Bolognese Swordsmanship

Bolognese Swordsmanship,also sometimes known as theDardi school,is a tradition within theItalian school of swordsmanshipwhich is based on the surviving fencing treatises published by several 16th century fencing masters ofBologna,^[1] As early as the 14th century several fencing masters were living and teaching in the city: a maestro Rosolino in 1338, a maestro Nerio in 1354, and a maestro Francesco in 1385.^[2]^[3]

Overview

The Dardi school is named after Lippo Bartolomeo Dardi, a professor of mathematics and astronomy at theUniversity of Bologna,who was licensed as a fencing master and founded a fencing school in Bologna in 1415, just a few years afterFiore dei Liberihad completed hisFior di Battaglia.The Dardi School constituted both the last great medieval Western martial arts tradition as well as the first great Renaissance tradition, embracing both armed and unarmed combat. No manuscript ascribed to Dardi himself survives, although his tradition became the foundation for the work ofAntonio ManciolinoandAchille Marozzo,both possibly students of famed Bolognese master Guido Antonio de Luca.^[4]^[5]

The Bolognese masters whose treatises have survived shared a greater consistency of style, terminology and pedagogy with each other than with fencing masters of the period from other parts of Italy, thus justifying their treatment as a single school. The Dardi school focused primarily the single-handedspada da lato(side-sword)still used for both cutting and thrusting. The side-sword was used in combination with various defensive weapons, including a shield (brocchiero,rotellaortarga), a dagger, a gauntlet or a cape. The two-handed sword orspadonewas also still taught, although losing its prominence. In addition, instruction on fighting with thepoleaxeand otherpolearmswas given.^[6]^[7]^[8]

Sources

A treatise on thegintilissima arte del schirmire( "most noble art of fencing" ) by a "Bologneseanonymus"(Anonimo Bolognese) was edited by Rubboli and Cesari (2005). It is dated to the "very first years of the 1500s" by the editors, but others have placed it closer to 1550.^[9] It is a compilation preserved in a single manuscript version (in two parts), mss. 345/6 of theBiblioteca ClassenseinRavenna.^[10]

TheOpera Novaof Antonio Manciolino was apparently first published in the early 1520s, but only a copy of the likely second edition, "newly revised and printed" in 1531, has survived. It was dedicated toLuis Fernández de Córdoba, Duke of Sessa(d. 1526), mentioned asimperialambassador toPope Adrian VI(r. 1522/23).^[11]

Opera Nova dell'arte delle armi( "New Treatise on the Art of Arms" ) byAchille Marozzowas published in 1536 inModena,dedicated to Count Rangoni. Considered the most important work on Italian fencing of the 16th century, it exemplifies techniques about fighting in a judicial duel with all the major weapons of the times and includes a large section on the conventions and rules of the duel.^[12]^[13]

Angelo Viggiani'sLo Schermowas written around 1550 and published posthumously, ca. 1575.^[14]^[15]

Giovanni dall'Agocchie,Dell'Arte di Scrimia,1572. This work is unusually clear, a significant amount of material on the theory of swordsmanship along with many specific descriptions of the fundamentals.^[16]^[17]

Girolamo Cavalcabo (Hieronyme Calvacabo, Hieronimo Cavalcabo) was trained in the Bolognese school of fencing, possibly under Angelo Viggiani dal Montone, and seems to have traveled to London, England in the 1580s or 1590s. While in London, he wrote a treatise on the use of the rapier entitledNobilissimo discorso intorno il schermo( "Most Noble Discourse on Defense" ), published in 1597. In the early 17th century, he served as fencing master at the court of Henry IV of France toprince Louis (the future Louis XIII).^[18]

References

^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Orioli, Emilio (May 20–21, 1901). "La scherma a Bologna".Il Resto del Carlino,Italy. Print.
^Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2
^Mele, Gregory. "Bolognese Poleaxe Combat: A New Look at an Old Weapon."In the Service of Mars: Proceedings from the Western Martial Arts Workshop 1999–2009, Volume I.Ed. Gregory D. Mele. 1st ed. Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 13-39. Print.ISBN 978-0-9825911-5-4
^Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2.Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^"345-6. Trattato della « gintilissima arte del schirmire », adesp[oto] e acef[alo] (Sec. xvi)." Giuseppe Mazzatinti,Inventari dei manoscritti delle biblioteche d'Italiavol. 4 (1894),p. 219.
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2
^Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0
^Runacres, Rob. Treatise or Instruction for Fencing: By Hieronymus Calvacabo of Bologna and Patenostrier of Rome. Lulu, 2015.

External links

Bolognese Guards
Bolognese Swordsmanship: The Dardi School
Bolognese Swordsmanship (2006 class handout)by Tom Leoni
Site dedicated to the study of the Dardi traditionmaintained by William E Wilson
Bolognese Masters at Scrimipedia
Marozzo,a website dedicated to the Bolognese Swordsmanship maintained by Ilkka Hartikainen
Sala d'Arme Achille Marozzo,the greatest schools for the study of Bolognese Swordsmanship in Italy

[1] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[2] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[3] Orioli, Emilio (May 20–21, 1901). "La scherma a Bologna".Il Resto del Carlino,Italy. Print.

[4] Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2

[5] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[6] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[7] Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2

[8] Mele, Gregory. "Bolognese Poleaxe Combat: A New Look at an Old Weapon."In the Service of Mars: Proceedings from the Western Martial Arts Workshop 1999–2009, Volume I.Ed. Gregory D. Mele. 1st ed. Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 13-39. Print.ISBN 978-0-9825911-5-4

[9] Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2.Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[10] "345-6. Trattato della « gintilissima arte del schirmire », adesp[oto] e acef[alo] (Sec. xvi)." Giuseppe Mazzatinti,Inventari dei manoscritti delle biblioteche d'Italiavol. 4 (1894),p. 219.

[11] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[12] Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2

[13] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[14] Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2

[15] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[16] Mele, Gregory D. "Fighting Arts of the Renaissance ~ Bologna: City of Swordsmen."Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation.2nd. Vol. I. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Inc, 2010. 249-250. Print.ISBN 978-1-59884-243-2

[17] Leoni, Tom, tr.The Complete Renaissance Swordsman: A Guide to the Use of All Manner of Weapons ~ Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova (1531).Wheaton, IL: Freelance Academy Press, 2010. 9-11.ISBN 978-0-9825911-3-0

[18] Runacres, Rob. Treatise or Instruction for Fencing: By Hieronymus Calvacabo of Bologna and Patenostrier of Rome. Lulu, 2015.

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