In Asian martial arts, the Bo-staff has long been recognized as a potent weapon. In Europe, the staff also has a distinguished history. For centuries starting before the Middle Ages, it was the weapon of choice for farmers, herders, and middle-class travellers. During the Renaissance, the staff was included in the curriculum of Europe's finest fighting masters, including Jacob Sutor, Joachim Meyer, George Silver and Joseph Swetnam. Aside from these great masters, who can forget Robin Hood and his band of merry men, whose use of the staff was to cause such havoc for the Sherriff of Nottingham? With the resurgence of interest in European Martial Arts, David Lindholm presents a synthesis of techniques preserved in the historical record, a useful guide for both novice and experienced combatant, including translations of the most important texts, analysis, and photographic interpretation of each technique. Mr. Lindholm, a recognized expert in the European martial arts based in Sweden, is a founder ofthe St. Mikael's Gille, and a frequent lecturer at Symposia throughout Europe.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Proper Instruction in the Renaissance Technique of the Staff for the Modern Scholar of the Noble and Worthy Science of Defense.:
The use of the staff is an important part of European martial heritage, well deserving to be practiced side-by-side with the sword. In Fighting With The Quarterstaff, David Lindholm presents an excellent study both in the historical use of the staff and offers proper instruction in the Renaissance technique for the modern scholar of the noble and worthy science of defense. The book is divided into 11 chapters:
1 - Introduction
2 - A Few Fundamentals
3 - Foundations of Staff Combat
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An Enticing Purchase:
This work offers a great deal of information on Western staff usage, including information on societal implementation, histories and brief summaries about key masters, and a wide range of techniques from a variety of schools including both English and German. As stated elsewhere, the images are somewhat of a drawback, but I did not find them particularly prohibitive. This is most definitely a worthwhile purchase for someone interested in combat with the staff.
Not quite what I expected:
At first, from the excellent review above me, I expected to find much use in this book, as far as learning the basics of the quarterstaff. I was disappointed to find very little basic information. What information was there was very intelligently and keenly written. You had to really dig deep to discover and learn what could have been explained in very fewer words. I found the information on the different masters and practioners in the majority of the book very annoying in the fact that, I do not... more info
Fascinating book, annoying production values:
This is a good introduction to the historical manuscripts that deal with quarterstaff fighting, and as such, it is well worth the price. If you are interested in the quarterstaff, I recommend it, despite its flaws, which I will get to. This book covers the neglected art of the quarterstaff. It starts with some historical overview, goes on to provide about 50 pages on the principles and basics of staff fighting (probably my favorite part of the book and worth the price on its own). The final chapter... more info
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