Tag: Sala della Spada

American Smallsword Symposium 2026–A Word of Thanks

I’ve been meaning to post something all week, but between work, fun with time-zones, and high school soccer it’s taken a few days. In sum, the Symposium was fantastic. It is to historical fencing what a graduate seminar is to a PhD program, only one that welcomes fencers of any level and can and will accommodate them. That is not easy to do.

I’ve been fortunate when it comes to teaching events–the rest of life might be a dumpster-fire, but to date the events I’ve had the honor to be invited to teach at have been incredible. The Symposium is well-run and organized, but able to flex where it can for weather, chance, or attendee comfort. Patrick Bratton and Chris Triechel, who run it, offer an impressive weekend of fencing, teaching, conversation, food, and local history. Our host at Ft. Ligonier, Matthew Gault, provided us with an air-conditioned room, tours, and even morning coffee. [1] A few of us stayed in the barracks, which are not air-conditioned, but in terms of immersion it’s hard to beat. This is the first event for which I brought period-dress, but the humidity and my poor ability to manage it kept me in summer-weight fencing clothes. Next time.

I was surprised, but honored to be asked to present Liancour’s method this year. The longer I dive into that text, the more I find to like, and, the more I see close affinities between his method and that of Labat, even de la Touche. My goal was to give everyone a sense of the contents of the treatise, but the second half focused a lot on application. Best way to illustrate things really. There were about 40 people the first day, and I approached the class much like I do those I teach at home, at least the longer ones. In a room of people that talented, it benefits everyone to have them weigh in on what we cover, and wow… so many great insights, comments, and connections. They gave me so much to consider, and I’m grateful for that.

In addition to my class, we had the delight to participate in a video conference with the excellent Damien Olivier–he zoomed in from France and shared his smallsword database with us. His introduction covered some key types, but the Q &A was just as engaging. Damien has created something new and unbelievably powerful for anyone interested in this period (roughly 1640-1800). While there have been some stabs at typology before–Aylward, North, Oakeshott–none of them could do what Damien is with this db. I’m super keen to see where it goes.

If my praise seems too fawning, consider how good an event must be to have people drive in from far away to attend not even knowing the headliner. I don’t say this in false humility, but as fact–the Eastern Seaboard in the US is where most of the smallsword-related events and clubs reside: for people to drive up from North Carolina, from Indiana, from Boston, etc. for a two-day event speaks volumes about the worth of the event regardless of who is teaching. Very few of the 40 people there likely have any clue who I am–I live 3000 miles away, I’m too injured to compete, and too busy to make a lot of events. While I have had the good fortune to travel and teach internationally, something I love, my focus day-to-day is largely local save on this website, Youtube, and the master’s program I help with in Canada. This is to say there is no reason anyone in the East should know me, and that is okay. For me, I had the pleasure to meet a lot of people I have heard about, many I had not, and the openness, enthusiasm, curiosity, and just general coolness of everyone I met there made it a lot easier being an introvert teaching.

On another note, but an important one for my nation at present–this group was diverse, and by that I don’t mean just safe for POC, women, and LGBTQAI+ folks, though it was that too. From conversations alone it was clear we had a mix of more conservative and more liberal people, all of whom got along just fine. Now, safe to say, an absolute bigot is unlikely to attend an intellectual event like this one, but that said, when it comes to doubts one might have about the possibility for unity in the US, it’s possible. There is more grey area than there are extremes either side, and that is something to paste in one’s hat. It is safer to believe the claims of past masters than any news story today, and given that Zach Wylde claimed to invent the parry of seconde (his “half moon parr”), that is saying something.

If you have a chance to go to the American Smallsword Symposium–go. Even if smallsword is not your favorite weapon or topic, you’ll get a LOT out of the event, and, you’ll meet some really fun people.

NOTES:


[1] For more on Ft. Ligonier, see https://www.fortligonier.org/

Ft. Ligonier/Carlisle, PA, Pt. II

While there were a number of Carlisle, PA, adventures with my friend and host, Patrick Bratton, among them were a few with other coaches and some of his students. As another example and proof for the value of cross-fertilization in fencing, I’d like to talk about the morning I spent watching a fantastic lesson by an Olympic coach, the excellent Tony Alvarez.

Excellence in Coaching: Tony Alvarez

I’ve known about Tony since the Pandemic–he worked with Patrick online in the epee class with Maitre Robert Handelman we all took–but this was the first time I had met him in person. Knowing my background, or at least my current focus, he was quick to remind me that the lesson sample I was about to watch was modern. While I cannot say I enjoy modern sabre, I do recognize that there is much to learn there despite the problems, if for no other reason than smart fencing coaches like Tony adapt well.

