Hi sword people! Would you like to receive weekly up-dates on weapons research, sword-fighting, living history and more straight into your inbox? To read previous newsletters and to sign up, go here: exciting-pioneer-6049.ck.page/a8f72e8432
Archaeologist Ingo Petri and myself have been friends for more than 20 years. See a compilation of some of our recent practice fights on the occasion of an event at the Langobardenwerkstatt Zethlingen in late May 2022.
Harder is it not? GREAT TO SEE YOU GUYS. I am South Paw and was into MMA (as they call it now) for 40 years before retiring. Yea real old man and my bones/body ache terribly, but its so nice to watch you people spar. Brings a smile to my face.
I'm left-handed, but I train with both hands. Going left against right feels so awkward, but it's interesting to pose as a beginner who doesn't know how to hold his equipment right and then surprise the opponent :)
I remember fondly my first Berlin Buckler bout about five years ago, where I had the pleasure of fencing with Ingo. Well after our second fight I wondered why I had these difficulties (apart from his undeniable skill), until it dawned on me: Ingo was fencing left-handed! I didn't realize this for quite a while. Now, checking the handedness of my opponent is an integral part of my checklist before entering a fight. ;) Thanks for the lesson, Ingo!
my brother is 8 years older than me, he's lefty (as is my mom). when I got to fencing class when I was 18/19 the best fencer was a lefty & twice my age. He was so mad i could counter him =) My true loves are archery & axplay. Fencing taught me a lot! I taught a friend in Vermont to throw axes. Can you understand that in one year, he learned both instinctive long knife throwing & ax throwing? Blew my mind.
My Rottweiler is seemingly right pawed, but he knows the right feint, comes at me with his left, which twists his body to protect his least favored side. My brother didn't learn that lesson. Glad he's my dog LOL
My brother was 8 years my junior, and though neither of us were lefties, he was definitely better with the left-hand than I was. Our sparring, fencing, and wrestling bouts often got quite intense, but we never got hurt. Good times, good times. Love the nostalgia.
@@WisdomThumbs i'm really good really really good top 8 in State they make me register as living weapon i'm dead foot my dad proud, lol my mom thinks iit's stupid but i have to my dog thinks I'm stupid =) i can't drive a car, but I have to register my fists go fig,,,juses curses fiig
Great to see videos again! How common where lefties back then? I assume they weren't too popular on a battle field since they could mess up certain formations. I could just hear them, "Bjorn is left handed? Give him a two handed axe!"
About 20% of swords where optimized for left-handed use. Even today, the number of left-handed fighters in martial arts/sports is about twice as high than general the proportion of left-handers.
Roland, you used to have a video about walking in medieval shoes if I recall correctly. How walking on the balls of the feet & leaning into the walk was required of the slipper like shoes. Did you remove the video or am I misremembering? I ask because I wanted to rewatch it but now can't find it.
@@asa-punkatsouthvinland7145 Absolutely. I am currently working on a sword & buckler online course. It will contain videos on footwork and the respective culture of motion, of course.
When I talk of sword and shield fighting, I tell others about you. The realistic portrayal of killing without being killed is a virtue lost on others. Or, at least the younger ones I talk to who throw themselves into the foam swords we goof with
Not at all. In order to be able to tense up when required, you have to be relaxed before. Basic martial arts stuff. Also, you cannot even change grip and move swiftly when you are tense all the time.
Also consider that blades work best if you strike in the fashion of cracking a whip. This requires a certain explosiveness with only tensing up for split-second in the decisive moment. Ever used a rolled-up wet towel like a whip in the dressing room after sports? Same thing. Doesn't work if you tense up muscles all through the action.
@@swordandshield Yeah I got you, I'm just saying you're clearly not engaging in the explosive moves you mentioned for the sake of safety. Which I assume there would be plenty of in a fight, and thus it looks much different from a fight. But fair enough I didn't consider you would be so relaxed in between those moments.
