Join the Ribe Bouts! Spear-and-shield workshop at the 2024 Ribe Bouts Hello sword-and-shield enthusiasts, I am delighted to announce that the Ribe VikingeCenter will once again host the second Ribe Bouts from 17–19 October 2025. All meals will be prepared authentically on site. This unique event combines the practice of historical martial arts with a full-time living history experience. You can find more details and many images in my dedicated post—feel free to share the link with your fellow...
26 days ago • 2 min read
Don’t strike the initial blow from your right, if you are left-handed! My friend Ingo Petri with a left-handed schiavona from the collection of the Veste Coburg Hello fellow history enthusiasts and martial artists, The above advice comes from the late medieval German Fechtbuch Hs 44 A 8. On folio 11v, the author offers general tips on how to fight in a duel between a right- and a left-handed combatant. Clearly, left-handed fighters were a historical reality—something also supported by the...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Screenshot from a video based on an illustration of mine (Wünsch/Warzecha 2025) The Future of the Past Hello history enthusiasts, Today I’d like to share a truly exciting new project I’m currently developing. Together with my fellow illustrator Oliver Wünsch, I’m working on a completely new format for storytelling. Thanks to the latest AI tools, we can now bring our illustrations to life—animate them, and even make them speak. This opens up incredible possibilities, especially for...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
A Famous Viking Age Sword Made for a Left-Hander My friend Alban's favourite sword Hello fellow sword and history enthusiasts, It’s not often that you get to see this exceptionally well-preserved sword outside the British Museum. With its wide fuller inscribed LEUTLRIT and an Anglo-Danish hilt adorned with geometric inlays, it is an outstanding piece. Note the slightly off-centre and tilted montage of the pommel But what I find most intriguing are the subtle asymmetries in the hilt...
2 months ago • 2 min read
The Fencing Bridegroom Swordsmen's distinguished summer fashion Hello sword-and-buckler enthusiasts and fashion victims, My fellow buckler fighter and researcher Cornelius Berthold was married this past weekend. The occasion provided a splendid opportunity for some early-morning fencing before breakfast—and, notably, for swordplay in suits. The latter was suggested by photographer Jonas Radtke, and I’m very much looking forward to seeing the resulting images. There can be only one! In the...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Are We But Brutal Primates? Chimps make war, bonobos make love. What about us? (My illustration) Hello fellow history enthusiasts, I suspect many of you share my feeling that we are living through particularly unusual and turbulent times. While I generally make a conscious effort to maintain a positive outlook and focus on the good, I must admit this has grown increasingly difficult in recent years. Stupidity, ignorance and brutality seem all too prominent among our species at present....
3 months ago • 3 min read
Berlin Buckler Bouts, Posture, Courses & Excursions Brave Berlin Bucklerists, May 2025 Hello fellow buckler fighters, researchers, and enthusiasts, Last weekend marked the 23rd Berlin Buckler Bouts, with participants joining us from Canada, the US, Poland, and Germany. As usual, I particularly enjoyed the Sunday session, when I could focus on addressing issues in my fencing that had become apparent during Saturday’s bouts—a sentiment I shared with many other participants. Fencing Ewan...
4 months ago • 3 min read
The Guild in the Gatehouse The hooded men! Hello fellow HEMA practitioners, I’ve just uploaded a folder of photos I took at the recent Fechtschule 2025, hosted by the Hallebardiers in Bruges. You can download it here. Feel free to share the images as you please. It was a fantastic event—great fencing, excellent spirit, and outstanding hospitality. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The current Cross Gate was constructed in 1400. The Hallebardiers undoubtedly have the coolest guild house imaginable....
4 months ago • 2 min read
Nunance in Sword Design and in Combat Hello sword enthusiasts, I’ve been invited to talk swords with host Gabriele Damiano on his YouTube channel Rapier’s Delight. Join us for a two-hour deep dive into sword studies, exploring—amongst other topics—the design and ergonomics of bladed weapons from prehistory to the Renaissance, and what they reveal about their use in combat. Join in here! See you tomorrow! Yours in arms, Roland P. S. Don't forget to claim your 25% discount on the...
4 months ago • 1 min read