Early history
The earliest depiction of swordplay is a relief in the temple of Medīnat Habu, near Luxor in Egypt, built by Ramses III about 1190 bce. This relief must depict a practice bout or match, as the sword points are covered and the swordsmen are parrying with shields strapped to their left arms and are wearing masks (tied to their wigs), large bibs, and padding over their ears. Swordsmanship, as a pastime and in single combat and war, was also practiced widely by the ancient Persians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans as well as by the Germanic tribes.
The Romans brought sword combat to a highly systematic art that was taught to both their legions and their gladiators. Gladiators were trained in schools (ludi) by professional instructors (doctores). Beginners practiced with a wooden sword called a rudis. More-advanced training took place with weapons that were somewhat heavier than those used in actual combat.
From the time of the fall of Rome through the Middle Ages, the practice of sword fighting continued unabated, although sword training became less uniform and began to reflect the ideas of the individual masters-at-arms. At this time, schools of sword fighting also developed a somewhat unsavoury quality, attracting members from the criminal element of society who wanted to learn the skilled use of weapons. Many communities found that the only way to deal with this problem was to outlaw fencing schools within their boundaries. For example, in London in 1286 King Edward I passed an edict that decried “the most unheard-of villainies” perpetrated by swordsmen and threatened swift justice for teaching sword-related skills. Despite such laws, fencing schools flourished.
Emergence of swordsmanship and weapons
Among the nobility of Europe during the Middle Ages, the adept handling of a sword was hindered by the use of armour, which was virtually the only means of protection. Swords were heavy and used primarily to broach the protective armour. With the introduction of gunpowder in the 14th century, however, armour fell into disuse (musket balls easily pierced the armour, rendering it ineffective in battle). The sword was still the only weapon that could be worn on the body for self-defense, but the demise of armour required that the wearer learn to manipulate a sword skillfully—a matter that grew to be of paramount importance both in times of war and in a gentleman’s daily life.
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By the 15th century, guilds of fencing masters had been formed throughout Europe, the most notable of which was the Marxbrüder (the Association of St. Marcus of Löwenberg), which was granted letters patent by the Holy Roman emperor Frederick III in 1480. Early fencing methods as taught by the guilds were somewhat rough-and-tumble and included wrestling moves. The guilds jealously guarded their secret moves so that they could make use of the unexpected to defeat an enemy. Fencing was first supported in England by Henry VIII, who, sometime before 1540, granted letters patent to several fencing masters that allowed them to teach there. The early English style of fighting with a cutting sword and a buckler (a small shield worn on the free arm) ultimately gave way to the continental European rapier combat.
The Italians discovered the effectiveness of the dexterous use of the point rather than the edge of the sword. By the end of the 16th century, their lighter weapon, the rapier, and a simple, nimble, and controlled fencing style, emphasizing skill and speed rather than force, had spread throughout Europe. Most of the wrestling tricks were abandoned, the lunge was developed and adopted, and fencing became established as an art.
The long rapier was beautifully balanced, excellent in attack, and superb for keeping an opponent at a distance, but it was too heavy for all the movements of combat. Defense when fighting with a rapier was effected by parrying with the left hand, which was protected by a gauntlet or cloak or equipped with a dagger. Opponents’ thrusts were often avoided by ducking or sidestepping.
In the latter half of the 17th century, the sword and swordsmanship changed dramatically with a change in gentlemen’s dress. In France the court of Louis XIV set the fashion of silk stockings, breeches, and brocaded coats, which replaced that of the doublet and hose, top boots, and cloaks. As the long, trailing rapier was unsuited to the new form of dress, fashion decreed the wearing of a light, short court sword. The French style set in throughout Europe as the Italian style had done earlier.
Although at first derided, the court sword was soon recognized as an ideal light weapon which allowed for a multitude of offensive and defensive movements that would have been impossible with heavier weapons. Its light weight permitted the sword to be used by itself, without the use of daggers, cloaks, or the free hand. Hits on the opponent were made with the point of the sword only, defense was effected by the wielding of the blade (fending off the opponent’s blade with one’s own sword), and what is now recognized as modern fencing came into being. At this time the French style fully displaced the Italian as the most-practiced form of sword combat.
The French school of sword fighting was an academic form, with much emphasis on strategy and form. Conventions and rules were adopted to teach this form of swordplay. Additionally, the foil, or practice sword, was used to create a safe training environment. To further enhance safety, a mask was designed in the 18th century by the fencing master La Boëssière and the celebrated duelist Joseph Bologne, chevalier de Saint-Georges.
While fencing with the foil was becoming increasingly stylized, dueling with swords still continued. The complexities of foil fencing as practiced under the ideal conditions of the schools, or salles, with reverence for the set rules and conventions, produced a game that became an art of absorbing interest. But this orthodox, controlled swordplay was of little account on a cold gray morning on a greensward or gravel path when one faced a determined opponent with a sharp and heavier weapon who disregarded all conventions. Ironically, however, by the mid-18th century, when fencing had reached its peak in technique and theory, dueling with the sword had virtually disappeared because of the growing accuracy of firearms. From this time on, fencing took on the nature of a sport, and in form the swordplay of this time differed little from the modern sport of fencing.
For those few who continued to follow the sword as a method of resolving conflict, the épée de combat was created in the second half of the 19th century. The practice version of this weapon was a regulation, though blunted, dueling sword, and it was used without limitation of target or other conventions. Except for the use of protective clothing, épée fencing closely approximated the conditions of a duel.
The last of the modern fencing weapons appeared in the late 18th century, when the Hungarians introduced a curved sabre (adapted from the Eastern scimitar) for the use of their cavalry. The sabre was soon adopted by other European armies. The heavy military sabre (and its counterpart, the naval cutlass) was used in fencing schools until the end of the 19th century, when the Italians introduced a light sabre that was soon accepted universally as a sport weapon.
