Historical European Swordsmanship is a popular new martial arts discipline, one that brings a historical perspective to physical training and self defense.

When most people hear the term “martial arts,” they think of Asian fighting styles such as Tae Kwon Do, Kung Fu, or Karate. But Europe had martial arts of armed and unarmed combat that were just as effective as those practiced in Asia.

In the past decade, fencing historians and martial arts scholars have started to reconstruct and teach these forgotten European fighting styles, using the manuals left by medieval and Renaissance swordfighting masters. Historical Swordsmanship as taught at the Virginia Academy of Fencing is an exciting alternative to Asian martial arts, one that speaks directly to our European cultural heritage.

Students in the VAF Historical Swordsmanship program start in the Beginning Classes by learning the basics of fighting with the TWO-HANDED SWORD, the knightly weapon of the Middle Ages, and the RAPIER, the dueling sword of the Renaissance.

Safe sword simulators are used in the Beginning levels. At Intermediate and Advanced levels, students incorporate other weapons such as the dagger and staff, as well as unarmed combat, into their study of the historical martial arts systems of Europe.

Note: What Historical Swordsmanship Is Not

Historical Swordsmanship is not a sport. Medieval and Renaissance fencers sometimes practiced their art recreationally or in sporting tournaments, but their art was mainly for self-defense and warfare. Historical Swordsmanship as taught at VAF is not competetive, and is not scored like modern Olympic Sport Fencing.

Historical Swordsmanship is not stagefighting. The “swashbuckling” style of swordplay familiar from Hollywood movies is different from the way swords were really used in war or for self-defense. Although applicable to theatrical stage combat, the swordfighting techniques tought at VAF are those that really would have been used on dueling grounds or on battlefields (although safety precautions are followed that ensure safety!).

Historical Swordsmanship is not reenactment. Historical Swordsmanship brings the study of period martial arts to the modern world, but it is not the same thing as historical reenactment. Reenactors may gain much from the study of Historical Swordsmanship, but the swordfighting methods taught at VAF should not be confused with those practiced by various reenactment groups.

Interested? Click here to learn how to get started!

Two-Handed Sword fencers, from the Goliath fechtbuch, a 15th-century German martial arts manual