Weaponized Medieval Wrestling: the Dagger

Instructed medieval fighting, or modern self-defence for that matter, is in my opinion a holistic compendium of a few techniques and principles which are then extrapolated into various and innumerable situations which at first might seem different but are in reality quite similar once one gets past surface appearances.

Here we see some examples of how I teach the medieval martial arts and modern self-defence, in that more simple situations—unarmed techniques in this example—are then extrapolated into more complex situations through a change of circumstance or additional elements. In this video we see specifically how unarmed medieval wrestling techniques can be extrapolated into armed medieval dagger work.

This kind of work is not only loads of fun, but also very helpful in increasing one's creativity in self-defence situations and creating more well-rounded abilities. Also, it is also quite necessary due to the sketchy or filled-with-holes nature of medieval fighting manuals, as we all know that they didn't show all there was to know.

This kind of extrapolatory work is not only great for our modern practice but also completely historical. One need look no further than the Flos Duellatorum, or the German school of fencing itself, to see that.

I should add that we were also practising how to draw the dagger while being attacked—another and significant added level of difficulty—and moving the initial position of the dagger from the left hip to the right (and at the back and down the boot) in order to vary the parameters of the act of drawing itself. Also, the attack was not pre-arranged.

Enjoy!