HEMA

A complete training guide to 17th century Italian rapier fencing, and a thorough interpretation of the style of legendary swordsman Ridolfo Capoferro, author of the most famous fencing book in history, his Gran Simulacro, published in 1610. First published in 2006, this guide is the standard work on the subject.

A complete beginner's guide to training in medieval Italian longsword. This book covers everything from choosing a sword to warming up, to fencing. Full of set drills and clear descriptions, this book has been the standard work on the subject since it first came out in 2004. As a technical manual, it has been largely superseded by The Medieval Longsword, which came out in 2014, but it is unsurpassed as a general guide to how and why you should train swordsmanship.

The Medieval Longsword covers everything you need to know from tools of the trade to footwork, strikes, and defenses, to how to exploit your adversary’s mistakes, and how to disarm your opponent. This complete and approachable guide to the Art of Arms provides a gateway to a worldwide community of like-minded people also practicing this historical martial art. Whether you’re an absolute beginner or a competent fencer, this book by author and internationally renowned swordsman Guy Windsor will guide you towards mastery of this ancient Art.

You need to have read volume 2 of the series, The Medieval Longsword, to use this book effectively. This book builds on the foundation laid in The Medieval Longsword and teaches you how to train Fiore dei Liberi’s Art of Arms, as shown in his 1410 manuscript ll Fior di Battaglia. Renowned swordsman and author Guy Windsor explains three of the longsword forms that are used every day in The School of European Swordsmanship. Within these pages, you will find in-depth instructions and analysis, dozens of tips for how to improve your skills, and enough material for years of study. Guy Windsor has been training martial arts for 30 years and teaching professionally since he founded The School of European Swordsmanship in 2001. The School has branches and study groups all over the world.

In the late 14th century dei Liberi, an Italian knightly combat master, wrote Il Fior di Battaglia (The Flower of Battle). This magnificent, illustrated manuscript described how to fight on foot and on horseback, in armour and without, with sword, spear, pollax, dagger, or with no weapon at all.

Windsor spent the last twenty years studying Fiore's work and creating a modern practice of historical swordsmanship from it.

In this book, Windsor takes you through all of Fiore's longsword techniques on foot without armour. Each technique (or “play”) is shown with the drawing from the treatise, Windsor's transcription and translation of the text, his commentary on how it fits into the system and works in practice, and a link to a video of the technique in action. The book also contains a detailed introduction describing Fiore's life and times, and an extensive discussion of the contexts in which Fiore's art belongs.

From renowned swordsman and teacher Guy Windsor comes an indispensable resource for anyone interested in martial arts, swordsmanship, and history.

With this 80+ page workbook, you can complete your knowledge of Capoferro’s rapier plays, building a strong foundation on which to construct your fencing skills.

The book is organised through the Rapier Footwork Form, with each chapter adding steps to the Form, first as pair drills, and then practiced solo. This ensures that you will have little difficulty remembering the new material.

The book is illustrated with extracts from historical sources and supported by video clips, linked to in the text. All you need is a training partner, a smartphone, tablet, or computer, and a couple of practice rapiers and fencing masks.

From renowned swordsman and teacher Guy Windsor comes an indispensable resource for anyone interested in martial arts, swordsmanship, and history.

Through this book Guy will teach you how to train your mind and body to become an expert in historical martial arts. It includes the seven principles of mastery, considers the ethics of martial arts, and goes into detail about the process of recreating historical martial arts from written sources.

On the practical side, Guy explains how to develop your skills, and lays out the path for students to become teachers, covering the basics of safe training, looking after your body, and even starting your own training group and teaching basic classes.

An accessible, motivating read that includes many suggestions for further study, including courses, books and other resources, this book sets out to answer every question about historical martial arts you may have. Note that this is not a training manual for a specific style: it provides the foundations for every style.

One of the first works to focus on the weapons and fighting skills of the medieval Gaelic warrior, Scorners of Death offers instruction in the use of the medieval Gaelic sword, sword and buckler, two-handed sword and battle-axe (including both the Lochaber axe and the sparth axe of Ireland), as well as a detailed discussion of the warriors who used these weapons and the strategic context in which they fought.

Although there are no technical manuals for the use of these weapons, the authors have developed a training method based on the best historical evidence available. These techniques will be useful for reenactors portraying the Scottish highland or Irish warriors of the Middle Ages, especially in the time period between 1300 and 1600, as well as for any practitioners of Historical European Martial Arts (or HEMA) with an interest in Scottish or Irish history.

This book is an introduction to the history, use and context of the Scottish basket-hilted broadsword. As part of the Academy of Historical Arts Study Guide series, it is intended to serve as a study guide for practitioners of historical fencing who work with this weapon, or who would like to begin learning its style. Instructors will also find it helpful as it provides plenty of contextual information to use for illustrating lessons, and anecdotes to help students engage with the system.