HEMA Alliance

Upcoming HEMA Events

john.harmston — Tue, 07 May 2013 16:49:58 +0000

Looking for a serious HEMA event in North America to attend this summer? Here’s a short list of HEMA Alliance sponsored or supported upcoming events

Fechtschule New York
Andes, NY tournaments and seminars
May 31 – June 2 https://www.facebook.com/events/509921722378739/
http://www.newyorklongsword.com/fechtschulenewyork.html

SoCal Swordfight!
Southern California HEMA Seminar (SCHEMAS)
June 8-9 in Lake Forest, California http://hemaalliance.com/socalswordfight

Longpoint
New England HEMA Gathering
July 12-14 in Ellicott, Maryland http://fightlongpoint.com/

Schwertkampf Mexico
Go support our HEMA brothers and sisters in Mexico!
August 2-4 in Mexico City https://www.facebook.com/SchwertkampfMex

PNW
The Pacific NorthWest HEMA Gathering
Aug 23-25 in Seattle, Washington http://www.pnwhemag.com/

Coblentz’s Italian Rapier Curriculum

john.harmston — Fri, 03 May 2013 23:43:53 +0000

David Coblentz has graciously shared the curriculum he designed for Italian rapier. Click here to download the pdf.

SoCal Swordfight! Registration Open

jonathan.mayshar — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 17:03:08 +0000

Saturday-Sunday, June 8-9 in
Lake Forest, California

2 days, 15 instructors, 9 clubs (and counting), 34,000 square feet of Historical European Martial Arts.

This event is designed as a showcase of seminars in HEMA to bring in the uninitiated public. In order to do that, we are investing in thousands of dollars of loaner gear, which will be included with registration, and at the same time keeping registration to a fraction of the cost of other events. $65 for the public; $53 for club members (who hopefully have their own gear).

Does this mean we are cutting corners on quality? No! We have 3 indoor sports fields, airport shuttles, and catering. How do we do it? Massive volunteer power. We have 5 Southern California clubs sacrificing their time to make this happen, and Lee and Nicole Smith, Richard Marsden, Ken Dietiker, and Michael-Forest Meservy are all traveling to Cali at their own cost to teach for us.

Save the Higgins – Petition

john.harmston — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:04:26 +0000

The Higgins Armory Museum, located in Worcester, MA, is the largest museum of European arms and armor in the western hemisphere. It’s board is currently planning on closing the museum due to an insufficient endowment and high maintenance costs. Please sign this petition to show your continuing support for the museum and its mission.

Wiktenauer Update – New Features

john.harmston — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 03:17:58 +0000

The staff of the Wiktenauer has the following announcement:

When we moved to the new server toward the end of last year we upgraded the wiki platform from 1.15 to 1.19, which has opened the door to a lot of new features and got us thinking about other upgrades and enhancements we could implement. I also put in a goodly amount of time upgrading and streamlining sloppy code and css, resulting in a much smoother design overall. Here is a partial list of the improvements we’ve made:

- Easier navigation in the composite tables. This is one that people have requested for a while, but since it’s not a feature normally found on wikis it took quite a bit of hacking to implement. Now when you scroll down in one of the big manual tables, the column headers will stay at the top of the screen so you always know what you’re looking at. Additionally, when you mouse-over a cell in the table the whole row will darken to make it easier to keep your place when side-scrolling. (These features work in all browsers, but due to unresolved compatibility issues between Mediawiki and Chrome and to the fact that Internet Explorer is just terrible, this feature looks best in Firefox.)

