En garde! Western Pa. clubs explore historical German, Italian fencing

Dec. 29—Jon Mullin and Brendan Bailey's clash is not flashy like an Errol

Flynn duel in one of those classic black-and-white swashbuckling films.

Then again, flashiness is not a typical feature of effective, real-world sword-fighting. The goal is not to look impressive; the goal is to win the fight.

Mullin and Bailey are both members of Westmoreland Historical Fencing, and on a mild Sunday morning in December, the group was meeting at Twin Lakes Park east of Greensburg to practice fencing in both the German and Italian medieval styles.

It is part of the larger hobby of historical European martial arts, or HEMA.

"I was living in Pittsburgh right around the time covid started, and there are a few clubs there," said Mullin, 30, of Latrobe. "I moved back to Westmoreland County and my friend Evan, who was meeting with a club in Erie, also moved back."

The friends began to get together at Twin Lakes Park, started a social media page and started to grow the group.

Mullin and Bailey, 23, of Jeannette, met at a fencing event hosted by Steel City Historical Fencing, based in Shaler. Westmoreland Historical Fencing has grown to a group of about 10 regulars.

"Clubs tend to focus on German or Italian type of fencing, and we incorporate both," Bailey said.

The German school of fencing was a system of combat taught during the Holy Roman Empire and described in the contemporary Fechtbücher, codified during the 15th and 16th centuries. The Italian school of swordsmanship dates back even further, to the early 1400s and the "Flos Duellatorum (The Flower of Battle)" written by Fiore de'i Liberi. It describes combat techniques using grappling, daggers, short swords, long swords, pole axes and spears.

Westmoreland Historical Fencing members typically hone in on long sword combat, using flexible, blunted training swords that weigh about 2 pounds.

Ashleigh Hobbs of Glenshaw started Steel City Historical Fencing with her husband Christopher. She said it's great to see former students such as Mullin heading off to start their own groups.

"That's sort of a habit we have, where students come in, and then go out and build their own clubs," Hobbs said. "There's a club that recently got started in Rochester, N.Y., by another one of our members."

Steel City is on a brief hiatus but has held an annual tournament, Steel City Open, that draws 100 or so participants, and has held well-attended sparring camps in recent years.

Maria Vaccaro of Monongahela grew up playing with fake swords in the backyard among her older brothers. She was also a dancer, and while watching Mullin and Bailey, she took note that the various stances are also a jumping-off point for a fighter's next move.

"It reminds me a lot of dance," she said.

Mullin agreed.

"If Brendan swings at me, I may block him in a certain position, and that leads me into an attack," he said.

Mullin and Bailey both take time to carefully add each piece of protective equipment, from body padding to hard plastic gauntlets that shield their hands. The puffy pants don't serve any strategic or protective purpose, but they are generally part-and-parcel with much of the other HEMA equipment offered by Polish companies like Spes, where Mullin purchased a lot of his gear.

Their fights rarely last more than 30 seconds, as both move deliberately, seeking an opening. That is followed by short bursts of thrusts, swings, parries and counterattacks until one fighter is struck.

Growing up loving the "Lord of the Rings" film trilogy led Mullin to an interest in some of the real world history that inspired its combat.

"I discovered the HEMA community online, and it grew from there for me," he said. "Kids are used to playing with sticks in the backyard, and this is a grown-up version."

Hobbs said the same of her husband.

"Christopher was the kid hitting a wooden sword against a tree," she said.

Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Patrick by email at pvarine@triblive.com or via Twitter .