Charles Besnard

Charles Besnard's 1653 text marks both the start of the era of the smallsword and beginnings of the French school of fencing. The book clearly outlines the stances, strikes and parries taught during the transitional period between fencing with the rapier and the development of the lighter court sword carried by the nobility and upper classes as a mark of their status in society.

The student of fencing history and the HEMA practitioner will find in this book much that is useful for understanding later French smallsword texts and refined explanations of the rapier techniques which came before them. Besnard explains in detail the types of opponents one may face using tyhe humoral medical theory of his day. Under Besnard's fencing system, the change from single-tempo and counter-tempo fencing in the earlier Italian tradition to the two tempo parry-riposte typical of later French fencing manuals is complete.

The translation in this book also includes Besnard's polemic against the contemporary practice of duelling with pistols contained in the original publication.