08 Jul

The DeKoven School of Arms: A Weekend of Renaissance Swordsmanship

Posted under: Events, Renaissance Swordplay

The Chicago Swordplay Guild and the DeKoven Foundation – the same team that have brought you WMAW for over a decade – are please to present an event for students in the Noble Art and Science of Defense: The DeKoven School of Arms. This full, three day event features:

A roster of leading instructors and experts in Renaissance Swordplay, including Devon Boorman, Puck Curtis, Tom Leoni, John O’Meara and Tim Rivera
Introductory and in-depth classes in early 16th century swordplay, including Iberian “Esgrima Comun” and Bolognese swordsmanship;
Expert instruction in the jewel in the crown of Renaissance Italian swordplay: the elegant rapier;
A chance for extensive training in the mysteries of LaVerdadera Destreza;
Lectures and demonstrations;
A Contest of Arms with sword, rapier and their trusted companions, the buckler and dagger.

Located at the picturesque DeKoven Center, home to the Western Martial Arts Workshop, the conference is a retreat with attendance limited to the 60 students that DeKoven can host. Your registration fee includes entry, lodging and all nine, hot meals.

This is a unique event and a unique opportunity to train in a private environment with some of the finest modern teachers of the Art of Defense. Act now, because spaces will go fast. We look forward to crossing swords with you!

DETAILS:

Dates: September 5-7, 2014

Location:

The DeKoven Center
600 21st Street
Racine, WI 53403

(Details for getting to Racine can be found on the WMAW website)

Accommodations:

On campus; all rooms have two single beds. You will be able to request the roommate of your choice when you register, and we will make every effort to accommodate you. Lodging is from Thurs to Sat.

Nine hot meals.

Class Descriptions:

Class Roster

Costs:

$375. No cancellation refunds after July 1st, 2014

Registration Info:

wmaw.registrar@gmail.com

DKSoA registration form

16 Jan

What is the Forteza Cavaliers – Building a meaningful Youth Swordplay program

Posted under: Youth Swordplay

Probably the most common inquiry we have gotten since opening our doors has been “do you teach children”? That isn’t a surprise. After all, martial arts have become an extremely popular way to teach children poise, athleticism, discipline and focus. And in a world where pop-culture is dominated by Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, action video-games, World of Warcraft and so on, what kid at some point hasn’t wanted to swing a sword? (How do I know that? Well, all of us at Forteza were those kids – just a few decades ago.) And so…(drum roll, pu-lease):

Welcome to FORTEZA CAVALIERS, our new youth swordplay program, specifically tailored to meet the needs of children ages 8 – 15 in a unique athletic program designed to engage your child’s mind and body, instill self-confidence, and promote teamwork.

We are very excited to offer this program — so excited that we want to tell you all about both what it is, and what is not! Let’s get the is not part over first, so we can focus on the fun.

THE CHALLENGE OF YOUTH MARTIAL ARTS

Martial arts really are a fantastic way for children to develop both athletic and personal skills. But it is also a tricky challenge. Young bodies are constantly changing and evolving, and although martial skills will help hone their potential, the emphasis must always be on safety. How do you do that and make sure that you are teaching the kids “the real deal”?

Sadly, some schools don’t. Besides having grown up excited by knights in armour, brave jedi and all of that good stuff, several of our staff also been youth martial arts instructors in mainstream, Asian arts, and we’ve seen the dark underbelly of “kiddie karate”, “Little Ninjas” and “youth blackbelt” programs. Often, they are a glorified, after-school recess program — a way to keep the kids busy and running around until their parents are ready to bring them home. Others teach good skills but with unrealistic expectations: it doesn’t matter if your child is an athletic prodigy, a 12-year old “blackbelt” simply cannot generate the power, speed and precision of his adult counterpart. What often happens is that these young “blackbelts” make the switch to adult classes and find out that their rank doesn’t mean much at all, and they quickly drift away to other sports or hobbies, disappointed. They’ve been set-up to fail.

So much for “building confidence”, eh?

BUILDING A BETTER YOUTH PROGRAM

So, knowing what we didn’t want, we had to design a program that was based on what we did want. Such a program had to include the following elements:

A detailed, and complete martial curriculum that would take into account the differing needs of young children, adolescents and teens;
Progressive skills development that could be scaled to children entering the program at different ages, without making anyone feel either bored or “in over their heads”;
A degree of real fitness training capable of combating childhood obesity, developing natural athleticism and strength, taught in a way that would be encouraging and fun;
Complementary, educational lessons that emphasized the historical aspects of what we teach;
Integration of the knightly code of chivalry as a way of bringing in the best elements of “merit-badge” systems, such as Scouting;
A rank system that would let children (and parents) measure their progress, while providing a means to enter the adult program with realistic rank and expectations;
An emphasis on safety, control, fellowship and fun!

We call this the Forteza Cavaliers, and here’s how it works.