I see two sensible people with blunt swords doing their outmost not to hurt each other. Those blunt sword are heavy and look like they are perfectly capable of breaking fingers, skulls... I wonder how two people with the opposite mindset, i.e. trying to inflict appalling wounds on each other, with razor sharp swords... how would affect choreography?... and I am not talking about post wound choreography... I am not saying this study is irrelevant, no, but my inexperienced mind suspect something quite different would arise. Different levels of adrenaline, hostility... am I mistaken? Excellent channel, by the way.
The common question of „What if they actually tried to kill each other?“ disregards that the key of prevailing in combat is not to kill but to survive. Only survivors can teach what kept them alive in fighting - and they left us martial arts. Exploiting the opponent’s mistake when he fails to cover himself or misjudges distance is the aim, not rushing in with over-zeal, trying to force it. Brute force only works against unskilled victims. However, according to historical sources (and to my limited experience), the forceful fighter is relatively easy to deal with and usually kills himself. Or else there would not be any martial arts, only strength training.
@@swordandshield In the old fight against ignorance there is always the maxim: If you are riddled by doubt and floating on ignorance, maybe you should ask someone who is less ignorant. Instead of applying brute force and pretend I know, I asked you, and sure enough, became somewhat less ignorant. Thank you. I remembered something in this dialectic, ignorant brute force vs experience (survival)... Alexander the Great, while conquering Anatolia (Edit: Now I remember, I think it was a little further in the middle Eastern coast, I will check it later...) came across a rather difficult fortification, and for all the expedience and resourcefulness, things were quite simply not working. He was stuck. I fail to remember the name of the said fortification, I would need to go and check. And then, at the end of the day, the younger and more inexperienced elements of the Alexandrian army gathered to drink and distress. Drink led to boasting, boasting led to more drink, and to make a long story short, after a session of binge drinking the youths decided to take the fortress themselves and quite obviously placed themselves into trouble... therefore the veterans had to get up in the middle of the night to rescue the senseless young men. The battle raged with particularly vicious violence. By the break of dawn, the impregnable fortress was giving way already. The following day, it fell. Conflict is a complex affair...
@@zachariaszut Indeed. I vaguely remember a source saying that the ultimate test for a combatant was to prevail against a master, a novice and a drunken adversary. Another one says that amongst the fallen, the master lies next to the beginner. Fighters of modern duels say that under stress, your repertoire shrinks to a small percentage of what you have trained. Which is probably why Bruce Lee said he does not fear the fighter who has trained a thousand techniques but the one who trained one technique a thousand times. Replacing instinctive responses by martially sound ones is the aim of training. Martial arts are often counter-intuitive, not least because they pair virtues that do not come as a pair by nature. For instance, being determined yet calm, remaining relaxed yet focused etc. In theory, a fight between two equal combatants who constantly act in accordance with martial arts principles would go on forever. Of course, this never happens. One will make a mistake at one point. This is why true fights are never won. Instead, one loses.
Hi sword people! Would you like to receive weekly up-dates on weapons research, sword-fighting, living history and more straight into your inbox? To read previous newsletters and to sign up, go here: exciting-pioneer-6049.ck.page/a8f72e8432
Archaeologist Ingo Petri and myself have been friends for more than 20 years. See a compilation of some of our recent practice fights on the occasion of an event at the Langobardenwerkstatt Zethlingen in late May 2022.
yup
Harder is it not? GREAT TO SEE YOU GUYS. I am South Paw and was into MMA (as they call it now) for 40 years before retiring. Yea real old man and my bones/body ache terribly, but its so nice to watch you people spar. Brings a smile to my face.
Great to see your still posting !
It’s funny how Hollywood etc gets it so wrong with sword and shield fighting.
My brother is Left-Handed so I grew up fighting a left-handed opponent.