- Gallery image viewer. While we have largely divested ourselves of locally-hosted images in favor of directly linking to galleries hosted elsewhere, Wiktenauer still hosts a number of sets of scans taken from public-domain books (including a few manuscript facsimiles that are out of copyright), and of course we are pleased to be the only authorized host of color scans of the fencing manuals owned by the Jagellonian Library in Krakow. In order to make browsing these manuscripts easier, we’ve implemented a javascript-based gallery viewer that an be accessed from the category page. For example, Goliath (Ms. Germ. Quart. 2020) can be viewed here: http://wiktenauer.com/wiki/Category:MS_Germ.Quart.2020. Simply click on the green easel icon in the upper right corner of the gallery to launch the viewer. An identical viewer is available for the fencing manuals hosted on the Wikimedia Commons (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Fencing_manuals). (As before, Firefox handles this feature better than the others–for unknown reasons, in Chrome and Internet Explorer the images are somewhat shuffled.)

- Footnotes. We’ve gone back and imported all of the references contained in the transcriptions and translations that we host, in order to give additional insight into the reasoning behind some of the decisions that our contributors make. Initially we were storing these notes at the bottom of each table, but we’re currently in the process of translating them to standard end-notes that will appear in the main list of references at the bottom of each page.

- Credits and license terms. This has actually been around for a year or more now, but apparently a lot of people haven’t been aware. If you want to find the precise license terms of a particular bit of translation or transcription, or a link to the original document, that sort of metadata is stored at the top of every Discussion tab. (We’re currently looking into adding a new tab to each page called “License”, but that isn’t the case yet.)

- Open translations. Several people have asked us for a process of contributing snippets of translation or corrections without needing to translate a treatise entire or interfering with the work of others, so we’ve implemented a few options to handle this. If you identify errors or otherwise think an existing translation is in need of fixing, feel free to annotate it with your own notes using the {{ref}} template (http://wiktenauer.com/wiki/Template:Ref); these notes will be placed in a separate container from the main article footnote list and should be signed by the user who created them, so there shouldn’t be any confusion between them and notes created by the original author. (I’ll write a tutorial on this eventually, but for now contact me and I’ll walk you through it.) If you want to hack out a rough translation of an untranslated treatise, whether whole or just a few lines, then you can add label the translation column open for editing and add your name to the list of translation contributors on the Discussion page. This is also a possibility if a large enough body of notes build up for an existing, deprecated translation. If enough people get involved, we hope to eventually crowd-source high-quality translations in this fashion. I’ve opened all of my German translation work to free editing, since it’s all very rough and imperfect, and we’ve already got a couple other such contributions as well; see Martin Syber for an example of how this in action (http://wiktenauer.com/wiki/Martin_Syber).

- Wiktenauer forum. I’ve asked Ben Floyd to create a new forum for the Wiktenauer, which can be found here: http://hemaalliance.com/discussion/viewforum.php?f=28. This has primarily been used for announcements until now, but if you have any questions or concerns about, or disagreement regarding, content on the wiki then this would be the place to talk about it. Let me underscore again that a lot of content on the wiki is sourced from websites that don’t cite their own sources, so I would be astonished if there are not errors in the content as it currently stands and am very interested to hear about any and all of them.

- Donations. Finally, people have asked us in the past how they can donate to the wiki and help us meet our operating costs. We’ve now added a donate button at the bottom of the sidebar on the left which is attached to a paypal account managed by the HEMA Alliance (who are also the ones who currently pay our bills). If we ever reach a point where our income from donations exceeds our server costs, we’ll look into applying the excess toward getting new treatises digitized and even paying licensing costs to host currently-unavailable scans directly on the wiki directly.

So, that’s the current state of things, though we have a lot of exciting developments currently in the works, including:

- A new translation manager that will allow us to finally implement foreign-language articles (starting with Spanish).
- A new interface for transcribing, proofreading, translating, and browsing printed matter, based on that used by WikiSource (we’re still trying to iron out the last bugs, but it will be up and running soon).
- Partnering with a large university that I don’t think I can talk about yet to get real academic sponsorship as well as support in other exciting new projects.

Stay tuned!

