Basic Capoferro
By Signor Dante di Pietro
(mka Darren Di Battista)
The Six Guardia & the Lunge:
A. Prima
D. Quarta
B. Seconda
F. Sesta
C. Terza
E. Quinta
| A -- The left shoulder in guard | G -- The hand of the right arm in guard |
| B -- The leg of the left
knee in guard | H -- The increase of the right arm, of the same length |
| C -- The planting of the
left foot in guard | I -- The increase of the right knee, almost a pace |
| D – The ordinary pace in guard | K – The increase of the pace, a little more than a foot |
| E – The placement of the right foot in guard | L -- The increase of the left foot with its turn |
| F -- The thigh and the calf at a slope in guard | M -- The increase of the left knee of a half pace |
Capoferro says, “Fencing is the art of defending oneself well with the sword.” (Kirby, pg 35) The emphasis is mine. One of the key things to keep in mind while trying to unlock a period master is to remember that everything they did was with the mindset that the swords were sharp and death was a real possibility. You will doubtlessly encounter any number of things as a student of historic fencing that will seem odd in an SCA context—this is because we don’t really die and can be preternaturally brave as a result. One of the biggest hurdles to overcome in getting this to work is to remember than a 5 minute bout was fine for a real giocatore if it meant the difference between living and dying. Above all else, patience should be your guide.
Guardia: Capoferro uses terza as the base for all his movements, with quarta and seconda being useful for attacking. The other guards do not get much mention, but quinta and sesta are clearly similar to terza. A good clue for determining the purpose of a guard is that in Capoferro, defensive guards keep the head back, and offensive guards bring the head forward. This is not to say that if you want to attack, you move into quarta and get ready; this should all be done smoothly, and you will move into quarta as you attack from terza.
In terza, 80% of your weight should be on your back leg,
with the foot angled slightly backward. This will increase the speed of your
lunge once you get used to it. Your feet should be about one natural step
apart. Keep your arm extended so that you may defend easily without having to
move any more than is necessary.
Measure: There are three measures which Capoferro defines:
1. Misura Larga: This is wide measure, the distance at which you can hit your opponent with a lunge.
2. Misura Stretta: This is narrow measure, the distance where you can hit your opponent without moving your feet.
3. Strettissima Misura: This is the measure where you can hit your opponent in his outstretched arm.
Of course, being out of measure means that you are at a safe distance and cannot be hit without taking several steps. When out of measure, you form your guard, move into wide measure by finding the opponent’s sword, and then either lunge to strike or step close into narrow measure first.
Tempo: Tempo is the “measure of stillness and motion” (Kirby, pg 39). While that sounds fairly esoteric, it really just means that if your movements are made in response to something your opponent does, and your movements take less time, you win. If the opponent makes a big, ugly disengage and you take that tempo to strike faster than he can get his defense in place, you win. Conversely, if he is standing still and you can move before he can react, you win. The fundamental idea of Capoferro is contratempo, essentially when you strike your opponent in response to his own attack.
Stesso-tempo actions are completed with one motion and are best. Dui-tempo actions take two motions and are slower. Mezzo tempo actions are done as the opponent begins an attack.
Advice from the
Master:
1. Don’t parry without riposting.
2. Don’t strike unless you can parry his riposte.
3. If you parry with your dagger, strike with your sword at the same time.
4. Terza is the best guard, as it is good for defense and can quickly move to seconda or quarta on the attack.
5. Feints are bad, since your opponent will either ignore it if it’s not in measure, or take the tempo to kill you, and you could always just make a real attack instead.
6. Advance and attack when the opponent’s sword is found if possible.
7. If the opponent’s point is out of presence, strike for the hand.
8. Aiming at a target below the knee/thigh sacrifices too much range to be wise.
9. Keep your arm back to present a narrow profile.
10. When you face a brutal, untrained opponent, stay in strettissima misura and aim for extended limbs.
Finally, the best advice of Capoferro, the secret to becoming a master yourself: take the opportunity to practice with people who are better than you as often as possible.
Works Cited:
Images retrieved from http://mac9.ucc.nau.edu/manuscripts/pcapo/
Capoferro, Ridolfo. Italian
Rapier Combat Edited by Kirby, Jared. Stackpole Books, PA 2004