I'm left-handed, but I train with both hands. Going left against right feels so awkward, but it's interesting to pose as a beginner who doesn't know how to hold his equipment right and then surprise the opponent :)
Excellent. The 13th century King's Mirror recommends to train ambidexterity.
Oh my, finally another video in dimicator channel 🤩 that's so good!
Am endlich! Es ist wunderbar dir zu wiedersehen, mein Freund!😀
I remember fondly my first Berlin Buckler bout about five years ago, where I had the pleasure of fencing with Ingo.
Well after our second fight I wondered why I had these difficulties (apart from his undeniable skill), until it dawned on me: Ingo was fencing left-handed!
I didn't realize this for quite a while.
Now, checking the handedness of my opponent is an integral part of my checklist before entering a fight. ;)
Thanks for the lesson, Ingo!
Good to see you back Roland
Great stuff as always!
Thank you.
Very good to have a new video from you, hope all is well
Yes, absolutely, thanks for asking. I have never been away. I only tend to focus on students and patrons a lot more than previously.
Lovely video Roland! good showcase of a nice sparring!
Been a wile thanks for posting.
my brother is 8 years older than me, he's lefty (as is my mom).
when I got to fencing class when I was 18/19 the best fencer was a lefty & twice my age.
He was so mad i could counter him =)
My true loves are archery & axplay. Fencing taught me a lot!
I taught a friend in Vermont to throw axes. Can you understand that in one year, he learned both instinctive long knife throwing & ax throwing? Blew my mind.
My Rottweiler is seemingly right pawed, but he knows the right feint, comes at me with his left, which twists his body to protect his least favored side. My brother didn't learn that lesson. Glad he's my dog LOL
My brother was 8 years my junior, and though neither of us were lefties, he was definitely better with the left-hand than I was. Our sparring, fencing, and wrestling bouts often got quite intense, but we never got hurt. Good times, good times. Love the nostalgia.
@@WisdomThumbs high friend! hello leaning hard big hugs!!!!!!!!!!!! bark bark....my dog sez high too =)
i live in lonely world good to meet chu
@@WisdomThumbs i'm really good
really really good
top 8
in State
they make me register as living weapon
i'm dead foot my dad proud, lol
my mom thinks iit's stupid
but i have to
my dog thinks I'm stupid
=)
i can't drive a car, but I have to register my fists
go fig,,,juses curses fiig
Great sparring!
Great to see videos again! How common where lefties back then? I assume they weren't too popular on a battle field since they could mess up certain formations. I could just hear them, "Bjorn is left handed? Give him a two handed axe!"
About 20% of swords where optimized for left-handed use. Even today, the number of left-handed fighters in martial arts/sports is about twice as high than general the proportion of left-handers.
Lovely exchanges :)
Great LARPing! I love Viking Tai Chi!
Roland, you used to have a video about walking in medieval shoes if I recall correctly. How walking on the balls of the feet & leaning into the walk was required of the slipper like shoes.
Did you remove the video or am I misremembering? I ask because I wanted to rewatch it but now can't find it.
The video's content does no longer reflect my take on the subject, so i removed it.
@@swordandshield fair enough. Are you considering an updated video on the subject?
@@asa-punkatsouthvinland7145 Absolutely. I am currently working on a sword & buckler online course. It will contain videos on footwork and the respective culture of motion, of course.
@@swordandshield awesome thanks
When I talk of sword and shield fighting, I tell others about you. The realistic portrayal of killing without being killed is a virtue lost on others.
Or, at least the younger ones I talk to who throw themselves into the foam swords we goof with
I noticed that the left handed guy uses a Cherusker sword from the first century, is that correct?
Well spotted. The event focused on Germanic and Roman fighting. As a Viking, I was a visitor from the future, so to speak!
I assume the loose way you're holding your weapons is as not to injure one another?
Not at all. In order to be able to tense up when required, you have to be relaxed before. Basic martial arts stuff. Also, you cannot even change grip and move swiftly when you are tense all the time.