SKILL PROGRESSION AND RANKS

The Cavalier Program includes a detailed ranking system to measure progress and help students set achievable goals for themselves. The structure is organized in a parallel system to our adult ranking system, and is meant to integrate with it, should a child decide to continue with our adult classes. By keeping the systems similar in methodology but distinct, teens don’t move from our youth program to adult classes with a “kiddie blackbelt” that doesn’t measure up with the grown-ups. Instead, they will graduate from the Cavaliers program with skills and knowledge that places them several years ahead of new adult students!

The curriculum has a seven-step system:

Apprentice (8 – 10)
An introductory rank for the very young, or children who may have motor-learning special needs. Focus is on building coordination, cooperation, safe falling and tumbling skills and basic swordplay and safety skills.

For safety, classes employ ‘boffers’, swords made of PVC rods wrapped in high-density foam and duct tape.

Page (10 – 11)
This level of the program begins by familiarizing students with the basic body movements of renaissance swordplay and to accustom them to the weight of the sword. Training at this level focuses on medieval wrestling and the use of the two-handed sword. Using a combination of physical conditioning, drills, games and supervised sparring, students will strengthen their bodies and sharpen their instincts while having fun!

Students at this level use properly weighted and balanced resin swords that give the authentic feel of the real thing while being safe and manageable.

Squire (11 – 14)
The core of the Cavalier program is the Squire rank, which has four sub-grades, each corresponding to a heraldic animal that embodies Forteza’s core virtues.

Elephant (Strength)
Tiger (Speed)
Lynx (Knowledge)
Lion (Courage)

While Squires will have the opportunity to handle the regular steel weapons used in adult classes during some training exercises, students at this level use properly weighted and balanced resin swords that give the authentic feel of the real thing while being safe and manageable.

In addition to training with the medieval weapons and wrestling, squires will learn to use the dagger, the spear and the rapier, the elegant dueling sword the Renaissance.

Cavalier (14 – 15)
Beginning with a symbolic graduation ceremony reminiscent of the medieval knighting ceremony, the Cavalier rank is the “coming of age” for young students. In this final rank, our young men and women begin training in adult classes, using the same training gear and uniforms as their adult counterparts.

Although generally corresponding to age, although older children entering the program will usually pass through the first two levels very quickly, before settling into Squire training.

PROGRESSIVE TRAINING – GROWING COMPLEXITY AS THE STUDENT GROWS

We took our time and set out to build a program that would grow in focus and intensity as the children themselves grew; not just in size, but in athleticism, focus and intellectual curiosity. Learning martial arts is a long process, with intricate skills that are developed over time through in-depth instruction and continued practice: there are no shortcuts to skill-building! The direct benefit of this structured approach is increased coordination, strength, ability to analyze new situations, self-control, and respect of self and of others. Our Cavaliers Program teaches children the use of the two-handed longsword, dagger, rapier and spear — precisely the same weapons that the adults learn. Exercises from our adult program are adapted to the needs of young martial artists, and are designed to emphasize development of balance, coordination and strength. Literally starting from the feet up, each child progresses at an individual pace through the seven levels of the curriculum by using solo drills and exercises, partnered drills and games, and as their experience and control develops, actual fencing.

Here’s an example of how this works in practice: wrestling is a key component in medieval martial arts, but so is control and safety. So the wrestling component in the Apprentice level (ages 8 – 9) is focused on learning tumbling, falling and balance exercises to develop a sense of ease and comfort “in their own skins”, then they begin to work with partnered exercises and games, some of which are hundreds of years old, which are designed to add a sense of competition, as they learn leverage and movement against a partner. By the time the seventh and final level of the curriculum is completed, they will have a foundation in the same throws, pins and joint locks as our adult students — only with several more years of practice.

A similar pattern works with weapons. At first, young students will train with light, scaled-down nylon training swords. When used with a fencing mask these lighter, flexible weapons are quite safe, but they are taught from day one that they are weapons, and taught to handle them the same way they would sharp, steel swords. As they grow in mind and body, so do the tools that they will use, and the variety of techniques and targets that they can use when sparring: literally letting them “grow” into adult classes, where we use blunt steel weapons. This is very similar to how pages and squires were trained centuries ago, using progressively larger and heavier wooden weapons until they began to train with adults, as adults.

So as the children grow, they not only learn more techniques and new weapons, but they adapt to progressively heavier tools, more diverse sparring methods and new forms of exercise and conditioning routines that fit the actual body they are living in at that time.

PUTTING THE “H” IN HISTORICAL MARTIAL ARTS

More than just another martial arts class, our youth program is designed to develop life skills and ethical, self-confident young men and women, based on the traditional, seven chivalric virtues of the medieval knight. At first, the traditional names of these virtues may seem archaic, but when you see them besides their modern counterparts, we realize that they are just as meaningful today as they were six-hundred years ago.

Prowess (Athleticism)
Humility
Courage
Courtesy

Justice (Fairness)
Temperance (Balance & Self-Control)
Largesse (Generosity)·

Each level of the curriculum is designed to focus on one of these virtues, and challenge the students to learn how to make that virtue a part of their daily lives. Classes interweave physical training with teamwork exercises, lessons on medieval and Renaissance military history, arms and armour, heraldry, and short reading assignments to hone their minds and surely as their bodies.

