ANST - Re: BG - Tourney d'Amore

[Casey&Coni]

Don Ansgar wrote:


You know, I think it's sad that evidently no rapier fighter that was there
and expressed complaint about the barrier idea has stepped up to answer
the question of why.  I've read 3 people's ideas of why there might hve
been objections but none of them were there evidently.


Good Don Ansgar,

I was actually there for the tourney and was witness to several of the
actual reasons that the barrier was set aside when the rapier combatants
took the field.  The main reason I heard from three of the combatants was
that it was essentially quite absurd to use it.

To elucidate: even though barrier combat was, in fact, at the height of it's
popularity in the time of Elizabeth, the fact is that anyone competing in
combat *at* a barrier in one of those tourneys would have been in a full
cuiraiss and using a greatsword.  Additionally, when fighting at the barrier
it was/is considered to be rude if one uses a thrust- this makes it somewhat
difficult when using a rapier, does it not?  These facts combined to make a
fairly strong case for fighting to first blood as well as not using the
barrier.

I'm certain that we could have come up with a sort of premise for using the
barrier (fighting ship to ship over a railing or something) but no one at
the time could think up anything plausible.  Perhaps next year we'll be more
prepared and think up a suitable scenario but in the meantime please know
that there was some sound judgement for not using that wonderful piece of
wood for trials of fence.

Ritter Dieterich Kempenich
Qui aimez mieux le combat du barriere :)

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