Download or read book Fiore Dei Liberi s Sword in Two Hands written by Brian R. Price and published by . This book was released on 2007-01-01 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The reconstruction of highly efficient and deadly medieval fighting systems has seen a popular resurgence as students recreate these arts through structured martial arts training and then test their skills in competitive tournaments. Brian R. Price, Principale for one of the largest martial arts / historical fighting schools and author of the immensely popular Techniques of Medieval Armour Reproduction, presents the first English-language book focused solely on the astounding swordsmanship of the late 14th century swordmaster, Fiore dei Liberi. In the Fior di Battaglia the old master recorded an integrated fighting system that includes grappling, work with and against a dagger, baton, the sword in one and two hands, spear and poleaxe, in and out of armour, on foot and on horseback. This system, based on a set of simple principles, is as effective as any martial arts system since devised. Sword in Two Hands distills this system through the use of the hand-and-a-half sword using a proven, logical, systematic approach integrating modern training techniques. The book includes drills and more than 700 color photographs.
Download or read book Sword in Hand written by Ewart Oakeshott and published by . This book was released on 2001-01-01 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Art of the Two Handed Sword written by Ken Mondschein and published by . This book was released on 2022-07-28 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Art of the Two-Handed Sword translates one of the latest surviving works on the use of the two-handed sword, a Renaissance descendant of the medieval knightly weapon that was equally at home on the battlefield, at tournaments, in the fencing academy, or on the street. The second half of the book provides a clear, practical, detailed guide to its use, as well as to the theory and practice of historical fencing. Francesco Alfieri's 1653 Lo Spadone (The Two-Handed Sword) provides a "missing link" between medieval and modern martial arts. It displays clear continuity with both medieval swordsmanship and the still living still-living traditions of sabre and great stick.Beginning in the fourteenth century, swords became more sharply pointed in order to pierce the plate armor of the day, and the grip became longer to allow two-handed use for greater power. By the end of the fifteenth Century, the two-hander, as long as a man is tall, had become a fearsome infantry weapon used to break up pike formations and in honor guards defending the standard or banner. It was also used in tournaments, on the field of honor, and for civilian self-defense. This long two-hander was known in Italy as the spadone. Its basic methods have continued to the present day in staff technique.This is the second printing of the 2012 SKA Swordplay Books first complete English translation of Alfieri's book, supplemented by related materials: the MS Riccardiano (c. 1550) and works by Camillo Agrippa (1553), Giacomo di Grassi (1570), and finally Guieseppe Colombani (1711), who provides our last textual reference to the weapon.Alfieri's work is supplemented by Ken Mondschein's painstaking reconstruction and adaptation of longsword practice for the present day. He draws on primary sources, martial arts traditions, classical and modern fencing theory, and extensive practical experience to create a practical and enjoyable method for learning and practic-ing the spadone under modern conditions. Numerous photographs illustrate the techniques.
Download or read book The Flower of Battle written by and published by . This book was released on 2018-07-12 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Flower of Battle is Colin Hatcher's translation of Fiore dei Liberi's art of combat from the early 15th century. The work included high-resolution images and English text laid out in the manner of the original.
Download or read book Two Handed Sword written by Neil Melville and published by Pen & Sword Military. This book was released on 2019-01-11 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The two-handed swords found in modern museums are often so large and elaborately decorated that the onlooker might question whether such an apparently impractical weapon could ever have been a serious weapon of war. Yet during the Late Middle Ages, although never numerous, such weapons could instil dread in those that faced them on the battlefield and in skilled hands posed a very real danger, being capable of inflicting fearsome wounds. Neil Melville explains how, from the late-13th century, technological advances made the development of larger swords requiring both hands both possible and desirable. From their origins in Germany he traces their development and divergence into regional variations. He examines the evidence for their use on the battlefield over 300 years, most notably in the hands of the Swiss, the German landsknechts and the Scottish clans, before considering their later use in fencing and as ceremonial weapons. Practical advice on fighting with the two-handed sword is also given, drawing on contemporary fencing manuals. The detailed and informative text is beautifully enhanced by dozens of illustrations.