RITE OF PASSAGE – JOINING THE ADULTS

Remember what we said earlier about “kiddie blackbelts”? We take that seriously: there is nothing worse than seeing an adolescent or young teen switch into adult classes and suddenly feel like their hard-earned rank means nothing. Part of our educational mission at Forteza is to promote authentic, historical European martial arts and to foster students who will want to make those arts a part of their lives. Therefore, a key part in designing the youth program had to be “how does one graduate”?

This is embodied in the seventh and final rank of our program: the Cavalier. Named for the knightly courtier, the Cavalier rank is the “coming of age” for young students. Beginning with a symbolic graduation reminiscent of the medieval knighting ceremony, in this final rank, our young men and women begin training in adult classes, using the same training gear and uniforms as their adult counterparts. The difference is that for the teen, they have already learned most of the skills that the adults are learning themselves, and are instead learning how to apply them with and against adults, and refining their knowledge for their “final exam”; in this case a skills test, written and sparring exam. Once passed, they are no longer part of the cavalier program, but are now Scholars in our adult swordplay program, and eligible to join the Chicago Swordplay Guild. Scholar is the first major adult rank, and one that students will achieve in either medieval or Renaissance swordplay after a year or two of training. Because the youth program teaches all of the skills of both programs, teens will be able to test for rank in both, meaning that although they join the Swordplay Guild with a mid-level rank, they are actually more well-rounded martial artists than most of the adults who share that rank, and are well-prepared to continue their training. We find that this is a much more realistic reflection of the advantages of youth training that creating artificially inflated ranks.

THE RIGHT INSTRUCTOR FOR THE RIGHT PROGRAM

We have ambitious objectives in our youth program, so it needed an instructor who was up to the task, as a martial artist, youth instructor and fitness expert. Jesse Kulla is a PTA Global certified personal trainer who has had a lifelong interest in physical fitness and martial arts. He began his training in 1995 in Korean martial arts, gaining black belt ranks in two arts, before exploring Wing Chun, Hapkido, and the Filipino Martial Arts. Jesse joined the Chicago Swordplay Guild, shortly after its founding in 1999, where his focus has been on their Armizare curriculum. In 2008, along with Keith Jennings, he became one of the first two people to earn the rank of Free Scholar of Armizare from the Guild. As a Guild instructor he has taught throughout the Chicagoland area, at events such as Chivalric Weekend and the Western Martial Arts Workshop, and in private seminars around the country.

A TRULY UNIQUE MARTIAL ARTS ADVENTURE

We’ve tried to create the youth martial arts program that we wanted to take, but did not exist, when we were kids, combined with the things that, as adults, we want from any school where we’ll send our children. You can download our Cavalier Program 3-Fold Brochure (1) which has additional details and FAQs, but the best way to learn more is to just come in! And don’t forget to watch this blog for more information on the Cavaliers in the weeks and months to come.

This exciting new program meets on Mondays and Wednesdays from 5:00 – 6:00 PM

04 Oct

Western Martial Arts Workshop After-Action Review

Posted under: Armizare - The Knightly Arts, Combatives, Events, Renaissance Swordplay

Forteza Co-Owner and Chicago Swordplay Guild founder, Gregory Mele has just posted an after-action review of the 2013 Western Martial Arts Workshop. Begun in 1999, WMAW is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, international event of its kind!

As a bonus, here is some footage of the CSG’s own Rob Rutherfoord in a rapier exhibition bout with the Virginia Academy of Fencing’s Bill Grandy:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzQ2rffzZG0&w=420&h=315]

And a high-intensity, Bowie Knife duel between Forteza’s Keith Jennings and Thayne Alexander:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEig6Ih_gIA&w=420&h=315]

07 Jan

2012: The Year in Martial Arts

Posted under: Armizare - The Knightly Arts, Bartitsu, Combatives, Events, Renaissance Swordplay

From the clash of swords to a unique program for personal protection and self-defense, Forteza’s martial arts programs are not quite like anything else you’ll find in Chicago. Some of our programs have a long history in the city that precedes the studio’s opening by over a decade, while we are pleased to have given others their start.

HISTORICAL SWORDSMANSHIP: THE CHICAGO SWORDPLAY GUILD

Martial arts training at Forteza began with the Chicago Swordplay Guild, the city’s only dedicated school for the study of medieval and Renaissance martial arts. In 2012 our new digs allowed us to greatly expand our class offerings in both Armizare (medieval martial arts) and Renaissance Swordsmanship.

Our Introductory, or “Taster”, classes were offered in two separate tracks, a 12-week session on Saturday mornings and a 6-week, twice-weekly session on Monday and Wednesday evenings; both tracks attracted a steady number of new swordplay students. Once the basics were learned, CSG members had a choice of two Novice/Foundation classes per week, firming up basic theory and technique.

