Why I love HEMA
I have a confession. I hate sport fencing now. I can’t stand to watch it. I didn’t even bother watching the Olympics. But Patrick literally 2 years ago you where so adamant about it. What the hell? First, shut up. Second, let me explain.
HEMA - Historical European Martial Arts. Makes sense? Ok, in lay man terms, it’s the study and practical application of historical treatises and manuals into a martial context. In this case, sparring and tournaments. Now here’s a disclaimer: HEMA does have problems like any other sport. I’ll get into that in another post. But here is why I love it.
1) It’s way more realistic. As a former sport sabre fencer, I don’t necessarily have to worry about getting ran down by some energizer bunny 12 year old. Also the whole right of way concept goes out the window. It’s a swordfight, not a game of tag.
2) A variety of weapons. This really could go without saying but I guess I’ll elaborate. There are many weapons and different ways to use them. Example, Longsword. Now there is the Italian (Fiore dei Liberi) and German (Joachim Meyer) treatises on longsword. So essentially the same weapon but the plays and use of them not only are different but can be synthesized into a personal style. Fiore literally has a play of throwing the longsword in certain situations and other times makes use of half swording to gain leverage of the parry. Some common weapons include; longsword, saber, rapier, dagger, and sword and buckler. While these are the most common, there are many varieties of weapon combos that can be used in conjunction. Which leads to the next point.
3) Creativity. My club (Two Ravens Fencing School) has recently started to experiment with non-standard weapon combos. For instance, you can use rapier with a buckler, or an arming sword with a dagger. And then there is sabre which can also be used with a dagger or buckler. Did I also mention there is a sidesword? Yeah so not only can it be used by itself, it can be used like a rapier, with dagger, and with a buckler shield. It is a sort of middle ground between an arming sword and a rapier and it’s really cool to use. Not only that, but fencing unlike weapons is also a thing and yes was done in history. I can use a sword and buckler against a longsword, or fight sabre against a rapier. It tests your mettle and mental fortitude and I absolutely love it when I have an unorthodox challenge.
4) Grappling. I haven’t mentioned this because this is the biggest difference between sport and HEMA. As I said fighting unlike weapons is a thing. Even in similar weapons though there is a substantial amount of grappling. Whether it’s the blade, the opponents wrist, or arm, this sets it apart from sport fencing and thus fulfills the martial aspect of the term. This is the most daunting for new people but like anything it takes practice. I am more comfortable pushing a longsword or rapier out of the way now than when I first started a year ago.
5) Last but not least, age gap and knowledge application. I don’t know what it is about US sport fencing (actually I do but am not going to open that salt mine) but there is no age group once you hit from like 21 to 40. 40 is where the Veteran category begins. So for people like me (27 btw yikes), the senior events often had teenagers to 50 year old in the tournament. Now this sounds like an excuse and it is because of previous injuries but the last thing I want is to get literally ran at by some kid because they can blast off the line 1000 times without thinking. That isn’t to say that it’s not a skill because trust me it is, but I don’t want to have to convince a referee of I started my attack first. In HEMA, there is only the question of who hit who really. You both hit the same target area, not points. Pretty simple. Yes there is timing, but it’s way more friendly on the eye since you know we’re swinging blunt metal weapons at each other. But enough of that. There is a lot of cross-reference in the footwork and plays between the weapons. My coach even says that, use saberists should do sword and buckler since many of the cuts are very similar. The thing about HEMA is that you can be creative both in your weapon preference and your fencing. Something that isn’t in a manual just probably means that it wasn’t considered at the time but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. All the knowledge you learn does apply to other weapons and even lightsaber. From personal experience, when people are fighting lightsaber, I can tell if they do HEMA and which weapon they prefer and also their fencing background. Whether it’s kendo, jiujitsu, boxing, or sport fencing, there is something in HEMA for everyone if you’re willing to give it a go. And that is why I love it.