Bartitsu Today
“Is Bartitsu still practiced today?” is probably the #1 question asked of the Bartitsu Society. Fortunately, the short answer is “yes”, but this may require some explanation.
Between 2002-2005 the Bartitsu Society was largely devoted to learning as much as possible about Bartitsu from the historical point of view. We tracked down long-forgotten books and magazine articles in obscure library archives and most of our efforts were towards collating, preserving and sharing this information.
After the publication of Volume 1 of the Bartitsu Compendium in 2005, members of the Society began offering seminar classes in various aspects of Bartitsu. These classes were held at martial arts and stage combat conferences in Canada, the USA, Italy, Germany and the UK.
Today, your options for learning Bartitsu include attending seminars or joining any of several informal study groups or regular Bartitsu classes. We recommend joining the Bartitsu Forum email list with any inquiries about classes, or referring to the list below.
Under certain conditions you can also consider setting up your own recreational Bartitsu club; see this article for a comprehensive set of hints and tips in that direction.
Europe
James Marwood teaches regular classes in Modern Bartitsu at the Farnborough Leisure Centre in Hampshire, U.K.
Ran Braun runs Bartitsu study groups in Calabria, Rome, Savona and Como, under the auspices of Bartitsu Italia.
The Linacre School of Defence (Oxford, UK) offers classes in c1900
boxing (including grappling) and low kicks of savate, and may offer
further related arts in the future.
The Black Boar Swordsmanship School in Scotland offers regular training in self defence with a walking stick, drawing from the Bartitsu repertoire as well as the “Cane as a Weapon” system of A.C. Cunningham.
The Grange (Coventry, UK) offers experience days, with tuition in Bartitsu.
The Zwaardkring historical fencing club offers one two-hour Bartitsu practice session per month and the Judoclub Shizen Hontai plans to offer a weekly Bartitsu study group. Both clubs are in Veldhoven, Netherlands.
Bartitsu Club Russia, based at the Mishenev Fencing School in St. Petersburg, offers occasional public Bartitsu seminars.
North America
The Botta Secreta historical fencing school in San Francisco runs regular Bartitsu training sessions on Thursday evenings.
The Academia Duellatoria in Portland, Oregon offers Bartitsu classes on the third Tuesday of every month.
The Academie Duello historical fencing and stage combat school in Vancouver, Canada offers occasional Bartitsu seminars with instructor David McCormick.
The 2010 International Swordfighting and Martial Arts Convention (Detroit, Michigan) will feature a six-hour Bartitsu intensive taught by Tony Wolf.
The Gallowglass Academy (Rockford, Illinois) offers occasional Bartitsu seminars.
The Cumann Bhata Dayton (Ohio) Western martial arts club offers Bartitsu classes on the first Monday of each month.
The 2011 Western Martial Arts Weekend conference (Racine, WI) will feature a Bartitsu seminar taught by Tony Wolf.
The Houston School of Defense offers regular classes in walking stick defense and plans to extend into training in other aspects of the Bartitsu and Neo-Bartitsu curricula.
Australasia
The Gemeiner Academy of European Combat Arts (Gold Coast, Australia) offers regular training in Vigny/Lang stick fighting and associated skills.
36 Comments
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By Robert Barry, Friday, 21st August 2009 @ 5:44 pm
Does anybody know where I and my son (6 years old) could study Bartitsu in the Seattle area. This is the perfect martial art for my son. He wants to strike, grapple, throw, etc. And I want him to learn discipline, perseverance, respect, good sportsmanship. Thanks, Rob
By James, Friday, 21st August 2009 @ 6:31 pm
Hi Robert,
I don’t know of any groups in Seattle, but you may well find some on the Bartitsu mailing list – http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Bartitsu_Forum/
By Tony Wolf, Friday, 21st August 2009 @ 9:30 pm
Hi Robert,
I know of one Bartitsu study group in Seattle, but they’re a bit “under the radar” and I’m not sure how you’d go about joining them. For what it’s worth, they’re known as BWAHAHA (the Barton-Wright Applied Hopology and Historical Antagonistics League).
In general, I’d have to say that six years old is very young to be getting involved in martial arts training. It can work, with the right combination of student, style and teacher; good luck with it.
Regards,
Tony
By Richard Garcia, Monday, 24th August 2009 @ 1:34 am
Hey guys starting a bartitsu club in NYC area, email me to find out more. We also teach military hand to hand combat and other arts.
By tudza, Tuesday, 8th September 2009 @ 10:49 pm
Well, I don’t think it’s for six year olds, but these folks are prepared to teach everything but the judo part to adults:
http://www.sallesaint-george.com/
I expect to start taking lessons in boxing there.