Armizare saw a significant spike in new students from a wide variety of backgrounds, age groups, and interests that drew them to the sword. The influx of new students meant that our Foundations classes have routinely been full and quite lively, as students take the basic lessons of stance, movement, body mechanics and simple attacks and defenses and learn to refine their skills and expand their application. Our expanded schedule also allowed us to introduce a dedicated Abrazare (close quarter combat) class where students learned basic grappling safety skills, body mechanics, guards, fundamental throws and joint locks, and the nine “Masters” of dagger combat: nine core concepts related to line of attack and type of cover (one or two-handed) upon which the entire, extensive curriculum of nearly 80 formal techniques, and countless variations, can be organized.

Focus classes were organized in bi-or-tri monthly themes, and included “Using Provocations to Break Distance”, “Advanced Use of the Twelve Poste”, “Using Complex Attacks”, “Mechanics of Breaking and Exchanging Thrusts”, and “Extrapolation and Improvisation”. In the dedicated Scholar’s class, students were introduced to two new weapons, the arming (one-handed) sword, and the spear. A number of students successfully completed their basic proficiency exams in the arming sword, and several more will be testing in the spear this February, two necessary steps on the path to the Free Scholar rank.

In the Renaissance Swordsmanship track, our weekly “Focus’” class on specific topics, open to all levels, proved to be most popular; topics covered this year included “Building an Aggressive Defense Using the Guards”, “Cuts and Their Counters”, and “Pressing the Attack”.

With a dedicated 90-minute class of their own on Saturday afternoon, advanced students spent the year focusing on advanced tactics in single rapier, including feints and invitations, and exploring Salvatore Fabris’ variations on his basic guards.

On Monday nights we instituted a Bolognese Swordsmanship Study Group. Open to Scholars of either curriculum, Bolognese fencing is the bridge between the late medieval style and the elegant rapier of the 17th century. A vast curriculum containing virtually every weapon of the 16th c arsenal, although Greg has been researching the material for years, this program is in its early stages of being taught as a formal curriculum. Training focused on fencing with the sword alone; looking at not only the basic actions of attack, defense and movement, but the unique pedagogical training tool of the assalti – long solo forms that can then be applied as two-person exercises.

Finally, the highlight of the year for both sub-programs was the spring Prize Playing, featuring an impressive performance by Armizare Novice Erin Fitzgerald, and a commanding display of arms by rapier Novice Robert Rutherfoord and his graduation to Scholar level. Rob is now a rapier instructor-in-training.

THE BARTITSU CLUB OF CHICAGO

The Bartitsu Club of Chicago is Chicago’s first and only martial arts club to focus on the Victorian-era cross-training system of Bartitsu. The Club began in January 2012 with a successful one-day introductory seminar that marked the first “public” use of the Forteza studio. The seminar was followed by a twelve-lesson basic course over six weeks, culminating with an Antagonisticathlon; an event in which participants represent Victorian-era adventurers running a gauntlet of obstacles and surprise attacks by “ruffians“.

Graduates of the initial course voted to keep training and so Bartitsu joined the roster of regular weekly classes at Forteza, combining the “canonical” unarmed and cane fighting techniques recorded by E.W. Barton-Wright circa 1900 with “neo-Bartitsu” exercises, combat improvisation drills and progressive sparring. Over the coming months we were prominently featured in several news media items including articles in New City Magazine and an article and video for the Chicago Tribune. We held the second Antagonisticathlon during July and the second annual Bartitsu School of Arms event in September (see Special Workshops and Events below).

FORTEZA COMBATIVES METHOD

This past year also saw the launch of the Forteza Combatives program. Forteza instructor and co-owner Keith Jennings is the only fully certified Martial Blade Concepts instructor in IL and the neighboring states. For years Keith has conducted seminars in Chicago and around the Midwest, but there has never been an official home for MBC training in Chicago. The opening of Forteza has changed all that. In the first half of the year, Keith introduced a weekly MBC class, building a small, dedicated cadre of students. But by summer it became clear that students wanted a chance to train more, and to explore other ranges and components of personal protection. Thus was born Forteza Combatives!

The Forteza Combatives Method focusing on the empty hand and counter-knife tactics from MBC, as well as combining elements of bare knuckle boxing, Catch Wrestling/ground survival, and improvised weapons training, making it one of the most well rounded self defense classes in Chicago! The program has been an unqualified success, quickly growing into one of our best-attended martial arts classes – so much so that we’ll be adding training days and special events – including a workshop with MBC creator Mike Janich – in 2013.

SPECIAL WORKSHOPS AND EVENTS

In August, Armizare students were given a look at the extensive collection of disarms, pommel strikes and throws that comprise zogho stretto, or close play, with the sword. Zogho stretto is where the lessons of the sword merge with those of abrazare and dagger, and the entire system is pulled together.

