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1 Event, 2 Days, 3 Tournaments & 4 Workshops
Eventlocation: Sporthalle OSZ Technik 1 (Ulanenweg, 14469 Potsdam)
Single Sidesword (DDHF-Ranking & HEMA-Ratings)
You can even participate without bringing a steel sidesword. If so, you’ll be placed in the nylon pool. For the finals we will provide steel loaners. If you however to bring your own sidesword, you can of course use it.
Sidesword Beginner (No Rating)
A category for people with less than 2 years of HEMA expierence in any weapon and less than 2 HEMA tournament participations with any weapon. The tournament will be fought with nylon swords by Black Fencer.
Sidesword & Companion Weapons (No Rating)
A mixed weapons tournament, where you will fight with sidesword & rotella, sidesword & buckler, sidesword & dagger, sidesword & cape and 2 sideswords… this will be fun! 🙂 The (nylon) weapons will be provided by Black Fencer.
Rules, English version:
Workshops on Sunday
Spada e Rotella: I Spy with My Little Eye!
Big shields have always been a part of historical conflicts. They provide reliable secondary protection on the battlefield and serve as a formidable obstacle that is difficult to overcome.
Our goal will be to optimize the defensive benefits of this weapon combination, as well as identify and exploit its weaknesses, following the teachings of Antonio Manciolino and Achille Marozzo from 16th century Bologna.
Minimum required equipment includes a mask, neck protection, and light gloves, as well as a one-handed sword (a small number of sidesword simulators are available if needed). A fencing jacket and/or chest protector and sturdy hand protection are recommended.
The number of available spots will depend on the availability of loaner rotella. Alternatively, this workshop can also be conducted with a strapped medium-sized shield (Heater etc.).
About the instructor: [link]
The Early Days of Destreza
La Verdadera Destreza is a system that is usually associated with the 17th Century and the works of such masters as Pacheco, Ettenhard or Rada. But the coiner of “Verdadera Destreza” as a term was Jerónimo Sánchez de Carranza, who published his magnum opus On the Philosophy of Arms and their Destreza and Christian Defence and Aggression in 1569, and he was already a practitioner of the fencing arts in the middle of the 16th century. In this workshop we will examine some of the concepts of this Early Destreza, in which the famous cup hilt rapiers of the 17th century were not invented yet, but the central tenets of the theory were already in place. This theoretical system can be used to understand fencing from any different schools, and examine their propositions to assess their “true” or “defence-based” value.
Equipment: min. Fencing mask, light gloves & a sidesword
About the instructor: Lorenzo started out in historical fencing in 2011 in Madrid as a student of the Escuela Madrileña de Esgrima Histórica, where he learnt to use the rapier following the Verdadera Destreza style. He also practised intensely with the longsword and with sword and buckler at the same school. In 2015 he moved to Warsaw and, not finding any rapier school in the city, became an instructor at the ARMA-PL fencing school. He has been teaching there since then. He maintains a broad interest in Destreza as applied to different contexts, against different schools. Being an instructor for fencers with little knowledge of rapier (much less Verdadera Destreza) has allowed (or forced, depending on the view) to rely on sources which, as a native Spanish and Italian speaker, he’s lucky enough to read in the original form. He travels extensively, and has been doing workshops in Poland and abroad. He does not care much for tournaments, but he competes occasionally. In 2022 he won three silvers, in the Valkyrie tournament in Wrocław and in the Torneo di Spada 2022 in Potsdam (single sword, and sword and buckler).
Building up the Pressure! – Stringere in the Bolognese Sources
Hitting your opponent without getting hit in return is one of the main challenges of any martial art, but historical fencing especially. The Bolognese sources give us several options on how to approach an opponent. One of these is called stringere – constraining your opponent while putting on tactical pressure on them. In this workshop we will learn and practice the Bolognese way to perform stringere and how it relates to later rapier fencing.
Equipment: Fencing mask, light gloves & a sword, preferable a jacket or chest protector.
