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(→‎Treatise: Pasting Translation Up to Book 2 Chapter 9.)
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| '''Second book of fencing of Sieur Desbordes'''
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''Chapter 1''
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Having promised to talk about the sword and the dagger as the main weapons of the Cavaliers, I want to carry out my promise, and all of it in order. But because in the first book I have shown those which are the principal guards, of which I kept the figures, I shall not make more repetition contenting myself with what I have written above. I will show how one must be with the body, and the hand, with the dagger, and the difference with the other guards, as one can see in the following teachings.
 
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| ''Chap. 2''
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I want to address at the beginning the premiere guard according to the started order. Here is why if you are in premiere, you will put your enemy in great terror seeing that he will not have the assurance of striking you, [and] seeing you so readily in the position to strike him to his face.
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If by chance he resolutely came to bring you a thrust under the hand: rather than parry with the dagger, parry with the sword and, helping with the dagger, suddenly strike him where he uncovered himself, because in this way he will be able to make a feint on the dagger or other premeditated place.
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While you parry with your sword, your enemy will be able to enter from the outside with the left foot, covering your sword with his dagger, and might thus have the convenience of hitting you, but if you have the intelligence of that art, when your enemy passes with his left foot, void with the body, and lift up the arm in the
 
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| premiere guard, and you will have the upper hand, [both] for the force and for the guard.
 
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| '''Chap. 3.'''
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To firstly assault with a seconde, I want you to attack your enemy in seconde so that he strikes you, and in striking, you parry with the dagger and strike him in the head.
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To demonstrate the defence that can be made by your enemy to your fencing, if you go to strike resolutely as I have said, your enemy can strike you with a premiere in the stomach, or a cut on the head from the right side, or with a revers, but doing as I said, you will be victorious over them, although he is in premier. You will be able to strike him with a false edge to the hand, to provoke him to make a riposte with the point or the edge, or still with a false to the hand, he could turn his hand and void with the body, hitting you with a quarte in the stomach. Or removing the hand and the sword he might go with the weapons together above yours, that is to say with both the sword and the dagger, and may do other further blows.
 
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| Still attacking with the sword and dagger, you can feint a maindroit to the face of your enemy so that he parries, and by parrying you gain with the dagger, hitting him with the point or the edge as the occasion presents itself. Many other blows and other feints can be made and taught, but I want to talk about all of them after the other two guards. I will leave for the present this seconde having spoken quite enough.
 
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| ''Chap. 4.''
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The tierce guard is suitable to all occasions, as can be known through experience. That is why being in tierce and wanting to attack your enemy in a narrow tierce, you must pretend to want to take his sword with your dagger, forcing him to withdraw, and that in the retreat you use the presented opportunity to hit him in the stomach
 
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| or else go with your sword to cover his from the outside so that he moves it, and that by moving it he gives you the convenience to hit him. Again you can carry it over his dagger to make him parry it, and during that you prepare yourself to strike him in the stomach.
 
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| ''Chap. 5.''
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The quarte and last of the four, [is] our principal guard, the best, and most convenient for striking and for parrying. Being in quarte to attack your enemy first, you go to find to the outside in the cross so that you constrain him to caver his sword with a low quarte, then you will lower your dagger from quarte, going to seconde, and from this guard strike him to the most convenient and most useful; although you can make a feint from the outside and to strike to his right side, and then strike him
 
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| with a quarte to the stomach: but such feints puts the man in danger of being wounded in the same tempo that he puts them in practice. This is why I have little respect [of such feints], unless to respond to your opponent's feints.
 
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| ''Chap. 6. Other Bottes''
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Having brought to light the four main guards, I will show other bottes dependent on each other, which everyone may give according to their inclination, since all the blows and all the guards may succeed in each, in all the opportunities that may arise. Here is why when you see your enemy advancing his dagger, and holding his sword short and withdrawn, you can make many blows, but I want to teach you in my judgement the four most necessary bottes.
 
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| Firstly, you will go with resolution to strike him from within, close to his dagger, since you will force him to parry, thinking to do this and not finding your sword. Immediately repeat the step, and turning the wrist to advance a thrust straight to his stomach, and this is called a strike of the firm foot, being firm from the beginning.
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The second blow you can do is that you pretend to go resolutely on his dagger; in parrying you lower the point, and present the sword to the stomach, hitting him with a tierce. After withdrawing the step, you will strike him another thrust subject to him wishing to follow you.
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For the tierce strike, pretend to strike him a thrust to the stomach to the end that he passes with the dagger, after putting his sword on his dagger, you will strike him, but this blow is made in uncovering his stomach because the
 
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| arm angle is large enough. If by chance he parries with the sword, lower your point, putting it to his right side, as I have said [regarding] the blows of the single sword then you can immediately help with your dagger, above or below as the occasion will present itself.
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You will be able for the quarte strike to pretend to strike your enemy on his dagger, and suddenly raising your sword [along] with the tip of your dagger, strike him with a quarte in the stomach, being defended and well covered [if] offended by your enemy's sword.
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You can still strike another blow to his dagger, so that your enemy defends himself, and as he parries, you can strike him in two tempi. Or pretend to go to the edge of his dagger, which being reached, he cannot know where you want to strike, above or below, because being so close to his stomach, you will strike him where you want as the occasion will present the most convenient.
 