In September, the Bartitsu Club hosted the second annual Bartitsu School of Arms and Physical Culture , a three-day conference and training event. Highlights included a field trip to the historic Hegeler Carus Mansion in La Salle, IL (with a special guided tour of the mansion’s unique Victorian-era gymnasium) and a trip to see the play Susan Swayne and the Bewildered Bride, which featured Bartitsu-inspired fight scenes. Then followed two full days of training (including our third Antagonisticathlon) and socializing in the Victorian-themed side room of O’Shaughnessy’s Public House. The event was a resounding success and now we look forward to a Bartitsu New Year.

A little later that month, the Chicago Swordplay Guild hosted Armizare Academy: A Celebration of the Knightly Arts. Originally held in 2010 to celebrate the six hundredth anniversary of the composition of the massive martial arts text The Flower of Battle (il Fior di Battaglia) by the art’s founder, Fiore dei Liberi, this event, affectionately called “The 600: Prepare for Fiore!”, was such a success with attendees, that we decided to make it a recurring workshop! Since “The 602″ seemed to be missing some flair, the event was been renamed Armizare Academy. This three day retreat featured six instructors from around North America and included both a tournament and a fully-armoured deed of arms!

Finally, in November the studio the privilege of hosting Roberto Laura for an immersion in the world of Italian stick and knife fighting arts. During Roberto’s five day visit, we studied three distinct tradtions. The first was La Scuola Cavalieri d`Umiltà or the Knights of Humility. This school derives from Manfredonia, Apulia (by tradition, from the 15th century). It is a highly elegant fighting system with the knife, shepherd’s staff and the razor. The second tradition was La Scuola Fiorata– The Flowery School, from Calatabiano, Sicily. The weapons taught within this traditional dueling art are the shepherd stick and the knife. Fiorata is technically a modern school, yet in many ways it is a return to older sensibilities. The school comes from a very old – and still living – tradition called the Scuola Rutatu (Circling School), but after WWII some masters of the system were concerned with the loss of close-fighting techniques and a transition to fast, but smaller, less powerful actions and developed a new school that would counter Rutatu, producing a system which combines the elements of open and closed guards, dynamic assaults. Finally, Roberto introduced us to la Scuola Cielo e Meraviglia (the School of Heaven and Its Marvels) which also comes from Apulia, and is about two-hundred years old. This is a close-quarter fighting system which uses grips, joint locks, throws. As very old traditions these schools use a wide variety of daggers and folding knives, including cloak and dagger techniques and improvised weapons. Roberto made it clear that he is only a student of this tradition, and that he was introducing us to his current understanding of the system a passed to him by his teacher, Maestro Domenico Mancino. It was an amazing workshop and Forteza will be introducing a stick and knife study group in the new year to continue to study and train in these priceless pieces of Italian culture!

2012: The Year in Physical Fitness

07 Jan

Forteza, Year One: 2012 in Review

Posted under: Armizare - The Knightly Arts, Bartitsu, Combatives, Events, Fitness & Physical Culture, Renaissance Swordplay

Happy New Year! Not only is it the start of a new year, but we are closing in on the end of our first year together! The concept for Forteza was born from three streams: Chicago Swordplay Guild founder and head instructor Gregory Mele was looking for a way to expand the Guild’s curriculum and training opportunities, and one of the Guild’s senior armizare students, Keith Jennings was looking to open his own personal training and combatives gym. When Tony Wolf offered to let the studio host his growing collection of 19th century exercise apparatus, a brilliant, if madcap idea was born….

To say that it has been a whirlwind of a year would be a gross-understatement. Since opening our doors, we’ve held seven rounds of introductory classes, an Open House, participated in the Ravenswood Art Walk, challenged our students with a Temple Burning work out, ran the Spartan Race, began work on our Clubhouse and introduced three new programs to the Chicagoland area: Bolognese fencing, Bartitsu and our unique Forteza Combatives Method.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9YmTwvK5Qs]

As the “new kids on the block”, we also garnered a fair bit of media coverage. In Crossing Swords: A Revival of Traditional European Martial Arts, New City journalist Kristen Micek checked out the Chicago Swordplay Guild and then moved a few centuries forward to the 19th century when she covered us in Martial Arts, Victorian Style: Bartitsu at Forteza Fitness Brings Back the Lost Fighting Art of Sherlock Holmes. The Bartitsu Club garnered more attention in: Blast into the Past, and the Chicago Tribune article, Defensive actions: Reviving old-school fighting techniques to win a full-body workout. (You can also catch the accompanying video: Old-school-fitness-becomes-new-trend.)

Forteza’s unique Fighting Fit program was also a big hit with the media, being showcased in the Chicago RedEye: Survival of the Fittest – train like a “Hunger Games” tribute with these offbeat exercises. That cover story caught the attention of WGN’s Jonathon Brandmeier. Jesse Kulla explained FightingFit to Johnny B on this PodCast (starting at 6:50), and was later invited to demonstrate on his TV show.

But probably the best media look at what Forteza was all about came from this light-hearted feature on ABC 7′s 190 North!

