[Jeff Stewart]

Tonight’s practice was a real eye-opener as it was my first experience using and defending against sword and buckler. Since late spring we’ve been doing long sword, tossing in some wrestling and dagger every so often. Each of these things is pretty similar, but the buckler was completely alien and almost contrary to much of what we’ve been doing thus far.

In the beginning it seemed as though every strike could be easily slapped away by the buckler leaving ample room for their counter. It quickly became obvious that at range the buckler makes attacking very difficult, if not impossible, so we tried getting inside as quickly as we could as having a weapon in each hand makes close quarters difficult. Half-swording seemed to even the playing field for the most part, but getting that close against two weapons is insanely challenging, so we started going for the legs a lot.

Using the buckler was a different story all together. It was really awkward at first – having both hands full really gums guards up, changing some and eliminating others entirely. It’s natural to slap or punch something away when it comes at you – the buckler played incredibly well to that instinct, but still, after having practiced something else for six-ish months, the adjustments will be hard.

I’m not sure if I like the buckler yet, but I know for certain that I don’t like going against one, at least with long sword. If anyone has any tips or suggestions for using or getting around sword and buckler they would be greatly appreciated because at this point I am just confused.

Thanks!

[Bill Grandy]

Hey Jeff,
Is there a particular style of sword and buckler that you're doing? (such as from I.33, or from Marrozzo, etc.) Just curious, because I've mostly only done stuff from I.33, so my advice may not really apply to you.

I find that for sword and buckler, it really isn't all that different than longsword, in general. The buckler closes off a larger line of attack than a longsword does. I have found that, yes, leg shots to become a little more common, though still very risky because of the exposed head. One of the major advantages of a buckler is the ability to attack in one line while protecting another, but this can also be used against the opponent. A proper feint to force you opponent to separate the sword and shield may allow you to outleverage the single hand sword alone, or to create an open spot.

Overall, the buckler really is an effective tool, though, and fighting against one is always a challenge.

[Jeff Stewart]

I’m not sure exactly what style we were using, but what you’ve said is very reminiscent of this evening. Along with the buckler, my friend brought a much over-Xeroxed manual in a binder that we referenced from. Feints were definitely kept in mind as we played with and learned from the new (to us) tool, though not used to their fullest by any means. I’ll definitely be trying more feints next time as what I was doing was, for the most part, ineffective and leaving me dead.

[Holly Hunt]

I have to admit that the sword and buckler style used in 1.33 really has me hooked on the weapons form. I'm using Jeffrey Forgeng's interpretation and I'm still working through a lot because some of the descriptions (not his fault) are sort of indistinct. (And no one else in our group likes it as much as I do.) And there is no doubt in my mind that the buckler made a BIG difference in protection, parrying and range. I won't use them without gloves or at anything approximating full speed with a new partner.

For those of you using later treatises and manuals, is the form and use that much different?

[Bill Grandy]

[Holly Hunt]

[Bill Grandy]

Silver tends to follow some of the I.33 stuff, with some differences. I haven't worked with his stuff so much, so I can't say too much. Cappo Ferro doesn't have buckler, and you'll find that none of the "true" rapier masters do. It's only the "cut and thrust" rapiers (the sidesword, as most modern practitioners would call it) where you see the buckler being used, such as seen in Marrozzo or Lovino.

Both AEMMA and ARMA's websites that you linked to are excellent resources for seeing the historical documents. The fact that these are generously available on the web through these sites has really made WMA a pursuit that can be followed by people without access to museum manuscripts or priviledged documents.