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SEXY GLAM
MAGAZINE - NOVEMBER 2013
he ancestor of modern
fencing originated in Spain,
where several books on fencing were
written. Treatise on Arms was written
by Diego de Valera between 1458 and
1471, and is the oldest surviving manual
on western fencing shortly before
dueling came under official ban by the
Catholic Monarchs. In conquest, the
Spanish forces carried fencing around
the world, particularly southern Italy,
one of the major areas of strife between
both nations.
The mechanics of modern fencing origi-
nated in the 18th century in an Italian
school of fencing of the Renaissance,
and, under their influence, was im-
proved by the French school of fencing.
The Spanish school of fencing stagnated
and was replaced by the Italian and
French schools. Nowadays, these two
schools are the most influential around
the world.
Dueling went into sharp decline after
World War I. After World War II, du-
eling went out of use in Europe except
for very rare exceptions. Training for
duels, once fashionable for males of
aristocratic backgrounds (although
fencing masters such as Hope suggest
that many people considered them-
selves trained from taking only one or
two lessons), all but disappeared, along
with the classes themselves. Fencing
continued as a sport, with tournaments
and championships. However, the need
to actually prepare for a duel with
“sharps” vanished, changing both train-
ing and technique.
Starting with épée in 1936, side-judges
were replaced by an electrical scoring
apparatus, with an audible tone and
a red or green light indicating when a
touch landed. Foil first embraced elec-
tronic scoring in 1956, sabre in 1988.
The scoring box reduced the bias in
judging, and permitted more accurate
scoring of faster actions, lighter touches,
and more touches to the back and flank
than before.
Weapons
There are three weapons in modern
fencing: foil, épée, and sabre. Each
weapon has its own rules and strategies.
Foil: a light thrusting weapon that
targets the torso (including the back),
neck, and groin, but not the arms or
legs. The foil has a small circular hand
guard that serves to protect the hand
from direct stabs. As the hand is not a
valid target in foil, this is primarily for
safety. Touches are
scored only
with the
tip; hits
with
the
side
of the
blade
do not
count,
and
do not
halt the
action.
Touches
that land
outside of the target
area (called an off-
target touch) stop
the action, but are not
scored. Only a single
touch can be scored by
either
fencer at one time. If both fencers land
valid touches at the same time, the ref-
eree uses the rules of “right of way” to
determine which fencer gets the point.
If both fencers begin their attack at the
same time, or the referee is unable to