Of course, the media only presents an outside view at a particular moment in time. So as we continue to shake our heads in wonder that a year has passed, here is a 2012 year in review from those who were there…

2012: The Year in Martial Arts

2012: The Year in Physical Fitness

20 Jun

SWORDPLAY OF ROMEO & JULIET: BROADSWORD AND RAPIER IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND

Posted under: Events, Renaissance Swordplay

A 3-Class Overview for Actors and Fighters.

Sundays, July 8, 15, and 22
11 AM to 5 PM
Cost: $225

Southwark, London – 1597

A new play is published by a relatively unknown playwright. A tragic love story drawn from older sources, it resonates with Londoners because its characters and dialogue draws from real events and gossip filling the city streets. Filled with romance, plots, and poison, it pivots around a disastrous swordfight, carefully detailed by the author as….

They Fight

While the Bard’s rather vague directions have left centuries of fight directors a great deal of creative leeway, it doesn’t tell us “What did fighting look like to the audience of Romeo & Juliet”. In this three class mini-camp, students step back into 1597, taking the role of actors preparing to debut Romeo & Juliet to a Southwark audience well-versed in swordplay. Nervous of its reception, Master Shakespeare has arranged to bring in a pair of fencing masters to prepare his actors.

Each day of the workshop will have a different focus, but will present real historical martial principles alongside the stage combat techniques that make it possible to safely perform them:

Day One: Broadsword and Bucker
The traditional sidearm of English fighting men for centuries. Taken directly from a text written in London during the 1590s, learn how to use this stout cut-and-thrust sword to mind your swashing blows!

Day Two: The Rapier
An “Italianate” weapon favored by English nobles and duelists, the rapier was a long, elegant and deadly sword, the weapon of Romeo and Tybalt. Drawing from the greatest Italian masters of the year 1600, you will learn the foundations of rapier play and become what Mercutio called the very butcher of a silk button, a duelist and a member of the very first house!

Day Three: They Fight – Creating Effective Elizabethan Swordplay
In this final class we will begin with a short recap of days one and two, then show how to use the sword against the rapier (and vice-versa) before teaching you how to use your hard-won knowledge of real Elizabethan fencing to create believable fights on stage!

Presented by renowned stage combatants R&D Choreography and respected historical swordsmen from the Chicago Swordplay Guild, this is a workshop unlike any you’ve ever seen and will appeal to actors, stunt performers and martial artists alike!

12 Jun

Forteza hosts its first Playing of the Prize: an exhibition of historical swordplay.

Posted under: Armizare - The Knightly Arts, Events, Renaissance Swordplay

This past weekend (April 22) Forteza hosted its first Playing of the Prize for the Chicago Swordplay Guild. Of course, for people new to Historical European Swordsmanship, the question arises…

What is a “Playing of the Prize”?

The Chicago Swordplay Guild utilizes a ranking system based on those of the medieval fencing guilds of England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, which included three to four ranks: scholar, free scholar, provost, and master. These grades are not really analogous to the “belt ranks” in modern martial arts, but rather are closer to the system of licensing found in classical Japanese martial arts. They reflected a junior and senior level of two different roles within the school of arms: that of student and teacher. A scholar was one accepted as a student in the school of arms. In the English tradition a second grade of free scholar denoted a senior student who had grasped enough of the art’s foundation, usually encoded in the sword, sword and buckler and/or two-handed sword, and now had the “freedom of the school” to move on to more advanced training. Particularly dedicated students might press on to the grade of provost. This was the lesser teaching grade: a provost was licensed to teach students, but only under the auspices of a master, who oversaw all advancement testing. A master at arms or master of defence was the highest rank, and referred to a swordsman who had attained a high level of both martial and teaching skill. They were able to maintain their own schools and promote their own students.

Chicago Swordplay Guild Bill of Challenge for a Scholar’s Prize to be fought at Forteza, 22 April 2012, adapted from its Elizabethan antecedents.

One of the most important steps in the progression through the grades was the concept of Playing the Prize. This comprised of two steps. The first step occurs as an internal event, comprised of written and physical tests to assess the student’s skills. The second step was for the student to submit a challenge for a public prize playing (free fencing exhibition), for the grade being tested for. These Bills of Challenge were posted of the event and a wooden scaffolding was erected in a public square. A good number of formalities were observed. On the appointed day and time, following a procession of drums and flags the Player was paraded to the raised scaffold with much fanfare.

Usually fought on raised stages in inn yards or playhouses, Playings of the Prize were the precursors to the “prize fighting” that would become associated with boxing in the 1800s. They were boisterous affairs, including music, food, and rowdy, cheering (or booing audiences) who would throw coins (or if displeased, perhaps less savory “awards”) onto the platform.

At the start, a senior Master would declare the name of the Player, the rank being sought, and then announce “The first bout to be at [whichever weapon]”. Bouts were fought using blunted weapons and played to a number of ‘hits’ rather than to a ‘victory’. Although not real, the fights were not displays or exhibitions, but rather a sort of sparring tests to evaluate the Player. The bouts could sometimes be bloody, but never lethal. No armor was used and blows were limited to above the waist, but even the bare head and hands were targets. The job of the “answerers” or “challengers” was not to break or beat the Player but to seriously test them. The ‘Prize’ itself was promotion to the new rank.

