HEMA gathering in April

Slovenska različica

Photo: Konstantin Rebek

(Listening to The Walkabouts: The Dustlands)

Swords, sabres and rapiers.
Pastry, grilled meat and muffins that most probably rank among Top3 in the world.
Sparring, practice and tons of fun.

These are the keywords I would use to describe the event that took place on the last Sunday in April.

A number of HEMAists gathered on the lawn in front of Miran Krstičić’ house.
In the early afternoon this generous host welcomed HEMAists from Slovenia, Croatia, Italy and Slovakia, as well as some of his acquaintances with their families.
Those observed the HEMAists fighting in bouts and exchanging experience with keen interest.

Photo: Konstantin Rebek

The event was a good opportunity for HEMAists to compare various bits of protective equipment and to discuss possibilities of improving it. Throughout the event, sparring was almost uninterrupted.

At first glance, one might conclude that longsword lost its place to sabre as the weapon of choice, as many participants chose the latter for sparring.
Even the writer of this post is a proud owner of two excellent sabres made by the very host of the event.


Miran Krstičić has designed and produced steel replicas of historical weapons for a length of time. His products are especially suitable for HEMA practice and fighting in bouts.
To achieve high quality of his products, he had to undertake in-depth research, testing, gathering feedback and be very innovative.
We in the AAD are extremely glad to have a very good sabre design at our disposal, which enables safe and efficient practice and sparring.
Miran is currently developing an economic model of 17th Cent rapier, as well as 16th Cent federschwert. 

The guests were given a tour of Miran’s workshop, where processes of replica production were explained. Now we all know exactly how much effort, precision and persistence is needed to produce safe and reliable steel replicas of historical weapons.

Photo: Gregor Rozman

Learning how to use one’s blade in a proper manner is also a part of exercise. Proper use is affected by proper form and proper movement which we could practice a bit using some sharpened blades.

In a safe and controlled environment plastic bottles filled with water and cardboard rolls were at disposal for cutting and thrusting.

Needless to say, it was also a great opportunity for good fun and salves of laughter.

The initiator of the event Alen Lovrič - also an instructor at the AAD - had another idea.
The event could also be viewed as a demonstration of solidarity in our local HEMA community.
 In his invitation to the event he asked the participants to donate to a fund to procure a kiln for Miran’s workshop - an essential tool in weapon production.

The result was fantastic - a total sum of €740 was donated to the fund!

“The great result of our gathering points to members of our little community being closely connected. As the community grows, we also have the responsibility of keeping those closely-woven ties” said Alen.

Miran Krstičić was happy. “It was awesome and I’m very pleased. I hope to see all of them again in the same great atmosphere!”


With the weather getting warmer and days getting longer, we hope for more such events in splendid surroundings with splendid people.
As Alen winked at me saying: “What is best in life? Swords, coffee and good company!”

Photo: Gregor Rozman

“I met new people, had good food, cut some water bottles for the first time, while at the same time helping a new smith make better products. Looking forward to doing it again.” (Ivan Čurić, Ars Gladiatoria from Croatia)

Seminar on Meyer's dagger and longsword

by Roman Vučajnk

Slovenska različica

SwArta, a Belgian group, invited me to hold a weekend seminar on Joachim Meyer's dagger and longsword.
I accepted the invitation gladly, due to past co-operation with some of the members.

Alwin Goethals (Chief Instructor at SwArta and member of HEMAC) picked me up at the Brussels Airport and drove me to the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military Museum. Karin Verelst (SwArta & HEMAC) joined us there at the collection of medieval and post-medieval arms and armour.

A visit to the Royal Museums of Art and History (Jubelparkmuseum) followed; there we saw a very good exhibition Between Heaven and Hell- Death in Middle Ages. The exhibition was comprised of four parts- the artefacts and elaborations vividly presented The Causes of Death, Care for the Dying and the Rituals of Death, Topography of Death and [the way] From Death to Resurrection.

After enjoying a good lunch at 't Kapiteintje next to St. Catherine Square, our way led us to Antwerp, where the plan for the weekend seminar was re-checked.
Next morning we drove to an elementary school gym outside Antwerp and commenced with the seminar on Meyer's dagger. In order to learn about Meyer's approach to fighting in more depth, we included many drills from ringen and physical exercises for warm-up, stretching, strength and breathing. The seminar followed Meyer's text Grundliche beschreibung...; we had plenty of opportunity to compare Meyer's approach to fighting with dagger to the medieval ones.

That evening we had a glorious evening meal in De Grootte Ganz in Antwerp. It was a great time to have a decent chat and lots of fun.

On Sunday morning we drove to a larger gym (as there were additional participants) and we looked into Joachim Meyer's approach to fighting with longsword. Basics on movement were tackled, as well as the principles of combat and details on various executions of techniques. To fully comprehend the topic, we needed to refer to the context of Meyer's fighting- the Fechtschulen, frequent events in many cities, which attracted fechters from all over Europe to fight. The purpose of Fechtshulen was not to run a proper tournament and certainly not to stage a judicial duel. It was about displaying one's fighting skills before the public eye and judges, who granted rewards and even certificates. That lead to some combat tactics and techniques being forbidden or limited due to safety reasons, even though serious injuries were known to have occurred.

As the second day of the seminar was also very demanding, some competitive games and recreational exercises were included.
I was very pleased with the attendees- highly motivated, open to new knowledge and happy to provide good feedback.
The members of St. Michaels Guild from Brugge also attended, as well as Reinier van Noort (School voor Historische Schermkunsten & HEMAC) and Peregrijn (Zwaard & Volk / Zwaardkring) from the Netherlands.


The next day I had a great honour of being taken on a historical trip through Gent by Alwin and Xavier Baecke (SwArta & HEMAC), an expert on Gent and an excellent historian, who organised the tour. I learned a lot about the evolution of Gent in connection to history of Flanders. Sugar on top- warm and sunny weather.

Tuesday passed in exploring Antwerp, again with Alwin and Xavier. This time, Alwin was the guide with Xavier standing ready with additional info and suggestions. Diamonds were not what we were after- we browsed medieval sights and tried to fit them in a larger picture of Flemish history and culture.

In the afternoon we said our good-byes and I took the train to Brussels. There I spent the rest of the sunny week exploring the city sights and catching up with friends.

Photos

Report on the seminar on SwArta website
Webalbum
(both by Alwin Goethals)