Publisher Description

Recorded over six centuries ago, the teachings of the 14th-century Master-at-Arms Johannes Liechtenauer have been given new life by a world-wide community of modern swordsmen and women, fascinated by the elegance, efficiency and depth of his unique martial art. Christian Henry Tobler was one of the pioneers in reviving the medieval Master's art, creating the first, published syllabus for training with the two-handed longsword back in 2004. This fully rewritten, revised and expanded edition brings to bear a decade of refinement, creating a definitive, "how to" guide for students. Beginning with a short historical overview of the art, Mr. Tobler teaches stance, footwork, methods for gripping the sword, and step-by-step instructions for executing the core techniques of the Liechtenauer tradition. Additional chapters introduce students to wrestling, spear and armoured combat; demonstrating the art's depth and breadth. Heavily photo-illustrated, the book also makes use of decision-trees and training drills to aid in learning. Used as a complete, self-contained course, or a primer for studying the original medieval works themselves, this unique book will be invaluable to martial artists, reenactors, medieval historians, or anyone who has ever wondered "how did knights fight?"

Author Biography

Christian Henry Tobler has been a longtime student of swordsmanship, focused on the study of medieval Fechtbucher (fight books) since the late 1990s. Now with five books, two instructional DVDs and a growing number of published articles and essays to his credit, he was the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for Historical European Martial Arts in 2013. Mr. Tobler serves as Principal Instructor for the Selohaar Fechtschule. He lives with his wife in the United States, in rural Oxford, Connecticut, where he teaches a weekly class on medieval German combat, surrounded by far too many books and pieces of arms and armour for the size house that they live in.

Table of Contents

Foreword About the Author The Chivalric Fighting Arts Association The Selohaar Fechtschule Preface Introduction Chapter 1: Beginning Your Training Chapter 2: Line, Footwork, Measure, and Time Chapter 3: Vier Leger Chapter 4:Three Wounders Chapter 5: Four Openings Chapter 6: Initiative Chapter 7: Defending with Attacks Chapter 8: The Five Strokes Chapter 9: Zornhau Chapter 10: Breaking the Four Openings Chapter 11: Krumphau Chapter 12: Zwerchhau Chapter 13: Schielhau Chapter 14: Scheitelhau Chapter 15: Vier Versetzen Chapter 16: Nachreisen Chapter 17: Fuhlen and Indes, an Interlude Chapter 18: Uberlaufen Chapter 19: Absetzen Chapter 20: Durchwechseln and Zucken Chapter 21: Ringen Chapter 22: Durchlaufen Chapter 23: Sprechfenster Chapter 24: Zwei Hengen, Acht Winden Chapter 25: Nebenhut Chapter 26: Fence! Chapter 27: Armoured Foot Combat Chapter 28: Fencing with the Spear Chapter 29: Fencing with the Half-Sword Chapter 30: Conclusion Table of Drills Glossary & Bibliography

Long Description

Recorded over six centuries ago, the teachings of the 14th-century Master-at-Arms Johannes Liechtenauer have been given new life by a world-wide community of modern swordsmen and women, fascinated by the elegance, efficiency and depth of his unique martial art. Christian Henry Tobler was one of the pioneers in reviving the medieval Master's art, creating the first, published syllabus for training with the two-handed longsword back in 2004. This fully rewritten, revised and expanded edition brings to bear a decade of refinement, creating a definitive, "how to" guide for students. Beginning with a short historical overview of the art, Mr. Tobler teaches stance, footwork, methods for gripping the sword, and step-by-step instructions for executing the core techniques of the Liechtenauer tradition. Additional chapters introduce students to wrestling, spear and armoured combat; demonstrating the art's depth and breadth. Heavily photo-illustrated, the book also makes use of decision-trees and training drills to aid in learning. Used as a complete, self-contained course, or a primer for studying the original medieval works themselves, this unique book will be invaluable to martial artists, reenactors, medieval historians, or anyone who has ever wondered "how did knights fight?"

Details