your waist, and your front point is lying to your side at the ground as you lean well forward with your body.
As soon as your opponent thrusts at your face, step with your right foot our to your right side, and with your left foot closer to your opponent and to their left. As you do this, and while they are trying to thrust at you, thrust in with your own staff over their left arm to their face.
Furthermore, as you do this thrust, lean deeply with your head down and to your right, away from your opponent’s thrust as it flies in over your staff, so that you have a better defence.
Item: in the Zufechten, set yourself again with your knee well bent in front of you, with your upper body leaning deeply behind the staff.
Observe, and as soon as your opponent thrusts at you, strike at their staff from your left in one beat, although ensure that in this motion you do not let your staff go further than the Gerade Versatzung[15]. And before your opponent recovers from this, thrust in to their face with a spring out.
<p.94>
Fence from the Mittelhut on the left side like this:
Step with your left foot behind your right towards your opponent, and in this turning-around you turn your back to them.
If they thrust hastily at your face as you turn-around, trying to be faster than you, then raise both your arms outstretched swiftly to their left side with the rear part of your staff, so that the front part hangs to the ground.
As you complete your turning-around, strike in against their thrust with your hanging staff from your right across to your left side. With this motion, let your staff swing through fully around your head, and in this swinging motion, let go with your left hand once it has helped move your staff strongly, and then strike with one hand a strong and fast strike to their left ear.
<p.95>
In the Zufechten, do this strike in the approach:
As soon as you can reach the outer part of your opponent’s staff with the outer part of yours, then hold your front point straight at their face. At the same time, turn yourself well to your right side, such that you turn your back on them, and as you do this you should step closer to them with your right foot behind your left.
With these steps, turn yourself around to your right side and strike around with your right hand straight from above to their head, and so you will surely hit them.
<p.96>
If the outer parts of both staffs make contact in your engagement, then sneakily push the other staff strongly out to the side, without pushing too far with your staff, so that you can thrust forward quickly from the other staff to your opponent’s face, nimbly and with haste, before they can recover again.
But if you cannot reach them after such a pushing out:
Push their staff to the side again, as if you intend to do the same thrust again. As they hurry with their staff against yours with the intention of defending against your thrust, instead send your thrust through below their staff and thrust in to the other side with a spring out, nimbly and with force to their face.
<p.97>
If your opponent thrusts with their staff to your right, to your face, then spring swiftly to their right, simultaneously pushing in and driving their staff upward with your own. As you do this, thrust in straight to their face or chest.
<pp.98-99>
Come with the Kreutzhaw[16] from below with your left foot forward. Set your halberd to your left, and from there, with the sharp blade downward, cut from below on your left upward to your opponent’s right, with the point through their face.
With this Underhaw, go high with both hands such that you hold your halberd on your right side by your head, with the point towards your opponent’s face.
Turn yourself well out to your right, turning half of your back, and then quickly wrench diagonally upward from your low right to their left through their face, so that after this wrenching your halberd points out behind your left shoulder.
Then you stand ready for a pulled Oberhaw. From there, turn the edge of your sharp blade down towards your left again. Strike diagonally upward again from below to their right and through to their face, then turn yourself again with this Underhaw well to your right, such that you can go with the hook of your halberd, as before, up from your lower right at their left, through their face.
<p.100>
Observe: as soon as your opponent has bound-upon your blade with theirs, then go with your blade a little onto their staff, so that you can disengage to come with yours over theirs, and immediately do this to get over their staff.
With this, wrench swiftly and strongly downward and toward yourself, pulling more on their weak. Then thrust upward quickly from their halberd to their face.
If they try hastily to turn away your thrust, then Durchwechsel below swiftly, and thrust in with a step out to the other side.
<p.101>
In the Zufechten, come with the Mittelhaw before your opponent. Raise your halberd high and cut from there with both hands across to their right to their face and strongly through their halberd.
Turn your blade nimbly upward and wrench swiftly back to your right side, going across to their left, to their face, and through their halberd with strength once more.
Pull it around your head to your left with both hands, and cut from above down to their left arm, which they will have in front, and through to their face.
Finally, thrust straight to their face.