Playing the Prize in the Chicago Swordplay Guild

Although this was the first Prize to be fought at Forteza, Playing the Prize has been part of rank advancement in the Chicago Swordplay Guild since 2001, and we proudly embrace the traditions of our ancestors. Family and friends of the candidates, Guild members past and present, and guests from other martial arts schools, are all invited to attend this public exhibition of arms. Much like the original Prize, ours are a combination of formality and raucous celebration. Refreshments and music entertain the audience before the Prize begins and during breaks between challenges. Rather like watching a tournament, spectators are encouraged to cheer good blows, and to boo wild, uncontrolled blows.

This cheerfully irreverent atmosphere offsets the formality of the Prize itself. The list (cordoned off combat ring) is decorated with heraldic banners representing the Guild and the virtues ascribed to the medieval warrior (if you’ve been paying attention to our website, you already know that these are strength – speed – knowledge and courage!). Guild instructors trade in their black Forteza t-shirts for our formal uniforms, which are a modern homage to the arts origins in the 14th – 16th centuries, much like the hakama seen in traditional Japaneses martial arts. The Prize begins with a formal opening ceremony, taken from their Renaissance precursor, and then each candidate is called forward one at a time, their challengers are announced, and combat begins.

Armizare students fight their Prize with the longsword, while Renaissance Swordsmanship students fight with the single rapier. Challenges at the Scholar level are fought under a set of rules somewhat more “permissive” than those of the 16th century, in large part because of access to additional safety gear:

Each match is 3 minutes in length;
The entire body is a target;
Strikes may be made with the point, edge or pommel of the sword;
Disarms, grapples, leg sweeps and throws are permitted, but combat will stop once both parties are unarmed, or one is thrown to the ground.
Combatants acknowledge their own blows, and the Judge intervenes only to part combatants with his baton for safety reasons or because a throw or disarm has occurred.

Erin Fitzgerald performs a little “death from below” in her bout with Shannon Winslow

As this is not a tournament, but an examination, each Challenger is given a specific task for their match with the Prizor, based on the observations of the instructors. For example, if the candidate has trouble initiating attacks, one Challenger might be told to hang back, forcing the Prizor to pursue and open with attacks. Conversely, a Prizor who starts strong but tends to “stop and look” might find their opponent continuously presses in with an unrelenting barrage of blows.The purpose is to push the Prizor physically and mentally, under the added stress of the watching eyes of friends and family.

One place where we have decidedly improved upon the past is that Guild Prizes are distinctly co-ed. Weapons are a great equalizer in terms of strength and size, and female students face men and women Challengers equally. Guild membership has traditionally been about 1/3 female, but this past Saturday saw three ladies take the field as Prizors, out of six competitors in total!

The candidates await their judgement by the instructors and challengers.

Once all the bouts were over, if the Prizor was judged victorious by the four Masters, he would be declared “a well-tryd and sufficient man with divers weapons”. He would then (after collecting the change littering the stage) swear his oath of obligation, and be escorted by his new peers back to the school and from there off to do much drinking. Our modern Guild’s Scholar’s oath is adapted directly from the Elizabethan one, requiring the student to treat those above and below him or her with respect, to train diligently and with pride, but not vanity, to be sure that their actions and deeds in the list or the classroom bring renown, not shame, to their fellows and teachers, and to be a good citizen. Students kneel and swear this oath on the hilt of a sword, receive their license and are gifted with a green garter tied under the left knee – a symbol of their rank. Finally, they sign their names in the Guildbook – a custom-made, leather-bound volume containing the history, rules and doings of the Chicago Swordplay Guild. (One such guildbook is in Ghent, home of the oldest surviving fencing school in the world. While the modern guild is a sport-fencing club, the records and entries in its book go back to its founding in 1614!)

And then, it was time for a celebratory Guinness….

Or course, it would be quite foolish to preserve all of these Renaissance customs without including the celebratory drinking at an inn! And so, with all due diligence, the tired, and bruised newly-minted Scholars were escorted by their colleagues to O’Shuaghnessy’s Public House for a pint or four. Slainte!

Our hearty congratulations go out to Christina, Erin, Heather, Jake, Robert and Nathan and our thanks to Shannon, Dan, Davis, Jacques, John, Phil and Trey for serving as Challengers!

Here are a few videos of the day’s combats:

Longsword
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uRTWw17e-4]

Rapier
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qumit6DFfPQ]

12 Jun

Renaissance Swordplay: The Deadly Art of the Duel

Posted under: Renaissance Swordplay

One of the centerpieces of the Forteza curriculum is historical European swordplay. There are a number of traditions of swordsmanship, which can be divided by period: early modern, Baroque, Renaissance or Medieval; and by nationality: English, French, German, Italian or Spanish. As the home of the Chicago Swordplay Guild (and as the Italian name of our studio might suggest), we focus on Italian swordsmanship of the 14th – 17th centuries.

