OLD SWORD-PLAY THE SYSTEMS OF THE FENCE

This, the second of Hutton’s books to be reprinted by Naval and Military Press (the other is Cold Steel: a practical treatise of the sabre) is extremely rare, for only 300 copies were printed. The author, ex-King’s Dragoon Guards, was an acknowledged fencing expert, who made it his business to know the history of his sport as well as the practical application of it. Here he looks at the 15th to 16th centuries, and starts by looking at the two-handed sword. He continues with a history of the rapier and the dagger, the broadsword and the buckler, spending much time on a detailed history of both development and use of these weapons. He also looks at the practice of fighting with dagger and cloak and rapier and cloak, an almost balletic art much done in the fifteenth century. His next topic looks at the eighteenth century, after dealing with the transition period between swordplay and sport. The plates cover the various stages and movements of fencing, all of which are adapted from contemporary prints created by the masters of the art of the specific time. In all a very rewarding treatment of the art and its history.