I’ll not lie–I have been quick to criticize modern sabre, and I likely still will, but this said I gained a new vantage point on it thanks to Tony and Patrick this past Monday morning, and I’m grateful for that. First, and to honor Tony’s skill, he showed very few actions, but actions used in different measures and tempi, in different set-ups.

He started with actions in the box, between the two en garde lines, then outside the box. Watching Patrick and Tony, both of whom know what they’re doing, made it seem as if very little had changed since the days of my early training save in one respect: speed. The modern game relies on speed in a way that one could mitigate more easily before the end of proper edge-alignment in sabre. There simply is not time to make some actions, most especially ripostes, in every instance.

Everything is a distance game played at the right time and correct speed. Here’s the pinch–that has always been true. What differs is method and tool. A lighter, fast weapon that can score with any part of the blade demands tighter timing. This is one reason the age of competitors has dropped so significantly in the past three decades.

I learned A LOT watching Tony teach, and his advice for working with children–the majority of his clientele–is invaluable.

Quick Studies-A Radaellian Lesson with one of Patrick’s Students, “J.”

One of the things I most looked forward to was working with Patrick’s folks. One student, a young high-schooler, wanted a sabre lesson and the last day at the fort we were able to have a short one. Important things to note: this young man started fencing last August; he is a big man, but super quick and flexible (day one in Justin’s Besnard class he dropped effortlessly into a de la Touche lunge…).

I gave him a very traditional outline, but with Radaellian elements, meaning we started with some point in line/disengage work, then some parry/riposte to warm up. Then, I took him through two set-ups with feints. Finally, as a cool down, we did a stop-cut/parry-riposte drill. He made all of it look easy.

I have adult students who struggle with some of these set-ups, but J. looked like he had been doing these drills for years. Even in the cool-down he opted to use an arrest half the time, an action that takes considerable point-control and timing. I was so impressed and told him so.

J. is as good as he is because he has a great coach, and, because J. is motivated, keen to fence, and found the right place to learn. I have written a lot about the importance of the universals in teaching, of starting with and honing fundamental actions, and J. is proof of how sound an approach that is. Moreover, J., and Patrick’s other students, are working within a mixed community, diverse in many senses but also in the sense of fencing styles and influences. It shows.

Why is this important? It’s important because it reveals another layer of diversity within Patrick’s club–put simply, his students are getting tools for their toolbox not only from different stores, but different lines of work. In the U.S. now there are people keen to erase diversity and downplay its importance. They do this out of fear and ignorance, for there is no science, reason, or morality behind any of their claims.

A diverse club is a healthy club, one guaranteed to push people and help them grow, and not just in terms of their ability to lunge or parry well. Exposure to people different from us, in large ways and small, reveals that they are people like us, just fellow humans trying to make their way through life.

Diversity fosters strength–it is harder to accept the idiocy of race-politics, for example, when one spends a lot of time with different “races” etc. and therefore knows what politician A or pundit B says is complete horseshit.

Working in Pennsylvania, and in an area rather “red” as it were, what Patrick has achieved at Sala della Spada is remarkable. Under his roof you will find not only the usual notions of diversity, but also political diversity. Now, like many of us, politics is not a topic there is time for in a salle, so they focus on fencing, but everyone in the club knows that they are working with people who see the world differently in key ways and work together nonetheless. In this there is hope. It is hard to remain divided when we spend with people ostensibly on the “other side” from us. We find our common humanity, we find common ground. If nothing else, we all love to fence.

Ft. Ligonier French Fencing Weekend

I’ve been meaning to write something up since I returned late Tuesday, but between work and an unexpected veterinarian adventure, I’ve not had time to do this event justice. It was, in a word, amazing, and so much so that I truly hope it becomes a regular event. Patrick Bratton and team put on one hell of a seminar–it was not just the classes, though those were great, but that the setting was apropos and unique, we had behind-the-scenes access to some of the museum, and ample chances to eat, laugh, and get to know one another. Yes, we also fenced, or many did–it was all I could do not to break my doctor’s orders and jump in, but for once I was a grown-up about it (and appropriately as bitter as a toddler told “no”).

By most definitions, I don’t think people would consider me particularly “lucky,” but when it comes to finding myself at truly impressive, informative, and fun events, I’m as rich as Croesus. To the list of favorites–SabreSlash, The St. George’s Day Exhibition of Arms, Rose and Thorns Historical Fencing Symposium–I can now add a fourth, Patrick’s French Fencing weekend. One reason, beyond the obvious draw of all things hoplological or fencing-related, is that it combined three branches of the community: historical, Olympic, and reenactment. The benefits of such cross-over should be obvious, but may not be, so to illustrate this I cite the example of a fascinating chap, Matthew Schlicksup, an artisan of historical footwear currently working at Ft. Ticonderoga in New York.