Download or read book The Privilege of the Sword written by Ellen Kushner and published by Spectra. This book was released on 2006-07-25 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the award-winning author of Swordspoint comes a witty, wicked coming-of-age story that is both edgy and timeless. . . . Welcome to Riverside, where the aristocratic and the ambitious battle for power and prestige in the city’s labyrinth of streets and ballrooms, theatres and brothels, boudoirs and salons. Into this alluring and alarming world walks a bright young woman ready to take it on and make her fortune. A well-bred country girl, Katherine knows all the rules of conventional society. Her biggest mistake is thinking they apply. Katherine’s host and uncle, Alec Campion, the capricious and decadent Mad Duke Tremontaine, is in charge here—and to him, rules are made to be broken. When he decides it would be far more amusing for his niece to learn swordplay than to follow the usual path to ballroom and husband, her world changes forever. And there’s no going back. Blade in hand, it’s up to Katherine to find her own way through a maze of secrets and betrayals, nobles and scoundrels—and to gain the power, respect, and self-discovery that come to those who master. . . . “Unholy fun, and wholly fun . . . an elegant riposte, dazzlingly executed.”—Gregory Maguire, New York Times bestselling author of Wicked
Download or read book The Two Edged Sword written by Donald W. Tucker and published by Dog Ear Publishing. This book was released on 2010-07 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For Donald W. Tucker, life from the get-go was a two-edged sword-a "damned if you do/ damned if you don't" black & white shades & wing-tips jungle existence of working the streets of Southside Chicago undercover ("with no cover") as a Federal narcotics and SS agent. Tucker was quick, sharp and street smart. Ultimately he rose through the ranks to become one of America's foremost federal law enforcement administrators and reformers. The Two-Edged Sword is a grim, gutsy, raw in-your-face first-hand account of what it was like to be Black and work as an undercover agent for the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (now called the DEA), and United States Secret Service from 1961-1990-some of the toughest years in this country's history of Civil Rights. Tucker's life story reads like a best-selling 007 whodunit, more fiction than fact-yet all of it really happened. "Too many times the risks were far greater than anticipated, but I was young and dumb," writes Tucker. "I didn't know what I was doing until I felt a .45 slammed against my head. Or, until I found myself being cuffed and dragged into a police car manned by an officer who had no way of knowing I was an undercover agent." "That I survived to tell my story is sheer luck," admits Tucker, whose office walls are plastered with certificates, awards and citations for his outstanding service. Tucker was born and raised in a postage stamp apartment that housed five children and four adults. A football scholarship to the University of Iowa served as his ticket to a better life. In 1961 he received his B.A. with a major in sociology and was immediately hired as an undercover agent for the Chicago FBN. In 1962, Tucker was serving in one of the U.S. Military units called in to escort black student James Meredith through the front door of Ole Miss in Oxford, Mississippi. Just as they were about take off for Oxford, however, Tucker and all other blacks were singled out and ordered to stay on base. This act of segregation was a turning point in Tucker's adult life. From that time on and for the rest of his life, he became a voice to be reckoned with as a Civil Rights advocate. In the Federal Law Enforcement agencies and in subsequent positions as U.S. Marshal for the District of Arizona and Protector for the Federal Courts, he was nicknamed "Tucker the Troublemaker." After a career with the USSS for almost 25 years, Tucker retired in March 1990. On March 26, 1990, he was sworn in as U.S. Marshal for the District of Arizona. In August 1994, Tucker was appointed Chief of Court Security for the Administrative Office of the United States Courts in Washington, D.C. In this capacity, he monitored the security provided to the Federal Judiciary and supervised the $150 million budget. He also coordinated the investigation of the bombing of the Federal Courthouse in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Tucker returned to Arizona in March 1996, and in January 1997, he started his own Investigations Company, T.I.P.S. (Tucker Investigations and Protective Services).
Download or read book A Fortress of Grey Ice written by J. V. Jones and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2004-08-01 with total page 672 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Wonderful . . . J. V. Jones is a striking writer." So says Robert Jordan, the author of The Wheel of Time epic fantasy series. And Jones lives up to that praise in the highly charged epic adventure of Ash March and Raif Sevrance, two outcasts whose fate are entwined by ancient prophecies and need, in the cold, dark world that threatens to be torn asunder by a war to end all wars. Isolated by their birthrights, they are but two who fight the dreaded Endlords, and their strength and courage will be needed if the world is to be saved from darkness." Raif, wrongly accused and cut off from his clan by the treachery of their new headsman, has a talent for killing that is part of his curse and his burden. But he bears another burden of greater weight. Ash is a sacred warrior to the Sull, an ancient race whose numbers have declined. Raised as a foundling, never knowing her true history, she must learn to accept the terrible gifts of her heritage. But as Ash learns more of her greater fate, Raif's task looms dark and desperate, for he must journey through the nightmare realm of the Want, a place where even the Sull now fear to tread. For deep within the Want is the Fortress of Grey Ice, and there he must heal the breach in the Blindwall that already threatens the world. Should he fail, not even Ash's powers can save them. . . . At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Download