When the Renaissance brought sweeping changes to European culture, Italian fencing traditions also evolved, with a new focus on civilian swordplay. A new, uniquely Italian weapon and fencing style —that of the elegant rapier—swept across Europe; influencing most of the continent for well over a century, and laying the theory of Italian swordplay for the next three centuries.

Now, you can take up the sword and study one of history’s most scientific and dangerous fighting arts, as taught by the early 17th-century fencing masters Salvatore Fabris and Ridolfo Capoferro.

THE RAPIER – DUELING WEAPON PAR EXCELLENCE

A rapier is a long-bladed sword with a complex hilt, optimized for the thrust but still capable of debilitating cuts. The blade is fairly thin and stiff, and counter-balanced to provide greater point control. Rapiers were neither light nor flimsy; a typical rapier of c.1600 had a blade of 42″ in length, a weight of 2.5 – 3 lbs, and was capable of parrying the blows of broad-bladed military swords.

The rapier was generally used either alone, or in conjunction with the sidearms a gentleman would most likely have with him at all times: the cloak and dagger. In keeping with the advice of the ancient masters, you will begin with the sword alone, then add the dagger and cloak after your proficiency with the sword is developed.

THE SIDESWORD – COMPANION IN BATTLE OR SELF-DEFENCE

The rapier never entirely supplanted the older, broad-bladed “cut-and-thrust” or sidesword. Instead, the old medieval sword was fitted with finger rings and a knuckle bow to protect the hand and continued to serve on the battlefield and in duels amongst traditionalists and military men. Like the rapier, the Renaissance sword was taught both alone and in conjunction with a wide variety of defensive arms:

Brocchiero (the round buckler)
Targa (square buckler)
Rotella (large, round shield)

Cappa (cloak)
Pugnale (a long, double-edged dagger)
Guanto da presa (armoured gauntlet

As you progress through our curriculum you will have the chance to study this ancient weapon, first alone, then with the buckler, and finally, against the rapier.

RENAISSANCE CLOSE-QUARTER COMBAT
Also in keeping with the custom of 16^th century fencing schools, concurrent with learning the sword you will also learn basic grappling, dagger and counter-dagger fighting, Abrazare (Italian for “embracing”) is unarmed combat. The goal of the system is to get the opponent onto the ground as swiftly and effectively as possible without going there yourself. Much like classical jujutsu, the fundamental principles of abrazare include:

Control of the center – Work from where you are strongest, move the opponent away from their own strength, and control the center of the fight;
Opportune Striking – Use strikes to points of pain to eliminate advantages of size and strength.
Breaking structure – Use strikes and holds to break your opponent’s connection to the earth.
Taking space – Occupy your opponent’s space to eliminate their options.

These strategies are applied through a diverse range of techniques, including throws, holds, joint locks, breaks, binds, and disarms, all of which are applied both unarmed and when wielding or confronted by the dagger.

As the sword evolved, so did the dagger. The Renaissance dagger was a large, double-edged weapon, with a hilt identical to that of a sword. You will not only learn how to use this deadly sidearm with the sword, but as your principle defense, fighting in dagger vs. dagger dueling, unarmed against the dagger, and with a particularly unique form, the cloak and dagger.

RENAISSANCE SWORDSMANSHIP AT FORTEZA
Through the study of Renaissance Swordsmanship, you will learn

A fighting art over 400 years old, that revolutionized the art of swordsmanship and gave rise to modern fencing;
How to wield the elegant, agile and deadly rapier and the powerful cutting sword, both alone and when combined with daggers, shields or cloaks;
A solid foundation in natural, elegant movement and universal body mechanics;
Combative integration – learn how to move from weapon range to grappling range, and how to fight with against diverse weapons in dissimilar combat scenarios;
The evolution of both the sword and dagger during the Renaissance;
The history of the duel;
The history of our tradition and the stories of its most famous (and infamous) students;
The ethical system of chivalry, in theory vs. practice, and its evolution over time.

Finally, the Renaissance arsenal was a diverse one, and senior students in the Renaissance Swordsmanship curriculum will also have a chance to study a variety of polearms, and the spadone – the massive, Italian two-handed sword.

IS THE RENAISSANCE SWORDSMANSHIP PROGRAM RIGHT FOR ME?
This program will especially appeal to you if you:

Are looking for an ancient martial art, taught with an eye towards tradition and historical context;
Want to study an integrated fighting system of armed and unarmed combat that will exercise both body and mind;
Are interested in working with a diverse array of weapons.
Come from a background in traditional Asian weapon arts, such as escrima, iaido or kenjutsu;
Are drawn to history and culture of the Italian Renaissance;
Are interested in cultural ethos of chivalry and Western traditions of honor;
Want a martial practice that has the depth and diversity to keep you engaged for a life time.

HOW DO I BEGIN?
Mastery is difficult, but beginning is easy! Just enroll in our Taste of the Renaissance introductory class and let your journey begin.