Albrecht Durer is probably the most famous German artist of the Renaissance, if not of all time. His works are world-famous and he was a master in numerous artistic disciplines such as woodcut, copperplate engraving, drawing and painting. What is less well known is that he was interested in weapons and fencing throughout his life. He produced several woodcuts for a tournament book by Emperor Maximilian I, but he devoted himself much more thoroughly to the subject of duels in his own extensive fencing manuscript. Durer's fight book stands out from the mass of illustrated fencing manuscripts because of its outstanding quality. In well over 100 elaborate drawings, the master uniquely depicts dynamic pairs of fighters practising contemporary combat techniques, such as wrestling or sword and dagger fighting. Since its creation more than 500 years ago, the fight book has never been published in its entirety. This edition offers the complete contents of the manuscript for the very first time: All illustrations are reproduced in colour and the complete text is presented in a letter-perfect transcription as well as a translation into modern English. Albrecht Durer's fight book offers a unique, new look at Durer the artist and Durer the fighter.

The "Gladiatoria" group of German fencing manuscripts are several editions of a treatise on armoured foot combat, specifically aimed at duel fighting. Gloriously-illustrated, and replete with substantial commentary, these works are some of the greatest achievements in the corpus of late medieval fight books. These works have both tremendous artistic merit and incalculable historical value. In this remarkable full colour volume, authors Dierk Hagedorn and Bart?omiej Walczak elegantly present their work on the copy of this treatise now in the Yale Center for British Art, including a reproduction of the manuscript, a full transcription, and translations into English. The work includes a foreword by Sydney Anglo which explains how the work shows a highly sophisticated pedagogical system of movement and applauds the editors for presenting the material in a clear and practical way. Additional essays discuss other aspects of the manuscript - including a tale of Dierk Hagedorn's adventures tracking down the manuscript.

Noted medieval combat authorities Dierk Hagedorn and Christian Henry Tobler join forces to present a transcription, translation and analysis of the Peter von Danzig Fight Book, one of the finest manuscripts of the 15th century devoted to the fencing tradition of German grandmaster Johannes Liechtenauer. The codex features anonymous commentaries on Liechtenauer's own mnemonic verses, as well as treatises by other masters of his circle: Masters Lignitzer, Huntfelt, Ott and Peter von Danzig himself. A compendium of teachings for how to fight with the long sword, spear, sword and buckler, dagger, as well as unarmed grappling, both in and out of armour, this volume is a valuable resource for historical martial artists, historians and medieval re-enactors.