Dr. Guy Windsor is a world-renowned instructor and a pioneering researcher of medieval and renaissance martial arts. He has been teaching the Art of Arms full-time since founding The School of European Swordsmanship in Helsinki, Finland, in 2001. His day job is finding and analysing historical swordsmanship treatises, figuring out the systems they represent, creating a syllabus from the treatises for his students to train with, and teaching the system to his students all over the world. Guy is the author of numerous classic books about the art of swordsmanship and has consulted on swordfighting game design and stage combat. He developed the card game, Audatia, based on Fiore dei Liberi's Art of Arms, his primary field of study. In 2018 Edinburgh University awarded him a PhD by Research Publications for his work recreating historical combat systems. When not studying medieval and renaissance swordsmanship or writing books Guy can be found in his shed woodworking or spending time with his family.
The Scoliotic Knight- and a free mechanics course!
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Hi! Exciting times at Swordschool this week... first up, renowned historian, curator, arms and armour expert, and jouster Dr. Toby Capwell has released his famous lecture "The Scoliotic Knight: Encounters with Richard III" on video for the first time. The discovery in Leicester of the grave of King Richard III (1452-85) raised many new questions. The skeleton’s severe scoliosis revealed that the twisted physique of William Shakespeare’s ‘Black Legend’ was based on fact. But how could someone with such a spinal condition have worn armour and mastered the art of combat? What did his armour look like? To explore these and other many other fascinating questions, Toby traces the unlikely (but true) story of his involvement in the investigation of Richard III’s remains, the Channel 4 documentaries, the reburial in 2015, and the 2022 feature film The Lost King. Sound like fun? You can buy the 100+ minute lecture here for just £25. And, as if that wasn't enough, you can get my new Mechanics course free from the same platform. Members of the Mastering the Art of Arms subscription have had access to it for a while now, but it's time for everyone else to have a go too. This course is a deep dive into how I examine positions and movements, for research purposes, and to develop martial skill. Enrol in Fundamentals: Body Mechanics free here. Well, that should keep you busy! cheers, Guy |
Guy Windsor's Swordschool
Dr. Guy Windsor is a world-renowned instructor and a pioneering researcher of medieval and renaissance martial arts. He has been teaching the Art of Arms full-time since founding The School of European Swordsmanship in Helsinki, Finland, in 2001. His day job is finding and analysing historical swordsmanship treatises, figuring out the systems they represent, creating a syllabus from the treatises for his students to train with, and teaching the system to his students all over the world. Guy is the author of numerous classic books about the art of swordsmanship and has consulted on swordfighting game design and stage combat. He developed the card game, Audatia, based on Fiore dei Liberi's Art of Arms, his primary field of study. In 2018 Edinburgh University awarded him a PhD by Research Publications for his work recreating historical combat systems. When not studying medieval and renaissance swordsmanship or writing books Guy can be found in his shed woodworking or spending time with his family.
BOOKS PODCAST COURSES COMMUNITY BLOG Hi! It’s that time of year again… I’ve just ordered my Swordschool Training Year Planner. This is a great tool for (you guessed it) planning your training, but it’s also just a lovely thing to have in the house. You don’t have to start it in January; it’s been carefully designed so that you can start at any point in the year (it makes a lot of sense to start a new year in Spring, for instance). But I need a new one now! I have a fancy code that gets me...
BOOKS PODCAST COURSES COMMUNITY BLOG Hi! The big news this week is of course the new book! Here in hardback, paperback, and ebook. From Medieval Manuscript to Modern Practice: the Dagger Techniques of Fiore dei Liberi has landed! It’s lovely when the print proofs arrive and you can sign off on them. And even lovelier when that means you can send out the pre-orders on time! And, doesn’t the new one look very much at home between the wrestling and the sword? Order yours here The book will go...
BOOKS PODCAST COURSES COMMUNITY BLOG Greetings from Helsinki! It’s good to be back, swinging swords in my old salle, and catching up with old friends. Last weekend’s seminars went really well: Angelo Smallsword on the Friday, Vadi Longsword on the Saturday, and Polearms (spears and pollaxes) on the Sunday. One part of me wishes I was better at taking time during seminars to take photos for the socialz, but the rest of me is quite happy focussing exclusively on the students in my class. I did...