Gründtliche Beschreibung der Kunst des Fechtens or, in English: A Foundational Description of the Art of Fencing: ''A Thorough Description of the Free, Knightly and Noble Art of Fencing, Showing Various Customary Defenses, Affected and Put Forth with Many Handsome and Useful Drawings'' is a
German fencing manual that was published in 1570. Its author was the
Freifechter Joachim Meyer. This manual was made for and was dedicated to Meyer's patron Count Palatine
Johann Casimir. This ''fechtbuch'' builds on his earlier work, a
manuscript
A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...
written in 1560 - the MS A.4°.2, and presents a complex, multi-weapon treatise. Meyer's complete system often marks the end of and the compilation of the German fencing system in the
Johannes Liechtenauer tradition. It is the only fechtbuch in the Liechtenauer tradition that was written for both laymen and beginners of the art.
[https://elib.uni-stuttgart.de/bitstream/11682/5275/1/Fechtbuch.pdf Das Fechtbuch - Universität Stuttgart]
Publication History
The first edition of ''Gründtliche Beschreibung der Kunst des Fechtens'' was published in 1570 in the city of
Strasbourg
Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...
. It was printed just a couple months before Joachim Meyer's death in 1571. After Meyer's death, his widow, Appolonia Ruhlman, sold the original woodcuts used for the illustrations in the book to pay off the 300 crown debt that Meyer had incurred over the writing and publishing of his fechtbuch. In 1600, Meyer's widow republished the book in
Augsburg, Germany.
According to some sources, the book may have been republished in 1610 and again in 1660, but so far only the 1570 and 1600 editions have been recovered.
Contents
The treatise contains three books in five parts within its 379 pages.
Book 1, Part 1 -
Longsword
Book 2, Part 2 -
Dusack
Book 2, Part 3 - Side sword or
rapier
A rapier () is a type of sword originally used in Spain (known as ' -) and Italy (known as '' spada da lato a striscia''). The name designates a sword with a straight, slender and sharply pointed two-edged long blade wielded in one hand. It wa ...
Book 3, Part 4 -
Dagger
A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually one or two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a cutting or stabbing, thrusting weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or ...
Book 3, Part 5 -
Staff and
polearms
References
*Meyer, Joachim. ''The Art of Combat: A German Martial Arts Treatise from 1570'', trans. by Jeffrey L. Forgeng. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006.
* Jeffrey L. Forgeng, ''The Art of Combat: A German Martial Arts Treatise of 1570'' (2006)
External links
wiktenauer.com
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Combat treatises