Also consider that blades work best if you strike in the fashion of cracking a whip. This requires a certain explosiveness with only tensing up for split-second in the decisive moment. Ever used a rolled-up wet towel like a whip in the dressing room after sports? Same thing. Doesn't work if you tense up muscles all through the action.
@@swordandshield Yeah I got you, I'm just saying you're clearly not engaging in the explosive moves you mentioned for the sake of safety.
Which I assume there would be plenty of in a fight, and thus it looks much different from a fight.
But fair enough I didn't consider you would be so relaxed in between those moments.
Total interessant, zuzusehen um dann festzustellen das es nur leicht aussieht! Hab mich beim ersten Mal beinahe selbst massakriert 🥴🤪
Grüße Ragnar
I see two sensible people with blunt swords doing their outmost not to hurt each other.
Those blunt sword are heavy and look like they are perfectly capable of breaking fingers, skulls...
I wonder how two people with the opposite mindset, i.e. trying to inflict appalling wounds on each other, with razor sharp swords... how would affect choreography?... and I am not talking about post wound choreography... I am not saying this study is irrelevant, no, but my inexperienced mind suspect something quite different would arise. Different levels of adrenaline, hostility... am I mistaken?
Excellent channel, by the way.
The common question of „What if they actually tried to kill each other?“ disregards that the key of prevailing in combat is not to kill but to survive. Only survivors can teach what kept them alive in fighting - and they left us martial arts. Exploiting the opponent’s mistake when he fails to cover himself or misjudges distance is the aim, not rushing in with over-zeal, trying to force it. Brute force only works against unskilled victims. However, according to historical sources (and to my limited experience), the forceful fighter is relatively easy to deal with and usually kills himself. Or else there would not be any martial arts, only strength training.
@@swordandshield In the old fight against ignorance there is always the maxim: If you are riddled by doubt and floating on ignorance, maybe you should ask someone who is less ignorant.
Instead of applying brute force and pretend I know, I asked you, and sure enough, became somewhat less ignorant.
Thank you.
I remembered something in this dialectic, ignorant brute force vs experience (survival)... Alexander the Great, while conquering Anatolia (Edit: Now I remember, I think it was a little further in the middle Eastern coast, I will check it later...) came across a rather difficult fortification, and for all the expedience and resourcefulness, things were quite simply not working. He was stuck. I fail to remember the name of the said fortification, I would need to go and check. And then, at the end of the day, the younger and more inexperienced elements of the Alexandrian army gathered to drink and distress. Drink led to boasting, boasting led to more drink, and to make a long story short, after a session of binge drinking the youths decided to take the fortress themselves and quite obviously placed themselves into trouble... therefore the veterans had to get up in the middle of the night to rescue the senseless young men. The battle raged with particularly vicious violence. By the break of dawn, the impregnable fortress was giving way already. The following day, it fell.
Conflict is a complex affair...
@@zachariaszut Indeed. I vaguely remember a source saying that the ultimate test for a combatant was to prevail against a master, a novice and a drunken adversary. Another one says that amongst the fallen, the master lies next to the beginner. Fighters of modern duels say that under stress, your repertoire shrinks to a small percentage of what you have trained. Which is probably why Bruce Lee said he does not fear the fighter who has trained a thousand techniques but the one who trained one technique a thousand times. Replacing instinctive responses by martially sound ones is the aim of training. Martial arts are often counter-intuitive, not least because they pair virtues that do not come as a pair by nature. For instance, being determined yet calm, remaining relaxed yet focused etc. In theory, a fight between two equal combatants who constantly act in accordance with martial arts principles would go on forever. Of course, this never happens. One will make a mistake at one point. This is why true fights are never won. Instead, one loses.
Cirrection: it should be "wrong-hander against right-hander."
Correction: it should be "Correction: it should be "wrong-hander against right-hander.""
Actually, the 13th century Norwegian King's Mirror advocates training ambidexterity.