Samantha Swords: longsword champion

[Brian G Turner]

Nice story I got from KissmeQuick aka Francis Knight:
http://fashionablygeek.com/videos-2...mpetition-at-a-world-invitational-tournament/

Interesting to see the practicalities of the armour, proof women can fight, and the general appeal of Western Martial Arts.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Cheers for posting this.

Although women were always a minority, some did take major roles in fighting all through history (Xerxes' favourite ship captain was a woman, for example). It's also interesting to see that concertinaed armour, which reminded me a bit of a gauntlet (which obviously has to be fairly flexible).

 

[HareBrain]

A friend of mine and his wife both do longsword fencing. I'm due to be having a go next Monday. It looks so cool!

(If I don't log on from next Tuesday onwards, you'll know why.)

 

[Brian G Turner]

And ... on the subject of women and armour, here's Elizabeth I's battle armour:

 

[Toby Frost]

I do wonder where this idea that women can't fight comes from. I actually think that it's a modern, post-internet idea that is separate and more vicious than the sexism that was around before, say, 1990. When I grew up, Ripley and Sarah Connor were in the cinema, and the SOE agent/Resistance fighter was a stock figure of WW2. I remember the point being made in how-to-write books a long time ago. Fantasy included books like Dragonlance, where there were female swordsmen (always beautiful, of course, but still handy in a fight). We weren't there, as such, but we were on the way to something better. Unfortunately, as with so much, weirdos on the internet have done a lot to set things back.

Where is Elizabeth's armour, by the way?

 

[Stewart Hotston]

If you're interested in HEMA and you're in the SE of England let me know. There are clubs all across the UK, US and Europe - the effective world championships, Swordfish, are taking place in two weeks in Sweden. It'll be livestreamed too.

 

[Stewart Hotston]

@HareBrain which club is it you're going to? Is it SSA?

 

[Toby Frost]

I've got to admit that if I had the time, I'd be seriously interested in this. I used to do some fencing and Ninjutsu at uni, and in a weird way it feels like an interesting mixture of both. Unfortunately, the writing and the day job take up a lot of time! You might find a few questions fielded your way, if you don't mind!

 

[Stewart Hotston]

absolutely

 

[HareBrain]

@HareBrain which club is it you're going to? Is it SSA?

Didn't make it in the end, and by the time another opportunity came up my chronic fatigue had come back and scuppered any chance of waving big bits of metal about. The club was in Brighton, but the friends who were members have now moved to Norfolk and joined a club in Norwich.

 

[The Big Peat]

Stewart - What clubs are there in London?

 

[anivid]

Hey, you guys - you never heard about the Amazones ??
Here you have Heracles figthing against the Amazones: