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A Short History of Fencing

Fencing is a vigorous sport that requires and develops stamina, quick reactions, speed and accuracy of movement, and excellent coordination. Fencing is also a mental game. The real excitement of it lies in outthinking and outwitting the opponent. The objective of modern fencing is not to inflict an injury but to demonstrate an ability to outmaneuver an opponent and to score. There are three weapons in fencing today: foil, epee, and sabre. Here how it all started.

Since early man first fashioned a club, men have invented weapons either to defend themselves or to conquer them. Weapons have bean transformed and evolved from stone ax to dueling sword. In the highly developed civilizations

of Greece and Rome, short swords, light spears, and shields were used. With the fall of the Roman Empire (about 476 A.D.) until the fourteenth century, weapons became heavier and more cumbersome. Brute force, violence and cruelty in fighting were the dominant characteristics of that period; heavy armor, coats of mail, two handed swords and heavy halberds (a spear and ax combined on a long pole) prevailed. The need for swift 
weapons with sharp points to penetrate between the joins of armor led to the development of the rapier. The appearance of gunpowder in the 14th century made armor ineffective.

Although fencing schools may have developed much earlier in India (the sacred book mention Brahmans teaching fencing in public places), it appears that modern fencing was born in Spain, where the first book on fencing were published by Sierge de Valera in 1471 and by two fencing masters, Pons from Perpignan and Pedro de Torre, in 1474.

After the Renaissance duelists spent most of their time trying to discover the "botte secret" "universal parry", and rapier became a decorative ornament for dress. In 16th century, Italian fencing masters were predominant and the most popular in Europe. They were also prolific publisher of fencing manuals. In 1553 Agrippa described the first four fencing positions (prime, second, tierce, and quarte) and recommended the use of the point thrust to the opponents' face instead of to the body, which was protected by a coat or mail. Grassi and Vigiani (1557) described the lunge.

Under Catherine de Medicis, the Italian heritage Queen of France, Italian fencing masters were in demand in France and they helped develop fencing in that country. Associations of fencing masters were already in existence in Germany: England also had an association of fencers. The French Fencing Academy was recognized in 1567 by "letter de patente" given by King Charles IX (son of Catherine de Medicis) and confermed by his royal ancestors until the Revolution of 1789.

The French fencing masters became the first to define the principals of fencing and to develop a methodical classification of attacks and parries (defensive movements that deflect attacks). The first treatise by French fencing master, Henry de St.Dider, was published in 1573.

In the middle of 17th century, the "colichemarde" replaced the rapier. Its blade was thinner and sharper at the tip and favored action with the point.

French and Italian fencing schools had already developed their own characteristics. Around 1650 the "fioretta" (Italian for flower), called "flueret" in French and "foil" in English, became the training weapon for dueling and accentuated the difference between the two schools. In the 18th century, the small sword with its triangular blade (similiar to the one used in epee today) became the weapon for dueling, while the sabre became the national weapon of Hungary.

The invention of the mask, before the French Revolution, by French fencing master, La Boissiere, helped establish the definitive foundation of our modern fencing with it present en-garde ("on-guard") position and technique.

Russia had a few French fencing masters during the 

rein of the Czars. The most prominent, A. Grisier, spent ten years teaching Russian princes and noblemen of the imperial court. His book, Les Armes et le Duel, was dedicated to his Imperial Majesty, Nicholas I, and was prefaced by Alexandre Dumas, who wrote The Three Musketeers. However, from the time of the Russian Revolution until the Second World War, fencing was considered a "bourgeois" sport and completely disappeared in Russia.

French and Italian masters displayed their talent throughout the world. By the end of the 19th century some came to America and were responsible for the development of fencing in the United States; one in particular, Giorgio Santelli, son of Italo Santelli who influenced the development of Hungarian sabre champions, was responsible for developing many American champions.

 With the suppression of dueling and the organization of the Olympic Games (Athens, Greece, in 1896), fencing developed into a 

popular sport. Italian, French, and Hungarian fencers dominated international fencing tournaments until 1956. As fencing became more popular in countries not previously represented in the international competition- particularly those behind the "Iron Curtain"- Poland, Romania, and Soviet Union became strong contenders for the Olympic and World Championship titles.

The Soviet Union's first participation in competition was in 1946. In the 1968 Olympics, held in Mexico City, the Soviet Union garnered 3 gold and 4 silver

medal, thereby accumulating the greatest number of points in the single fencing event. Behind this success of Soviet fencers was government subsidy and organizational support.

For a considerable period prior to the emergence of the Soviet Union, Poland, Hungary, and Romania as dominant fencing powers, the French and Italian fencing techniques prevailed. Each had its own characteristics based on different hand grips as well as on the temperaments of each country.

The french handle, above, is reasonably thick, to allow point control with finger action. The Italian handle provides a cross bar across the handle and often requires attachment by a leather strap around the wrist. The French temperament made for finesse by using simple, fine point actions while the Italian temperament called for aggressive and powerful attacks on the blade coupled with fast foot work.

Whith improvements in technique and physical conditioning the two schools of fencing tended to fuse into an international technique combining elements of both styles. In that evolution, the pistol grip has virtually replaced the Italian handle for both foil and epee.

In present-day fencing competition it would be difficult to recognize the product of a particular school or technique. A fencer develops a personal style that mainly reflects the teaching of his/her fencing master rather than any national school. The modern successful fencing master develops the basic natural qualities of a prospective fencing champion instead of following a standard instruction technique.

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