The Cgm 558, or ''Codex germanicus monacensis'' is a convolution of two 15th-century manuscripts with a total of 176 folia, bound together in the 16th century. It is kept at the Bavarian library in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

. The first manuscript contains two chronicles composed by one Otmar Gassow in 1462, one concerned with

Zürich , neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon , twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco Zürich ...

, the other with the

Toggenburg Toggenburg is a region of Switzerland. It corresponds to the upper valley of the river Thur and that of its main tributary, the Necker. Since 1 January 2003, Toggenburg has been a constituency (''Wahlkreis'') of the canton of St. Gallen ( ...

(see

Old Zürich War The Old Zurich War (german: Alter Zürichkrieg), 1440–46, was a conflict between the canton of Zurich and the other seven cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy over the succession to the Count of Toggenburg. In 1436, Count Friedrich VII of T ...

), and a copy of the 13th century ''

Schwabenspiegel The ''Schwabenspiegel'' is a legal code, written in ca. 1275 by a Franciscan friar in Augsburg. It deals mainly with questions of land ownership and fiefdom, and it is based on the Pentateuch, Roman law as well as Canon law. It draws on the early ...

'' law codex.

*first part, by Otmar Gossow 1462, foll. 1–100. **1r–94v: ''Schwabenspiegel'' **94v–100r ''Landfried König Rudolf'', 1287 (biography of

Rudolph I Rudolf I (1 May 1218 – 15 July 1291) was the first King of Germany from the House of Habsburg. The first of the count-kings of Germany, he reigned from 1273 until his death. Rudolf's election marked the end of the Great Interregnum which h ...

) *second part, in two 15th century hands, foll. 101–160. **scribe A, 101–124 ***101r–109v ''Chronik von Zürich'', Eberhard von Müllner (chronicle of Zürich) ***109v–113r ''Chronistische Notizen zur Schweizergeschichte'', 1385–1446, appendix to the Zürich chronicle) ***113r–124r Kleine Toggenburger Chronik, 1314 (Petite Chronique de Toggenburg) **scribe B (Hugo Wittenwiler), 125–150 ***125r–136v ''Fechtbuch'' (combat treatise) ***136r–141r ''Lehre von den Zeichen des Hirsches'' (on hunting the stag) ***141r–150r ''Beizbüchlein'' (hunting manual, incomplete) **scribe A, 151–160 ***151r-153r ''Planetenverse'' (astrological verses) ***153r-160r ''Monatsregimen, mit verworfenen Tagen'' (calendars)

The Fechtbuch

The second part contains a short

Fechtbuch Martial arts manuals are instructions, with or without illustrations, specifically designed to be learnt from a book. Many books detailing specific techniques of martial arts are often erroneously called manuals but were written as treatises. Pros ...

on 12 pages, penned in Hand B, attributed on fol. 141r to ''per manus Hugonis dicti Wittenwiller'' (c.f. Heinrich Wittenwiler who may be of the same family), together with an illegible date. The text's language is

High Alemannic High Alemannic is a dialect of Alemannic German spoken in the westernmost Austrian state of Vorarlberg and in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Language area The High Alemannic dialects are spoken in Liechtenstein and in most of German-speaking S ...

, and it was probably written in or near the

. The treatise consists of 122 short paragraphs, numbered by de Grenier (2004), treating the

long sword A longsword (also spelled as long sword or long-sword) is a type of European sword characterized as having a cruciform hilt with a grip for primarily two-handed use (around ), a straight double-edged blade of around , and weighing approximate ...

(1–50), pole weapons (

halberd A halberd (also called halbard, halbert or Swiss voulge) is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. The word ''halberd'' is cognate with the German word ''Hellebarde'', deriving from ...

spear A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...

51–55), combat on horseback with sword or spear (56–64), the

baselard The baselard, ''Schwiizerdolch'' in Swiss-German (also ''basilard, baslard'', in Middle French also and variants, Latinized etc., in Middle High German ) is a historical type of dagger or short sword of the Late Middle Ages. Etymology In mod ...

(65–80),

dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use de ...

on foot and on horseback (81–85), knife (86–90), unarmed defense against an attack with a baselard, a dagger or a knife (91–98) and

grappling Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling ...

(99–122). Paragraphs numbered 44 consists of three rhymed couplets, the last one reading :''Iunk man lern maister ler / hab got lib und frowen er'' :"Young man, learn masters' lore, love God and honour noble women" This is reminiscent of one of

Johannes Liechtenauer Johannes Liechtenauer (also ''Lichtnauer'', ''Hans Lichtenawer'') was a German fencing master who had a great level of influence on the German fencing tradition in the 14th century. Biography Liechtenauer seems to have been active during the mi ...

's verses, c.f. :''Jung Ritter lere / got lip haben frawen io ere'' :"Young knight, learn to love god, and to honour noble women" The long sword terminology seems also loosely influenced by the

German school Education in Germany is primarily the responsibility of individual German States of Germany, states (), with the federal government playing a minor role. Optional Kindergarten, Kindergarden (nursery school) education is provided for all child ...

, but it has some terms that are not encountered elsewhere (''gassen how'', ''schlims how'' (two strikes), ''drig angel'' "triangle" (a stance or stepping action)).

External links

transcription
by Didier de Grenier (2004, PDF file)
transcription (with glossary)
15th-century manuscripts Swiss manuscripts Combat treatises History of hunting

Contents

The Fechtbuch

External links