(c) 2010 Gregory Mele When I teach at workshops and seminars, I am often told something along the lines of this: I’m surprised that the man who co-authored the reproduction on De arte gladiatoria dimicandi doesn’t work more with the hallmarks of Vadi. It’s a fair question, and suggests that in 2001, when I was [...]
Reconstructing a Martial Lineage; not Resurrecting the Dead
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What is the Goal of Historical European Swordsmanship? by Gregory Mele Historical European Swordsmanship (HES) is a subset of Western martial arts, in most cases referring to reconstructed martial arts (the notable exception being classical fencing). There is a meme in the HES community that those who practice HES “study Fiore” or “do Silver’s backsword”, [...]
CSG in Chicago’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on WGN America
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Arming swords were clashing as members of the Chicago Swordplay Guild participated in the City of Chicago’s huge annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, which is one of two parades carried on national television. You can catch some video on the chicagofestivals.org website. Flanked by colorful banners showcasing the Fiore animals and medieval Italian crests, the CSG [...]
After The 600
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Any day you get to train in the Art of the medieval Italian sword master, Fiore dei Liberi, is a good day. When you find yourself at The 600 – a 3-day, “All Fiore, All the Time” workshop hosted by the Chicago Swordplay Guild, you’ve pretty much died and gone to heaven. At least, that’s [...]
The 600 – Prepare for Fiore!
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In 1410, Fiore dei Liberi, an aging condottiero and master-at-arms to some of Italy’s most renowned warriors, presented a book to the bellicose Niccolò III d’Este, Marchese of Ferrara (1383-1441) containing the sum of four decades of knowledge won in the training hall, siege, battle and five duels with rival masters. He named this work [...]
A Field Trip to the Oakeshott Institute
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This past weekend, approximately 20 Guilders made a six hour pilgrimage north on I-94 to the Twin Cities to visit our friends at Arms & Armor and the Oakeshott Institute. Despite having known Craig Johnson and Chris Poor for many years, ironically, only a handful of us had ever been up to visit them in [...]
CSG at the Royal Armouries
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February 20 & 21, 2010 was the British Federation for Historical Swordsmanship’s annual conference, called S.W.A.S.H: Symposium on the Western Arts of Swordsmanship through History. Held at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, there really couldn’t be a better location for a conference on the study of historical European swordsmanship. With 2010 being the 600th anniversary [...]
New Source for Western Martial Arts Books and DVDs!
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Dear Friends, Students of the Sword and Lovers of History, We are proud to announce the debut of Freelance Academy Press, a new publishing venture by Tom Leoni, Christian Tobler and CSG’s co-founder Gregory Mele. Freelance Academy Press offers its readers both innovative books and rich supporting material in the fields of Western martial arts, [...]