By Kenny Bolster, Saturday, 12th September 2009 @ 11:04 pm
Does anyone know about a group in San Antonio, TX?
By James, Saturday, 12th September 2009 @ 11:13 pm
Hi Kenny,
I’m afraid not. As far as I know, the closest group to you is in Houston. You may find other people closer to you on the Bartitsu Mailing list however.
Regards,
James
By RAY, Tuesday, 22nd September 2009 @ 11:51 pm
can anyone help me to find anything resembling bartitsu in the bavarian part of germany thank you
By Tony Wolf, Wednesday, 23rd September 2009 @ 10:31 am
Hi Ray,
I’ve taught one or two seminars in Germany over the past few years, but I think that the closest clubs offering even occasional Bartitsu training would be in the Netherlands, as listed above.
Depending on how close to Bartitsu you want to get, MMA, Savate or Jeet Kune Do classes might suit your purposes. They are certainly easier to find!
Cheers,
Tony
By Euan Gilmour, Thursday, 22nd October 2009 @ 4:49 pm
Hello
Does anyone know if there are any Bartitsu classes in scotland. I am very interested in this martial art but can’t seem to find anywhere to go to. I live in the capital city Edinburgh.
Thanks
Euan
By James, Thursday, 22nd October 2009 @ 5:16 pm
Hi Euan,
I’m afraid I don’t know of anyone in Scotland looking at the full Bartitsu curriculum. The closest you may get is Ian Macintyre’s new Black Boar club, which looks at the walking stick portion of Bartitsu, amongst other things.
By Euan Gilmour, Thursday, 22nd October 2009 @ 6:47 pm
Thank you very much James. I’ll check out the information you’ve given and I guess I’ll have to wait until Bartitsu is more availible in scotland.
By Shaun, Friday, 23rd October 2009 @ 7:07 am
Well, it seems like everyone is posting similar questions, so I may as well ask…is there any hope of learning Bartitsu in Sydney, Australia? I’d love to learn it, but don’t hold out much hope of finding a club anywhere near me
By Tony Wolf, Friday, 23rd October 2009 @ 3:30 pm
Hi Shaun,
you’re (somewhat) in luck – Craig Gemeiner’s school (http://gemeineracademy.wordpress.com/) on the Gold Coast offers a complete curriculum in the Vigny/Lang stick fighting style, and also in defense dans la rue. This was the early 20th century French development of eclectic self defence and draws from many of the same sources as does Bartitsu.
Good luck,
Tony
By Shaun, Saturday, 24th October 2009 @ 11:33 am
Thanks Tony, it’s a bit of a walk, but definitely closer than the UK
By Damian, Friday, 30th October 2009 @ 7:19 pm
Anything in New York City?
By Tony Wolf, Saturday, 31st October 2009 @ 6:01 pm
Hi Damian,
all of the public Bartitsu classes and study groups that we know about are listed above. There have been other recent inquiries from NYC, though, so interest there is obviously growing.
Cheers,
Tony
By Paul Chambers, Friday, 13th November 2009 @ 1:18 am
Hi all, just reading through, any good Ju-Jitsu class worth its salt should cover all aspects of Bartitsu.
Kickboxing
Karate
Ground Grappling
Judo
All Weaponry
the only thing we dont do at the moment is boxing, but hopefully we will be having a proffesional boxer training withus shortly. So cjeck out your local Ju-Jitsu clubs and see what they have to offer.
Good training to all.
By Tony Wolf, Friday, 13th November 2009 @ 5:47 am
Hi Paul,
while I know what you mean, I’d argue that first, that depends very much on the jiujitsu ryu, and second, even a modern club that does offer kicking, punching, throwing, ground grappling and weaponry is unlikely to teach those skills as they were practiced in London at the turn of the 20th century.
It can be argued that a good eclectic combination of, say, modern kickboxing, judo and Filipino stick fighting would be a reasonable approximation of Bartitsu; it just comes down to what we mean by “reasonable approximation”.
The consensus within the Bartitsu Society so far has been that if we step too far away from the source material, we end up reinventing the JKD/MMA/Dog Brothers, and since there’s no point in doing that, even neo-Bartitsu tends to be (deliberately) anachronistic.
Cheers,
Tony
By Moira Spencer, Thursday, 10th December 2009 @ 9:50 am
Martial Arts Illustrated magazine, based in the UK but also available internationally, is to run an editorial feature on Bartitsu in its February 2010 edition, on sale 14th January. The article is written by Nick Collins and covers Bartitsu’s history and the expected revival of interest in this style in light of the upcoming Guy Richie directed Sherlock Holmes movie. As we are the publishers of MAI magazine, and have yet to go to press with this issue, should any Bartitsu associates which to marry a marketing strategy with this article or find out more about MAI magazine, do visit our website.