Wiktenauer Update – Johannes Lecküchner

john.harmston — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:56:06 +0000

The Wiktenauer now has an updated section on Lecküchner. According to the Wiktenauer, Johannes Lecküchner (or Hans Lebkommer; ca. 1430s – 1482) was a 15th century German cleric and fencing master. He was born in the Nuremberg area, and in 1455 he was inscribed at the University of Leipzig. In 1457, he received the title of baccalaureus, and he was consecrated as a Catholic acolyte in 1459. At some point before creating his first manuscript in 1478, Lecküchner was consecrated as a priest. From 1480 until his death on December 31, 1482, he was employed as a communal priest in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Lecküchner dedicated his fencing manual to Philip “the Upright”, Elector Palatine of the Rhine, but the nature of his connection to the duke remains unclear.

Some 19th century scholars had assumed that the name “Johannes Lecküchner” was a corruption of Johannes Liechtenauer, the grand master of the primary German longsword tradition. However, biographical information from historical records, as well as the colophon in the manuscript itself, thoroughly disproves this theory. Lecküchner’s system of messer fencing does, however, seem to be related in some way to the longsword teachings of Liechtenauer from the previous century. His teachings are organized in a similar fashion using similar terminology, and often his epitome is nearly identical to that of Liechtenauer.

Two manuscript copies of Lecküchner’s treatise, entitled Kunst des Messerfechtens (“The Art of Messer Fencing”) are preserved, the Codex Palatine German 430 produced in 1478, and the Cgm 582 produced in 1482. The latter he completed on 19 January 1482, the year of his death. The Cgm 582 mentions in the last paragraph that a previous draft had been produced, which is presumed to be a reference to the CPG 430. Despite the Cgm 582 being the more extensive and elaborate of the two, it is the CPG 430 that seems to be the source for all later repetitions of Lecküchner’s teachings. A slightly abridged version of this treatise was included by Hans von Speyer in the MS M.I.29 in 1491, and similar (but not identical) abridged versions were included by Paulus Hector Mair in his massive compendia in the 1540s and by Lienhart Sollinger in the Cgm 3712 in 1556.

Click here to learn more.

Audacity – Go. To. Longpoint.

William Cain — Sun, 02 Dec 2012 22:30:23 +0000

Well, ladies and gentlemen, it’s about that time again. Longpoint 2013 is open for registration, and anyone who is interested in attending the premier East Coast HEMA Alliance event needs to get registered and get their butts over there.

So why do you need to get you or your club to Longpoint? Well, I’m glad you asked that question, rhetorical invisible hypothetical HEMA practitioner!

The Website.

First of all, Longpoint is the brainchild of Maryland Kunst des Fechten. MDKDF is an excellent HEMA school, run by two of the best teachers I have ever encountered. Jacob Norwood has an incredible breadth of knowledge and experience as an administrator, having been the President of the Alliance for two years, as well as being former Deputy Director for the ARMA prior to the formation of the Alliance. He knows how to organize, he knows how to teach, and he knows how to fight.

Ben Michels is another awesome guy, and an intense fighter. I had the chance to spar with him, and it required all of my effort just to hit the guy. He is also patient, encouraging, and friendly, and makes an awesome teacher.

If only for the chance to meet these two guys and pick their brains, Longpoint is worth the trip. But that isn’t the only thing you get.

Anders Linnard, Aaron Pynenberg, Mishaël Lopes Cardozo, and Ilkka Hartikainen are all listed as having workshops to offer attendees at Longpoint, meaning there will be plenty of material to learn and go through.

Longpoint hosts tournaments each year as well, including an open longsword tournament and a cutting tournament. They provide the sharp, but you can also bring your own if you prefer it! Either way, each tournament offers the chance to win fabulous prizes. Last year’s Longpoint cutting tournament gave people the opportunity to earn an Albion Crecy as the prize, I believe, so it’s definitely worth the price of admission if you think your cutting skills are up to the task.

