Advice on the gentlemanly art of umbrella combat from the late and lamented Kingsman agent Harry (Galahad) Hart.
Month: December 2015
Register now for the UK Bartitsu Gathering!
This event will be chance to meet, mingle, and mill, featuring several “mini-seminars” on different aspects of how Bartitsu blends ranges and systems, as well as lots of free time for freeplay and free exchange of ideas.
Confirmed instructors and seminar topics include:
Kenton Clarke-Williams (Basingstoke Bartitsu Irregulars)
Everything but the Cane: unarmed techniques in cane fighting.
Sam Wigand (Metropolitan Bartitsu Club)
Beating the Unarmed Man: self defence with a cane against an unarmed attacker.
Peter Smallridge (Basingstoke Bartitsu Irregulars)
Punching in Pajamas: using grips to enhance striking for counter-grappling.
Season’s greetings
E.W. Skywalker vs. Darth Vigny
Yukio Tani (1904)
A rare and unusual 1904 photograph of Bartitsu Club jiujitsu instructor and champion music hall challenge wrestler Yukio Tani.
A Bartitsu gathering in Basingstoke, UK (Jan 31, 2016)
Host Peter Smallridge is inviting Bartitsu practitioners to attend a gathering in Basingstoke, UK on January 31, 2016. The event will be chance to meet, mingle, and mill, featuring several “mini-seminars” on different aspects of how Bartitsu blends ranges and systems, as well as lots of free time for freeplay and free exchange of ideas.
See the event’s Facebook page for further details and to confirm attendance.
Egerton Castle’s rapier and cloak vs. rapier and dagger
Egerton Castle (right, above) was, along with Captain Alfred Hutton, one of the true Victorian-era pioneers in the revival of historical European swordplay. Although Castle is not known to have had any direct involvement with Bartitsu, his colleague Hutton was the historical fencing instructor at E.W. Barton-Wright’s school, where he also picked up some jiujitsu and Vigny stick fighting skills.
A melange of mayhem from Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate
Ten solid minutes of Victorian violence are on display in this compilation of finishing moves from the Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate video game, which is set in the world of 19th century London gang warfare.
Bartitsu aficionados will appreciate the game’s intricately choreographed action, combining brawling unarmed combat (lots of jiujitsu-like joint breaks, low kicks, knees and headbutts) with walking stick and sword-cane combat in addition to fighting with the kukri knife and the game’s signature wrist-dagger weapon.
Noting also that “Bartitsu” is available as a special achievement in the game …
Alex Kiermeyer seminar
Pictures from the recent Bartitsu seminar with instructor Alex Kiermeyer (top) in Igensdorf, Germany.
“Learn ‘Glima’ And Protect Yourself Against Hold-Ups” (1923)
Click on the image above to expand it.
Icelandic glima wrestler and showman Johannes Josefsson enjoyed great success touring throughout Europe and the United States during the early 20th century, including a stint with the Barnum and Bailey Circus. Josefsson’s performances included challenge matches and exhibitions of traditional glima belt-wrestling as well as theatrical self-defence demonstrations.