Historical Artisans

Matthew makes historical footwear, among other period items, and is a master craftsman. Trained in Williamsburg, Virginia, he has made shoes, attended events, and conducted research that most of us might not think about, and, despite the fact we all wear shoes. We take them for granted. Ft. Ligonier, however, has the world’s largest collection of period shoes thanks to the accident of 18th century castoffs and the powers of anaerobic preservation. An archaeologist in initial training, Matthew brings science to his craft, and with impressive results.

This weekend he shared, and wore, his version of the fencing shoes or sandals depicted in de la Touche’s seminal treatise, Le vrays principes de l’espée seule (1670). So, here we are at an historical fencing seminar with a man who makes shoes from the period for that very purpose. This may not seem important, but it is. A few years ago I spent considerable time researching the development of the lunge and this included a look at footwear–would that I had known Matthew then! In discussion with him about de la Touche’s sandal, I learned so much more than I might have, not only about construction, but also about how such shoes function. Put simply, this was a window into period fencing via a single often unconsidered artifact.

Museum

Our host at Ft. Ligonier, Matthew Tristan, was accommodating, supportive, and generous with his time. It was he who gave us the behind-the-scenes tour. It says a lot that he and the foundation were open to having us there: a busy historical site and nuts with swords sounds like an insurance adjustor’s nightmare. With Patrick and others in period dress, and quick to chat with visitors, it went well and we hope added something to the experience. When trusted with the safety of the site and its guests, one wants to do all one can to make it go well, and under Patrick’s excellent leadership this was not even in question. With all the discussion of clubs losing insurance because of unsafe and/or stupid activities, with some unfortunate high-profile legal cases, a win like this is easy to dismiss. We shouldn’t–this was a success and a sign that things can be done correctly.

Classes

In terms of classes, I participated as much as I was able–stupid injury maintenance–but was super keen to see what Justin Aucoin did with the work of Charles Besnard, one of my favorite masters. Justin has long experience with fencing and the SCA, and runs a seriously fantastic class. People loved his classes. I loved his classes. He taught one on Besnard and a second on the bâton à deux bouts or French double-spear in Pascha. I had been looking forward to meeting Justin for some time–Patrick spoke highly of him, I liked what I saw in his videos, and he is a die-hard fan of Dumas and The Three Musketeers, that last fact which immediately endeared him to me.

Justin combines deep knowledge with obvious skill and a passion for his topic. It’s infectuous. Moreover, he works with a diverse student population–always a good sign–and so was quick to suggest work-arounds and ideas to make each thing he covered work for different folks. If he is teaching anything near you or you have the chance to travel to work with him, do.

Bridge-Building

I tend to gravitate towards and work with other folks interested in bridge-building. It’s not just the strengths that collaborative work brings, but the sort of people that go in for it. Among these, I have worked most often outside my immediate surroundings with Patrick. He is, quite honestly, a model coach and advocate for what we do. As a trained teacher (he’s a professor at a college in Pennsylvania), researcher, fencer, and man of eclectic and fascinating interests, from vintage fashion to hunting lore, Patrick perhaps more easily combines disparate strings together to make a viable tapestry.

The historical reenactment group he is involved in, a detachment of mid-18th century French marines, has worked at Ft. Lignonier, among others, before, and it was an ideal location for a look at several late 17th century fencing masters. Some students were in costume, some not, but the addition of period appearance added a lot. Having good relations with the museum staff meant not only a chance to hold the seminar on site, but also see parts of the museum most people do not see. The historian and former archaeologist in me was seriously thrilled about that, but I wasn’t alone.

The only other event that I have attended that combined all these elements so successfully was my mentor Master Michael Knazko and company’s SabreSlash–we had fencers from all walks, reenactors from Krakow (17th Polish hussars), and tours of various sites within Prague relating to fencing (among other historical subjects). In both cases the camaraderie was the finest.

A Model for Future Events

Until recently, until this latest trip actually, I had planned some invitational tournaments. Now, while there may be a tournament element, I am planning to put together something closer to what Patrick and Maestro Knazko have done. It’s a good mix–class for those who like it, some history and other activities (we ate well for example), and some fencing or lessons. It is my hope that Patrick makes this event a regular one–we’ll be lucky if he does.