Events

2 09, 2016

Ilkka Hartikainen Seminar – 27th August 2016

2016-09-02T12:10:22+00:00September 2nd, 2016|Events|

One of the advantages of training with The School of the Sword is that we are large enough for it to be economically viable for us to fly in world-class instructors for day-long seminars.

You’ve probably seen Ilkka Hartikainen’s incredible videos on Marozzo.com and we were very pleased when he agreed to come to the UK to teach our students some Bolognese single sidesword.  Knowing how popular this seminar would be we opened up a limited number of spaces to people from other schools, only for the event to fill incredibly quickly.

The day was a massive success.  Starting with some warm up exercises and moving into footwork, Ilkka had the students building up drills into multiple intention attacks.  Students came away buzzing and excited to put what they had learnt into use.

17 08, 2016

The School of Sword Returns From Fightcamp With Medal Haul

2016-08-17T08:49:12+00:00August 17th, 2016|Events, Rapier, Sword & Buckler, Trophies|

This past weekend, The School of the Sword ‘invaded’ Fightcamp.  With over 20 members in attendance we created our very own tent city within the campsite and partook in a wide variety of workshops, classes and tournaments.

We came away with good memories, a few lost ones, new friendships, a few aches and pains, and five medals.

Sasha took gold in  single rapier and bronze in both the Assault at Arms and longsword. Pim took silver in single rapier whilst Jay received silver in the  Eggleton Cup.  We also had a number of students make it out of the pools in a variety of disciplines.

Thanks to those we competed against for providing such brilliant competition and congratulations to all winners.

Some photos by Richard Hughes and Christophe Loyce.

17 07, 2016

Good First Day At Astolat Tournament – 16th July 2016

2016-07-17T08:12:01+00:00July 17th, 2016|Dagger, Events, Rapier, Sword & Buckler|

This weekend HEMA fencers from across the world have gathered in the UK for the Astolat tournament.  School of the Sword students have competed in a number of disciplines.

Against a very high standard of fencing, a number of students have progressed to quarter finals in Rapier & Dagger, and Sword & Buckler which will take place on Sunday.

Congratulations and best of luck to Pim, Matt, Jay, Lynette, Chris. Sasha and Maria.

8 07, 2016

Instructor Seminar – 3rd July 2016

2016-07-06T09:39:03+00:00July 8th, 2016|Events, Godalming, Reading|

Training forms a very large part of the School of the Sword.  With multiple streams of training at two locations, this involves an ever growing number of instructors.

To ensure a consistent level of training, the senior instructors of School of the Sword ran the first of their Instructor seminars covering such things as health and safety, school curriculum, lesson planning and drill design.  Those who attended found it incredibly useful and came away feeling better prepared for upcoming teaching blocks.

7 07, 2016

School of the Sword Social – 2nd July 2016

2016-07-06T09:30:14+00:00July 7th, 2016|Events, Reading|

Whilst it is common for members to retreat to the pub after a hectic sparring or training session, Saturday night saw the School of the Sword venture into the wilds of Reading for dedicated social evening.

We started in the pub for some liquid refreshment before heading out for a meal together where we came away with a certificate of achievement for completing the Mississippi Platter.  A great night out with a lot of laughs.

20 06, 2016

Booking Now Live For Ilkka Hartikainen Seminar

2016-06-27T14:02:06+00:00June 20th, 2016|Events|

We’re pleased to announce that booking is now live for the Ilkka Hartikainen Seminar – On the Bolognese Single Sidesword.

Saturday 27th August 11am-5pm, Godalming.

Price: £25

The School of the Sword is proud to announce this one day seminar, delivered by Ilkka on the Bolognese single sidesword, drawn from several sources with a particular focus on the Anonimo Bolognese. Ilkka is recognised as a world-leading exponent of Bolognese fencing, and will be presenting his work for the first time ever in the UK.

This event is open to students from HEMA schools other than the School of the Sword,

Ilkka Hartikainen began studying historical European martial arts in 2001 and discovered the rich early renaissance fencing tradition of Bologna in 2007. The Bolognese sidesword soon became his main focus and since 2010 he has taught regular classes in Helsinki, where he is the head instructor at the Espoo Association for Historical Fencing. Every year Ilkka travels around the world to speak and teach on 16th century Italian martial arts. 

Currently multiple groups in Finland follow Ilkka’s method and he is working together with other enthusiasts of Bolognese tradition to bring the style back to life. Recently he has concentrated on creating an accessible core system for the sidesword based on the works of Achille Marozzo, Giovanni dall’Agocchie and the Anonimo Bolognese. From here his focus will shift to the other weapons and disciplines in the texts, looking at the tradition as a unified, complete martial art. Ilkka is the founder of Marozzo.com, a website project dedicated to sharing information on Bolognese fencing, and works as a user interface specialist when not training or teaching swordsmanship.

To book and pay (via Paypal) please visit:

BOOKING NOW FULL

Places are limited so act fast as this is expected to sell out quickly!

14 06, 2016

Grappling Workshop – 12th June 2016

2016-06-19T16:42:41+00:00June 14th, 2016|Events, Godalming|

The School of the Sword played host to a special seminar on grappling this past Sunday.  Guest instructor, Peter Smallridge, gave members from School of the Sword and other surrounding HEMA schools a quick introduction to the basics of grappling.

After a hot, sweaty session, we broke into free sparring for the rest of the afternoon.

13 06, 2016

Have-A-Go Day – 12th June 2016

2016-06-18T12:50:43+00:00June 13th, 2016|Events, Godalming|

The School of the Sword held it’s first “have a go day” last Sunday, and had a great turn out.

People who attended took advantage of the doughnuts and coffee, got to hold swords, learn techniques and have fun with swordplay. It was a great success and we plan to hold more of these open days in the future.

Pictures by Sarah Wells

10 06, 2016

School of the Sword In Motion Capture Study

2016-06-17T10:57:15+00:00June 10th, 2016|Events, Rapier|

The School of the Sword was invited to take part in a preliminary motion capture study by Portsmouth University animation department.

A small group was selected to attend on two days to help with the study. This involved wearing motion capture suits and lots of markers whilst trying not to knock them off with swords. It was great fun and those who attended put on a good display.

We will continue to be working closely with the department. The ultimate aim of the study is to capture and record the physical movements of arts such as dance, boxing and swordplay.

3 06, 2016

School of the Sword Takes Silver At May Melee

2016-06-05T23:00:52+00:00June 3rd, 2016|Events, Sword & Buckler, Trophies|

A number of our students attended the May Melee in Bath at the weekend.  With a mix of sparring, classes and two mixed weapon competitions the event has seen a growth in popularity.

We’re pleased that our very own Jay Maxwell managed to take silver in the Steel Open competition.  By all accounts it was a fun weekend and even those who returned without any medals said they had a brilliant time.

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