Here’s a breakdown of how registration is going to look:

Holiday Registration – Ends January 6th: $155
Standard Registration – Ends June 21st: $185
Late and At The Door Registration: $215

The hotel and venue are beautiful and affordable. Yes, they are 121 dollars a night for traditional 2 bed rooms. But get a roommate or two and you can cut the price down to no more than your average weekend vacation.

Get there. Events are the main way in which the greater HEMA community expresses itself. Every club is distinct and unique in the Alliance – we make no dictates except the bare minimum of ‘we only insure you if you’re safe.’ Every club has the chance to develop its own unique stamp and culture. Larger events like Longpoint allow these different approaches to mingle, to interact, and share insights. Ideas are diffused, concepts shared, and enthusiasms celebrated. Get thee to Longpoint and have a good time.

Yours Fraternally,

William Farlin Cain III

Kron Martial Arts

Wiktenauer Update – Carlo Giuseppe Colombani

john.harmston — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 16:58:16 +0000

The Wiktenauer recently added information about Carlo Giuseppe Colombani (1676 – 1735/6), an Italian soldier, fencing master, and dentist at the turn of the 18th century.

He was born on 21 January 1676 in San Bartolomeo to Francesco and Isabella Colombani, who seem to have been of high social status. In 1693 at the age of 17, he joined the army of Vittorio Amedeo of Savoy to fight in the war with the French. Colombani participated in several battles (Guastella, Pinerolo, Orbassano, Santa Brigida, and Staffarda) and ultimately became an officer and color guard; for his valor he gained the title Alfier Lombardo (“the Pride of Lombardy”).

Colombani traveled for a time after the war, passing through Barcelona, Spain before returning to travel around his native Italy. He supported himself as a fencing master during this time, teaching private lessons and performing public exhibitions; he also dabbled in other forms of performance including charlatanism, puppetry, and tightrope walking. In 1700, he seems to have become involved with a Spanish woman and embarked on another international journey through France, Holland, and England, eventually exhausting all of the wealth he had acquired.

In 1709, he married Apollonia, the daughter of a respected tooth-puller, and then moved to Venice and received an official diploma in dentistry. Between 1710 and 1712, Colombani practiced charlatan dentistry and minor medical care in the public piazza in Venice, proving himself the most capable dentist in the city (other than his wife).[1] In 1711 (during this same period), he also published a brief treatise on fencing with at least some tenuous connection to the tradition of Filippo di Bartolomeo Dardi entitled L’Arte maestra (“The Master Art”).

After 1712, Appolonia convinced him to give up public exhibition and they devoted themselves to a more scientific approach to dentistry. He lived the rest of his life in Venice, practicing his trade and become extremely wealthy. Colombani went on to publish several other books on various topics, including a fairly sensationalized memoir in 1724; his wife was also a writer, publishing a treatise on dentistry in 1719.

For more information, click here.

HEMA Spotlight Series

john.harmston — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 06:22:02 +0000

Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship
Location: Phoenix, Arizona

The Phoenix Society of Historical Swordsmanship is led by instructors Richard Marsden and John Patterson. Based in Phoenix, Arizona the club studies Fiore (all weapons), Polish Saber, Italian Rapier, German Rappier, Dussack, Single-stick, and more. They train on Saturday mornings (contact them for details).

To learn more about the club, visit:

Their Facebook Page

Their Website

Their YouTube Channel

Audacity – the Value of Curricula

William Cain — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 18:15:19 +0000

A curriculum is a godsend to anyone who has a chance to seriously use it. Some might reflexively scoff at such a confined approach, but the most successful (though not necessarily the most effective) martial arts have clearly defined curricula to work from. I’m not talking about flash-in-the-pan success such as Americanized Krav Maga, but enduring successes such as those of Kodokan Judo, Parker Kenpo, Brazilian JiuJitsu, Shotokan Karate, Gouren, Boxing, and others.

If we are to see the recreation and further development of the Historical European Martial Arts succeed, we too need to embrace the ideals of solidly defined, clear curricula.

