Customer Reviews

SPADA II: An Anthology of Swordsmanship (v. 2)

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I did historical reenactment armored combat in groups like the SCA and ROC for about fifteen years before deciding to focus solely on traditional Asian martial arts yet I still have a keen interest in the art of European swordsmanship. Editor Stephen Hand has gathered together some extraordinary historians and medieval/renaissance fight experts to create this fascinating collection. Authors include Gary Chelak, Tom Leoni, Linda McCollum, Paul Wagner, and more. The book covers everything from the medical implications of historical wounds to realistic sword/shield combat to fencing and even broadsword work. Very well researched, interestingly written, and nicely done. A worthy follow-up to the original SPADA anthology that should be appreciated by reenacters, fencers, and martial artists alike. Huzzah!

Lawrence Kane
Author of Surviving Armed Assaults, The Way of Kata, and Martial Arts Instruction

This anthology, SPADA, is a collection of very fine articles. I confess a bias in that I have met most of the authors and am generally enchanted with Western Martial Arts (WMA) aka Historical European Swordsmanship (HES).

Although these fighting arts have been without a living tradition for centuries, the magnificent work of the people contributing to SPADA is laying a foundation which can be build upon by researchers, historians and martial artists.

Every article in here is subject to critical peer review. Research is constant, and interpretations of the historical material are changing all the time, but the reliance on the original material does not. I cannot recommend SPADA highly enough.

First and foremost, this is an anthology. As such it has something to offer across a wide scope, but not all of it may be of interest to any given reader. Nota Bene: I am evaluating the areas in which I am inexpert by the depth and detail provided for those weapons or matters that I do understand.
The features include articles on historical fencing from Spain, Italy and England.(Not my forte, pun intended.) There is an excellent article on the use of various large shields from 600BC to 1300AD. Some of the material that Wagner and Hand covered in their Medieval Sword And Shield (from the 13th C MS I.33) is developed further and corrected. I was particularly impressed by the study of historical and modern wounds. (Not for the squeemish.)The piece on partisans, most of which could be applied to any polearm, was fascinating; I was glad to see what I have been doing right and intrigued by moves I had not considered.
If you are new to the study of Western historical martial arts, or if your experience has been within a single weapon or tradition, I recommend Spada 2 for your consideration of the kinds of material available.

Unfortunately, the doorman made a mistake (he didn't tell me that I have received the book) and he sent it back.
I will definitely buy this book in future.