<p.102>
In the Zufechten, come to your opponent from the Oberhut or Gerade Versatzung. When both blades make contact with each other, then swiftly lift your halberd upward, and raise your left foot that will be standing in front.
Cut sneakily, deftly, and hard! Go to their right, from above onto their halberd and down to their hands. From this cut, Durchwechsel below their halberd and thrust nimbly to their left side to their face.
<p.103>
When you have cut down from the Oberhut, go through near their halberd to their arm or hand, and see if this will bring your opponent up and away from their advantage or if it will injure their hand or arm.
And observe, as you fall through under their halberd, if they might thrust at you. If they do this, then go quickly upward again with your blade horizontal so that you strike into their incoming thrust from below and knock it upward. Before they recover, thrust in quickly and strongly to their face.
<p.104>
If you find your opponent in the Nebenhut, then drive in with a pulled cut or thrust. As soon as they have gone up, Durchwechsel nimbly and entangle the hook of their halberd with your own from the other side. Ensure that you wrench them nearer to yourself so that you can reach them with a thrust to their face.
<p.105>
Observe when you have bound upon[17] your opponent with your blade and they do not want to work from there. So go swiftly and sneakily away from their blade, step a little to the side to which you had originally engaged, and thrust nimbly into their face.
In this thrusting, notice if they want to defend by striking your thrust away. If they do this, then let your blade sink downward and entangle their front leg with it while they are still in the motion of striking your thrust away, and pull them to yourself so that they must fall.
<p.106>
If you find your opponent in the Oberhut, and if they intend to suppress your cut or thrust, then make as if you would thrust earnestly to their face, so that you cause them to come down from above.
In this thrusting, note well that as soon as they fall with the Oberhaw, you step swiftly out to the side and pull your halberd out from under theirs. Then fall onto their halberd and wrench downward and to yourself with your blade, and then thrust strongly into their face.
<p.107>
If your opponent comes at you in the Underhut, then fall sneakily with your halberd hard onto their halberd behind their blade.
Immediately, swiftly, and sneakily, make an earnest thrust to their face, so that they will go quickly to strike away your thrust.
Do not let them make contact, but in your motion, pull and then Durchwechsel below, and thrust at them from the other side.
<p.108>
When you both fence with flails, then it can often happen that both staffs become bound together in the middle.
If this should happen to you, then remain with your flail’s staff on your opponent’s staff, and let go with your left hand. Invert your hand and with it seize the staffs of both flails.
Then go with your rear point through under their flail, and pull upward and back to yourself with your right hand. Then they must let go of their flail – or, if you step in behind them with your right foot, they must fall.
End of this fencing book.
Footnotes
[1] Usually, Anbinden could be translated as “binding-on”, and this is how Sutor uses the word in the other parts of his book. However, in this part, he seems to use the word a little differently, and it seems to mean a more general “engagement” in terms of engaging with your opponent rather than necessarily binding-upon their weapon with your own.
[2] Einlauffen could be translated as “running in”.
[3] Bleiben could be translated as “remaining”.
[4] Winden could be translated as “turning”.
[5] Nachreisen could be translated as “travelling after” or “following after” or “chasing”.
[6] Ringen could be translated as “wrestling”.
[7] Leger could be translated as “positions”, “postures”, or “stances”.
[8] Oberhut could be translated as “high guard” or “guard over the shoulders”.
[9] Although tempting to translate Underhut as “low guard”, it is perhaps better translated as “guard beneath the shoulders”, so that it is not confused with the Nebenhut near the ground.
[10] Nebenhut could be translated as “low guard”.
[11] Mittelhut could be translated as the “middle guard”.
[12] Steurhut could be translated as the “steering guard”.
[13] Hutten could be translated as “guards” or “positions”, in the sense of fortified locations.
[14] Zufechten could be translated as the “approach”, the “entry”, or the setting up of the fight.
[15] Gerade Versatzung could be translated as “straight defence”.
[16] Kreutzhaw could be translated as “cross cut”.
[17] This might be the only example in this part of the book where Anbinden could be used to mean “binding-on”.
Version history
This is currently version 1 of the work, translated into English in 2023, and released on this website in 2024.
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