As I see it, there are three things that most define good curricula – content, advancement/reward, and refinement.

Content:

You actually have to have something to teach, that much is obvious. When I began Goldsboro Sword Guild with my friends in North Carolina, we had no curriculum. Our first practice, we did much more standing around and a little bit of bind-and-wind than anything else. It was a short practice that didn’t see much happen, sadly. After that, I went home and looked up videos, talked to the HEMA Alliance forum, and asked some questions. I developed a modest drill based on footwork and changing guards while taking steps, using a rope along the ground to determine where we were placing our feet. One small change, and yet our practice THAT day lasted two hours. We had something to learn, something to focus on, and just that little bit of structure gave us the focus to do what we needed to do.

So the first thing you must do with your curriculum is find some content that will inform it. Choose a series of youtube videos recommended by a source you trust, or a series of plates from a manual, or a handful of exercises from your group’s teacher. Have something to do.

Then, structure that material into discrete sections or lessons. We didn’t fool around as much our second lesson because we had a specific piece of material to focus on. We didn’t do any binding practice because it wasn’t in the lesson, and we were focusing on our footwork drill. This mental trick will allow you to more fully dive into a specific lesson.

Advancement and Reward

People like to feel that they have accomplished something, and it is good and proper to recognize them for it. As your curriculum grows, you will naturally find success points that you can stop at.

Say for example you have a module on cutting, wherein you spend an entire month focusing on cutting technique with sharp weapons. At the end of that month, one of your students has learned to perform every cut in the module flawlessly, again and again. REWARD that student. Acknowledge their success, either with your club’s achievement patch or by buying them dinner at the monthly Chili’s get-together. Have discrete levels to break your curriculum into, and have clearly defined parameters for success in terms of rank or reward for achieving them.

The value of rank in particular is a tricky one. Some try to make the anarchist argument that ‘ranks’ simply divide people and they aren’t concerned with rank – they just want to get better at swordplay. This is an out and out ERROR in thinking in the martial arts, and should be discarded straight away.

Rank is not just a bragging right, it is a teaching tool. Say someone reaches the rank of brown belt in Judo. It isn’t simply a set of privileges they gain, but also responsibilities. If a brown belt performs a technique sloppily, the coach will be harder on them. “You’re setting a bad example for the lower ranks,” is a common admonition for brown belts who slack off to hear. The first part of acknowledgment must be reward for work well done, but it goes hand in hand with reminding them that they now have a responsibility to shepherd those who came after them. The ranks also let people who want to learn particular techniques know who they can go to for study help with a particular problem. I don’t go to fellow white belts when I want help with my Ukemi or Kuzushi. I go to the brown belts, the black belts of my club. Rank -simplifies- matters when handled properly.

Refinement

After you develop a curriculum, you go to a tournament. Your boys all know how to use the zornhau first play, they’ve performed it perfectly according to your curriculum. Then they all get trounced in a zornhau competition – the other people simply blow through your students’ defenses.

What happened?

Well, that’s what you should be asking, but immediately after you need to ask why it happened as well. Any curriculum must be subject to revision and adaptation in the face of practical results. When something is demonstrated to not be working, or someone points out a source that clearly refutes your interpretation from the original manuals, or even if you feel the pacing of the curriculum is either too slow or too fast, CHANGE IT.

Adapt to the changes in the environment. Don’t trap yourself with a chain to your first curriculum – accept that you know only a fraction of what is possible to learn and be willing to expand or discard your material as needed.

That said, don’t let this admonition turn your lessons into debate sessions. Practice what you believe you know as best you can, and save questions for a designated time rather than the middle of a demonstration and drill.

Thoughts:

I have touched on a few issues that can come up with a curriculum. What order to proceed through your material in, what sources to draw from – these are issues I cannot go into here just now. For now, focus on collecting material that you can focus on and learn through in an effective manner. And above all, submit what you have gathered to others to look at, that you may refine it.