About the instructor: [link]
Think structurally, act systematically
Moving away from combinations of postures and counter-postures, and from plays and techniques, towards understanding the underlying principles. Without having to go through all plays, in this workshop you will receive a tool that you can use to work across systems in any situation. We will look beyond mere openings and analyze the opponent for structural weaknesses. After a successful analysis, we will use the insights to strengthen our own position and thus create an advantage for ourselves. First with a focus on dynamic footwork and then with optimal placement of the blade. What comes after is in the plays.
Equipment: Fencing mask, light gloves, and a sidesword, preferably a jacket or chest protector. Basically, you can also work with a long sword.
About the instructor: Stefan began smallsword fencing in Passau in 2011, reluctantly switching to the rapier after his move to Vienna, where he decided to stay. Later, his interest in the Italian longsword and sidesword grew, leading him to extensively engage with the Bolognese sources, seeing them as precursors to the rapier for a deeper understanding. His focus is on Italian sources from the 16th century, which the trained historian translates from the original for his club Sprezzatura in Vienna and prepares for training.
Timetable:
| Saturday | |||
| Ground I | Ground II | Ground III | |
| 9:00 | Entrance | ||
| 9:15 – 10:00 | Gear Check | Warm-Up | |
| 10:00 | Welcome | ||
| 10:15 – 12:15 | Sidesword Beginner | Open – Ground | |
| 12:15 – 13:15 | Lunch | ||
| 13:15 – 16:00 | Sidesword Open | Open – Ground | |
| 16:00 – 17:30 | Sidesword & Companion | ||
| 17:30-18:00 | Ceremony & Clean-Up | ||
| 19:00 | Social Event – Dinner | ||
| Sunday | |||
| Ground I | Ground II | Ground III | |
| 9:00 | Entrance & Warm-Up | ||
| 9:15 – 10:45 | Workshop: Stefan Feichtinger | Open Ground | |
| 10:45 – 12:15 | Open Ground | Workshop: Martin Höppner | |
| 12:15 – 13:15 | Lunch | ||
| 13:15- 14:45 | Workshop: Lorenzo Braschi | Open Ground | |
| 14:45- 16:15 | Open Ground | Workshop: Stephan Eickelmann | |
| 16:15 – 17:30 | Open-Ground & Discussion | ||
| 17:30-18:00 | Farewell | ||
Sidesword / Meyer Rappier / Early Rapier
- Blade length — 80 cm – 95 cm (including ricasso)
- Blade geometry — Point needs to be tipped / min. 1 cm diameter. Blade width at the crossguard max. 5 cm.
- Total length — max. 115cm
- Lenght Crossguard — 10 cm – 30 cm. Fingerring and knucklebow are allowed, not complete baskets though.
- Mass — 0,9kg – 1,2kg
- Flexibility — max. 10kg
Protective Equipment
Sports shoes that are appropriate for the respective surface and do not leave marks or traces on the hall floor. 
A guard made of a hard material that protects the forearm and elbow joint on both arms from blows. 
(Mandatory for women) A chest protector made of a hard material that protects the upper body from blows and thrusts. 
(Mandatory for men) A jockstrap made of a hard material that protects the genital area from blows. 
Gloves made of a hard material that protect fingers and wrist from blows. (min. Red Dragon) 
Leg guards made of a hard material that protects the knees and shins up to the ankle from blows. 
A thigh guard with a stab resistance of at least 350N that protects the thighs from thrusts and blows. 
An upper body protection with a stab resistance of at least 350N, covering the upper body from the hips (even with arms raised above the head) to the neck, as well as the arms to the wrists, front and back, protecting the upper body from blows and thrusts. 
A neck guard made of a hard material that covers the entire larynx and protects the neck from impact. 
A fencing mask FIE standard level 2 with a stab resistance of at least 1600N, which protects against thrusts and blows & a rear head guard that protects the back of the head and neck from blows.