or read book The Singing Sword written by Jack Whyte and published by Forge Books. This book was released on 2002-05-17 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We know the legends: Arthur brought justice to a land that had known only cruelty and force; his father, Uther, carved a kingdom out of the chaos of the fallen Roman Empire; the sword Excalibur, drawn from stone by England's greatest king. But legends do not tell the whole tale. Legends do not tell of the despairing Roman soldiers, abandoned by their empire, faced with the choice of fleeing back to Rome, or struggling to create a last stronghold against the barbarian onslaughts from the north and east. Legends do not tell of Arthur's great-grandfather, Publius Varrus, the warrior who marked the boundaries of a reborn empire with his own shed blood; they do not tell of Publius's wife, Luceiia, British-born and Roman-raised, whose fierce beauty burned pale next to her passion for law and honor. With The Camulod Chronicles, Jack Whyte tells us what legend has forgotten: the history of blood and violence, passion and steel, out of which was forged a great sword, and a great nation. The Singing Sword continues the gripping epic begun in The Skystone: As the great night of the Dark Ages falls over Roman Britain, a lone man and woman fight to build a last stronghold of law and learning--a crude hill-fort, which one day, long after their deaths, will become a great city . . . known as Camelot. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Download or read book The Sword in His Hand written by J. J. Fischer and published by Ambassador International. This book was released on 2021-02-09 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “One is an opportunity. Two is a threat. Three is an invasion.” For hundreds of years, strange things have been washing up on the shores of Darcentaria. But when a young foreign woman named El is found unconscious on the beach amidst the burning wreckage of a strange metal craft, the villagers of Odessa are immediately suspicious—is she an agent of the Dalriadan Empire, their cruel oppressors for as long as they can remember? Or does she come from the Outside, the vast and legendary lands beyond their borders from which no man or woman alive has ever returned? Torsten Eiselher, a talented young swordsman, has spent the last nine years of his life wrongfully imprisoned by his uncle, the Empire’s ruler. Betrayed and deceived at every turn, Torsten has survived by keeping a firm grip on his sword—and by staying well away from anything to do with the Outside. But when his young sister is murdered, Torsten finds himself irrevocably drawn to El despite her Outsider heritage—and he begins to question everything he has been told about her world. Intrigued by the existence of a powerful and dangerously advanced world within his reach, the Empire’s ruler, Jurien Arminius, launches a hunt for El and the two Outsiders that arrived with her—the ones who could help him win his war against Torsten and the rebellion that threatens to topple his Empire. Suddenly, Torsten is forced to choose between defeating his long-term enemy or saving the woman he has come to love . . .
Download or read book The Medieval Longsword written by Dr. Guy Windsor and published by The School of European Swordsmanship. This book was released on 2020-08-20 with total page 155 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ever wonder how good you’d be with a sword? This book is for you. Do love movie sword fights? Learn how real sword fights work. Are you into stage combat? Add depth with historically accurate technique. You’re a bad uncle looking for a present for your niece? Get her this book, though her parents might hate you. Or do you just like swords? If you’ve ever wanted to turn your sword dreams into reality, then this book is for you. Anyone can learn the medieval Art of the longsword. This book will give you a thorough grounding in the techniques and tactics from the 600-year-old manuscript Il Fior di Battaglia, and includes free access to additional resources such as videos and full-sized images, to help you translate the movements from page to real life. Sure, it’s a 600-year old manuscript, but you know what? People who studied this manuscript lived. Why not stick with something that works? The Medieval Longsword covers everything you need to know from tools of the trade, to footwork, strikes and defences, to how to exploit your adversary’s mistakes, and how to disarm your opponent. This complete and approachable guide to the Art of Arms provides a gateway to a world-wide community of likeminded people also practicing this historical martial art. Whether you’re an absolute beginner or a competent fencer, this book by author and internationally renowned swordsman Guy Windsor will guide you towards mastery of this ancient Art.
Download or read book The Edge of the Sword written by Anthony Farrar-Hockley and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2007-11-15 with total page 371 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An account of the 1st Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment, at the Battle of Imjin River during the Korean War and the survivors’ captivity in a POW camp. In April 1951, at the height of the Korean War, Chinese troops advanced south of the 38th parallel towards a strategic crossing-point of the Imjin River on the invasion route to the South Korean capital of Seoul. The stand of the 1st Battalion, the Gloucestershire Regiment, against the overwhelming numbers of invading troops has since passed into British military history. In The Edge of the Sword General, Sir Anthony Farrar-Hockley, then Adjutant of the Glosters, has painted a vivid and accurate picture of the battle as seen by the officers and soldiers caught up in the middle of it. The book does not, however, end there. Like the majority of those who survived, the author became a prisoner-of-war, and the book continues with a remarkable account of his experiences in and out of Chinese prison camps. This book is not an attempt at a personal hero-story, and it is certainly not a piece of political propaganda. It is, above all, an amazing story of human fortitude and high adventure.
