Of six chief causes, that many valiant men think themselves by their practices to be skillful in their weapons, are yet many times in their fights sore hurt, and many times slain by men of small skill or none at all.
I.
The primary and predominant cause lies in the absence of the four governors, essential components without which safe combat becomes an impossibility, even if one were to dedicate their life to strenuous and meticulous practice.[1]
II.
The second cause stems from a lack of comprehension in properly executing the four actions, referred to as bent, spent, lying spent, and drawing back. These actions form the foundation of every individual's combat approach, irrespective of their skill level. Those who adhere to these principles find security, while those who disregard them remain in constant peril from forceful thrusts directed towards them.[2]
III.
The third cause revolves around an inadequate grasp of the four authentic timings, combined with an inability to distinguish between true and false timings. Consequently, the accurate selection of timings often occurs purely by chance, rarely through calculated decision-making.[3]
IV.
The fourth cause arises from their unfamiliarity with the appropriate response to the variable fight, along with the manner in which they should engage.[4] Due to the relative simplicity of the variable fight compared to others, they often counter it with the same approach. This should only occur in the initial distance or when using a short sword against a longer one.[5][6]If, during pressing actions, either or both parties change their timing, the limited space causes the distance to break, leading to the gain and loss of position on both sides. In such situations, the first to thrust gains the advantage.[7] Should simultaneous thrusts occur, both fighters face danger. Hence, on occasion, true timings, changes in tactics, or even sheer chance allow them to evade such situations.
V.
The fifth cause lies in their weapons' tendency to be excessively long, making it challenging to disengage without resorting to stepping back with their feet.[8]
VI.
The sixth factor pertains to the weightiness of their weapons, which typically hampers their ability to both defend and attack in a timely manner. Unfortunately, these last two factors have led to the untimely demise of numerous valiant individuals.[9]
__________________
[1] In this section George Silver gives the basics of the science of defense. He correctly states that the primary cause of poor fencing is the absence of the 4 governors which are: 1.) judgement: knowing when you can hit your opponent without them hitting you, 2.) distance: understanding how to not only safely offend but to fly-out of measure and safely defend, 3.) time: how long it takes to traverse in and out of distance, 4.) place: understanding how to obtain the advantage of your opponent by utilizing the previous 3 governors. While these are essential skills of fencing, in Silver's time his criticism likely indicates that they were often overlooked or poorly executed perhaps due to an emphasis on technique rather than the fundamentals of tactics.
[2] After articulating the 4 governors, Silver now mentions the 4 actions. The 4 actions are dependent upon the 4 governors because these actions are momentary times during a fight that are ideal for exploitation but without a foundation in the 4 governors' then there is no ability to apply the 4 actions. The 4 actions are the positions of the opponent's blade before, during, and after an executed attack. 1.) Bent: Is the position prior to the attack when the opponent is guarded and ready to launch an attack. This is not the time to attack unless you can draw your opponent out of this position. 2.) spent: is the moment that an attack is launched, and the momentum of energy has been released from the bent action, 3.) lying spent: is the moment that the energy of the spent attack is now lying or at rest and momentarily the attack is now no threat and, 4.) drawing back: is when the opponent must fight against the momentum of the lying spent attack to change the direction of the attack or recover to a guarded position. At this point a counterattack may be a viable option since the opponent's blade is being drawn in a non-threatening position rather than in an attack.
[3] Now Silver states that to utilize the 4 actions properly you must do so using the 4 True Times: the time of the hand, the time of the hand and body, the time of the hand, body, and foot, the time of the hand, body, and feet. Using the 4 actions within the context of the 4 true times enables us to act and react quickly to both offend and defend effectively. If we are the agent making an attack, we will be within the 4 actions but if we are also in the true times then our opponent will not be able to exploit our action.
[4] Silver speaks of there being 4 fights (Silver likes categories of 4) with the single weapon, two with the point up and two with the point down. The variable fight is any guard and initiation of action from these guards that are not in the category of Silver's 4 fights. Often the variable fight begins with the point threatening but not always. Silver states that the problem with fencers that he is currently criticizing is that they are unfamiliar with the variable fight and do not have the requisite knowledge of how to defend against it.
[5] Counters to the variable fight can occur with similar responses made in any of the other 4 fights, however, Silver points out that this can only occur in "initial distance" meaning when the agent is attempting to close distance within the variable fight.
[6] Or if the opponent has a much longer weapon, then the patient who possesses the shorter weapon can act more safely within measure because of the advantage of the short sword in a close fight.
[7] When both parties press in on each other and simultaneously close distance then the timing and advantage of one party of the other is completely negated. In this instance the safest recourse is to utilize a thrust which will negate any other attack the opponent attempts to make within close distance. Note: a close distance thrust is an option only available to the person with the shorter weapon but in the case that the weapons are equal length then the first to thrust will be the one who is victorious.
[8] The fifth cause is George Silver's repeated point that the rapier of the Italians was too long and therefore they had to make an adjustment step to uncross their blades and make a counter or riposte. Since the movement of the blade required a movement of the feet then they were making an action in a false time of the feet which made their execution of technique too slow to be effective.
[9] Along with the overly long rapier blades we see Silver then accompanying his criticism of length with a criticism of the resulting weight. Longer weapons are heavier and possibly more out of balance – especially for a single hand weapon. The excessive weight of a single-handed weapon caused the rapier of too long of length to be more unwieldly, less agile, and less nimble which are necessary prerequisites of single-handed weapons. Early rapiers varied in weight from 2.5 lbs. and up to 4 lbs. While this is a typical weight for a two-handed sword and a short sword at the lower 2.5 lbs. weight, the rapier was a point forward thrust oriented weapon used single-handedly. This weight was criticized for such a weapon by Silver because it was less than ideal for the function and design of a single-handed weapon.
Commenti