By James, Thursday, 10th December 2009 @ 9:56 am
Thanks for this Moira. I visited your site but couldn’t see any references to Bartitsu or your February magazine. Is there a specific link or place to look?
By nathan, Saturday, 26th December 2009 @ 7:53 pm
hi all
im from wicklow Ireland about half hour south of Dublin and am trying to work on Irish martial arts and reviving it i think some of bartons styles would be perfect to compliment my learning anyone who can help me?
By James, Saturday, 26th December 2009 @ 8:02 pm
Hi Nathan,
You’d probably get some good advice on the Bartitsu mailing list, and there are also the 2 Compendia. You kight also be interested to visit the Bata list, which is dedicated to traditional Irish martial arts.
By jeff, Monday, 11th January 2010 @ 2:33 pm
hello to all. i had heard of bartitsu years ago but could not find anything on it. ive always been drawn to occidental rather than oriental martial arts. I was a wrestler and boxer. I grew up working as a sparring partner for the WBA lightweight champ Sean O Grady, and have boxed at the olympic training center. I also taught hand to hand combat in the army. Iam really intrested to talk and visit with people training in Bartitsu. i have yet to see Sherlock Holmes but now i will. Have a Great Day! Jeff
By James, Monday, 11th January 2010 @ 3:02 pm
Hi Jeff,
That sounds like a great background to bring to Bartitsu! I’m guessing that, with the Sean O’Grady connection, you’re based in Oklahoma City? I’m afraid I don’t know of anyone training there, but it might be wroth asking on the mailing list as we have a lot of lurkers who have yet to speak up.
By jeff, Monday, 11th January 2010 @ 5:25 pm
james. Thank you for the reply Sir. Yes iam in oklahoma city. ive also doone some training in Savate and attended a couple Savate seminars under Daniel Duby. Iam really intrested in talking those who train in Bartitsu. Iam drawn by the historic part and how the founder was light years ahead of his time. By the way the Victorian Gentleman aspect is way cool! this Martial Art must be preseved! email me any time and ill share my phone nr. Thank You Sir. Have a great day
By Fox, Tuesday, 16th February 2010 @ 4:25 pm
Hi
Does anyone know if there are any Bartitsu classes in France ?
I realy want to do bartitsu !
I discourage…
please! tell me!
By Bartitsu Society, Tuesday, 16th February 2010 @ 4:48 pm
Hello Fox,
I do not know of any Bartitsu classes in France. Savate defense teaches many of the same skills and would probably be easier for you to find. Otherwise, there are seminar classes in different parts of Europe. I suggest that you join the Bartitsu Forum email list – http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Bartitsu_Forum/ – to learn about upcoming classes.
By Fox, Thursday, 18th February 2010 @ 12:23 pm
Thanks!!
I will see that
By jose, Saturday, 29th May 2010 @ 4:05 am
Gentleman.. in Colombia?
any reference?
By Bartitsu Society, Saturday, 29th May 2010 @ 8:55 am
Hi Jose,
I’m afraid that I don’t know of any Bartitsu activity in South America.
By Kato, Sunday, 30th May 2010 @ 10:47 pm
Is anyone aware of any Bartitsu classes in Chicago, Illinois not just seminars, but full classes? Any information would be greatly appreaciated.
By Bartitsu Society, Monday, 31st May 2010 @ 4:47 pm
Kato – there are no ongoing classes in Chicago at the moment, but there may be classes starting up later this year. If so, they will be announced on the main page of this site; I would also suggest joining the Bartitsu Forum ( http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Bartitsu_Forum/ ) to keep up to date with new class announcements.
By Justin, Tuesday, 22nd June 2010 @ 1:50 am
Dang, the only Ohio group on this list is in Dayton, and I’m up here in Northwestern Ohio.
By Hays McGee, Thursday, 8th July 2010 @ 11:32 am
Hi Everyone, I’m new to this site, but thought this was a good a time as any to say I’m forming a Bartitsu study group in Central California. I cam across Bartitsu some 2 years ago now and came to a quick realization that everything I was already trained in and used fell in line with Bartitsu completely. 24+ years of various martial arts training and now I have a name for it and a good focus. Feel free to hit me up if you are in the area!
By Bartitsu Society, Thursday, 8th July 2010 @ 9:53 pm
Hi Hays,
good luck with your group. You’re welcome to join the Bartitsu Forum email list to communicate with other Bartitsu enthusiasts – http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Bartitsu_Forum/ .