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| It suffices to have spoken about these four guards; I want to address several other sorts of guards.
 
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| ''Chap. 7 Against a tierce''
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If your enemy remains in a low tierce joined with the dagger, so that he cannot be struck, and you want to attack him, go to the outside of his right side with your dagger and cover his sword, so that he is forced to withdraw, and as he withdraws in the same tempo, it is necessary to strike with a quarte to the stomach.
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This guard also may be assailed by other means: in beating his sword from within, you will pretend to strike him above with the dagger, so that parrying he shows the stomach, and in the same tempo you may strike him.
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You can even beat the sword from the outside, laying on it with the false edge, and strike him with a
 
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| quarte to the stomach from the right, striking him over the sword.
 
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| ''Chap. 8. In tierce against a premiere''
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Being in tierce and your enemy in premiere, I want you to carry your tierce to his right side, without hitting him, so that he has the means to parry, then you lift your sword over the point of his dagger, and going in premiere, hit him over the dagger.
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I can even teach you to cover his sword from within so that he removes it, and suddenly carry him a thrust to the stomach with a quarte. Furthermore, one can assault this premiere by another way, namely making a feint from the outside of his dagger so that he parries, and then you will strike him between the sword and the dagger, a thrust along the edge of the sword, turning the body like to that quarte of which I have written above.
 
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Revision as of 00:37, 27 January 2022

André des Bordes
Born 1582
Nancy, Lorraine
Died 28 January 1625
Nancy, Lorraine (?)
Spouse(s) Marie Olivier
Occupation Fencing master
Patron Henri II, Duke of Lorraine
Genres Fencing manual
Language Middle French
Notable work(s) Discours de la théorie de la pratique et de l’excellence des armes (1610)
Manuscript(s) MS E.1939.65.435

André des Bordes (Abraham Racinot; 1582-1625) was a 17th century French fencing master. Nothing is known of this master's youth other than the fact that he studied swordsmanship in Italy for many years and achieved some degree of mastery. After returning to his native France, he soon befriended the future duke Henri, and was appointed fencing master to Duke Charles III of Lorraine in 1606. When Henri became duke in 1609, Bordes was named a gentleman, and in August of 1609 he was raised to nobility (with the usual fees waived). Earlier that year in June, he had married Marie Olivier, a woman from a distinguished family in Pont-à-Mousson.

In 1610, Bordes completed a treatise on fencing entitled Discours de la théorie de la pratique et de l’excellence des armes ("Discourse on Theory, Practice, and Excellence at Arms"); it was published in Nancy and dedicated to the Duke. Bordes' treatise seems to largely be an abbreviated French translation of Camillo Palladini's Italian treatise Discorso di Camillo Palladini Bolognese sopra l'arte della scherma come l'arte della scherma è necessaria à chi si diletta d'arme (De Walden Library 14/10).

After this, Bordes' wealth and prestige increased; in 1612 he was appointed captain, warden and tax collector of Boulay, and in 1615, captain and provost of Sierck. In 1617, he joined the duchy's Council of State and gained the title Squire. At some point, Bordes also seems to have served as a foreign ambassador for Lorraine. Events turned against Bordes after the death of Henri II in 1624. His political enemies contrived to have him imprisoned on charges of witchcraft in November of that year, and on 28 January 1625 Bordes confessed to the crime and was executed by strangulation and burned.

Treatise

Additional Resources

Transcription by Olivier Dupuis

Translation by Rob Runacres

References

  1. In other words, offer his knowledge and skills.
  2. As in the pictures
  3. Agrippa, Camillo, Treatise on the Science of Arms (Rome, 1553)
  4. Manciolino of Bologna
  5. A vertical, downwards cut, equivalent to the Italian fendente
  6. A rising cut with the false edge, possibly similar to the false edge cut described by Dall’Aggochie
  7. A circular cut to the opponent’s right side, equivalent to the Italian moulineto
  8. A ‘garter’ or cut to the leg. Note the term’s spelling varies in this work.
  9. A thrust
  10. Probably a criticism of Agrippa’s recommendation to turn the head away when lunging.
  11. As in strike
  12. Dupuis suggests that Des-Bordes is in fact suggesting the fencer lowers the whole sword as the enemy attempts to thrust underneath, thereby striking with the quillions. This author considers that the lowering of the point may indicate a parry with the false edge, but that would not lend itself to a following thrust under the enemy’s sword.