Download or read book Soul of the Sword written by Julie Kagawa and published by Harlequin. This book was released on 2019-06-18 with total page 437 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this YA fantasy adventure by a New York Times–bestselling author, a shapeshifter must stop a demon from using a dragon to destroy the world. One thousand years ago, a wish was made, and a sword of rage and lightning was forged. Kamigoroshi. The Godslayer. A weapon powerful enough to seal away the formidable demon Hakaimono. Now he has broken free . . . Kitsune shapeshifter Yumeko has one task: take her piece of the ancient and powerful Scroll of a Thousand Prayers to the Steel Feather temple in order to prevent the summoning of the great Kami Dragon, who will grant one wish to whomever holds the scroll. But she has a new enemy now, more dangerous than any she has yet faced. The demon Hakaimono is free at last, and he has possessed the very person Yumeko trusted to protect her—Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan. Hakaimono has one goal: break the curse of the sword and set himself free to rain chaos and destruction over the land forevermore. To do so, he will need the scroll. And Yumeko is the only one standing in his way. Books in the Shadow of the Fox trilogy: Shadow of the Fox Soul of the Sword Night of the Dragon Praise for Shadow of the Fox “One of my all-time favorite fantasy novels! I’m in love with this book, its characters, its worldbuilding!” —Ellen Oh, author of the Prophecy and Spirit Hunters series “Kagawa uses elements of Japanese mythology and folklore to spin an epic yarn . . . readers will be drawn into the world of Kagawa’s first Japan-based fantasy; with its engaging action scenes and the cliffhanger ending, they will look forward to the next volume. Action-packed adventure.” —Kirkus Reviews “Kagawa’s series starter never disappoints; she’s a vet at putting realistic characters within believable worlds, here doused in Japanese folklore.” —Booklist
Download or read book A Test of Honor written by Justin Hébert and published by . This book was released on 2014-07-01 with total page 449 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sir Aidan Franklin has been betrayed. After three years campaigning in a brutal intergalactic war, what should be a joyous return is instead filled with grief and rage - his family is long dead from a suspicious "pox" and their land stolen. Seeking revenge against the corrupt rival Deputy who wronged him, he narrowly escapes the Capitol and joins the Redtail bandit gang, using his experience to train them into an army.While preparing to enforce his House's claim by the sword, Aidan discovers a family secret dangerous enough to overturn the established order and plunge his homeworld into planet-wide civil war. How far will Aidan go to avenge his family and prove his honor?A tale of justice and oppression, longswords and plasma blasters, A Test of Honor is an eclectic, adrenaline-charged adventure set in a world of the future that echoes the past.Book I of the Aidan's War Trilogy.
Download or read book The Art of Sword Combat written by Joachim Meyer and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2016-08-31 with total page 143 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This sixteenth-century German guide to sword fighting and combat training is a crucial source for understanding medieval swordplay techniques. Following his translation of Joachim Meyer’s The Art of Combat, Jeffrey L. Forgeng was alerted to an earlier version of Meyer’s text, discovered in Lund University Library in Sweden. The manuscript, produced in Strasbourg around 1568, is illustrated with thirty watercolor images and seven ink diagrams. The text covers combat with the longsword (hand-and-a-half sword), dusack (a one-handed practice weapon comparable to a sabre), and rapier. The manuscript’s theoretical discussion of guards sheds significant light on this key feature of the historical practice, not just in relation to Meyer but in relation to medieval combat systems in general. The Art of Sword Combat also offers an extensive repertoire of training drills for both the dusack and the rapier, a feature largely lacking in treatises of the period and critical to modern reconstructions of the practice. Forgeng’s translation also includes a biography of Meyer, much of which has only recently come to light, as well as technical terminology and other essential information for understanding and contextualizing the work.
Download or read book Diaria de Bello Carolino written by Alessandro Benedetti and published by . This book was released on 1967 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Iberian Swordplay written by Domingo Luis Godhinho and published by . This book was released on 2017-07-30 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1599, during the period when the Portuguese crown was united to the crowns of Castile and Aragon, a Portuguese master-at-arms called Domingo Luis Godinho wrote a manuscript in Spanish entitled Arte de Esgrima (The Art of Fencing). Although Godinho's life is largely a mystery and his text was never published, today his manuscript of utmost relevance in the study of Renaissance Iberian fencing, since it is the only complete treatise discovered so far describing the "Common" or "Vulgar" style of Iberian fencing, first documented in the 15th century, but by Godinho's day, displaced by the new system of La Verdadera Destreza. The work includes instructions for the single sword, a long-bladed, cut & thrust weapon taught alone and with the use of the shield, buckler, dagger, and cape, as well as paired with a second sword. Godinho's instructions also includes the longest known text on the use of the montante, or two-handed sword, a devastating weapon that was used by soldiers and body-guards, in duels and battlefields, in crowded streets and aboard galleys. Translator Tim Rivera provides a detailed introduction that explains Godinho's relationship to earlier masters of the "Common School" of swordsmanship, and a short primer on the various weapons, guards, parries, footwork and terminology of the tradition.
