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Difference between revisions of "Angelo Viggiani dal Montone"

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| rowspan="3" | <p><small>''Why one cannot learn a perfect blow with practice weapons, but only with those which are edged.''</small></p>
  
 
<p>ROD: I would not say now that you cannot do all those ways of striking, of warding, and of guards, with those weapons, and equally with these, but you will do them imperfectly with those, and most perfectly with these edged ones, because if (for example) you ward a thrust put to you by the enemy, beating aside his sword with a ''mandritto'', so that that thrust did not face your breast, while playing with ''spade da marra'',<ref>It is conspicuous that in every other instance in the present text, (at least, in the sections translated here) Viggiani uses the term “''da giuoco''” (of play/practice) to refer to practice arms. Sydney Anglo (''The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe'' p.324, footnote 102) refers to evidence showing that in late 16th century Spain the ''spada da marra'' was considered to be an Italian equivalent of the ''spada negra'', a blunted weapon with a button, and discusses the significance of the different terms. “''Marra''” in modern Italian is “hoe, fluke of an anchor”, and is given by Florio (''A Worlde of Wordes'', 1598) to mean “a mattock, a spade, a shovell, a rake to mingle sand and lome together, a pickaxe, or such rusticke instrument.” Thus “''spade da marra''” may simply mean “swords of blunt metal”, and represent a standard type of practice weapon. Of possible relevance, “''smarra''” is used to refer to the practice rapier by Marcelli (''Regole della scherma'', 1686) and others, presumably as a linguistic descendent of “''spade da marra''” (Gaugler, ''The History of Fencing'', 1998, p. 92); turning again to Florio, “''smarrare''” is given as “to pare or shave down” and so “''smarra''” may simply derive from the meaning of “a sword whose point has been pared down”, rather than a contraction of “''spada da marra''”. It is intriguing to speculate that the term was originally pejorative, suggesting something akin to “swords like shovels”.</ref> it will suffice you to beat it only a little, indeed, for you to learn the ''schermo''; but if they were spade da filo, you would drive that ''mandritto'' with all of your strength in order to push well aside the enemy’s thrust. Behold that this would be a perfect blow, done with wisdom, and with promptness, unleashed with more length, and thrown with more force, that it would have been with those other arms. How will you fare, ''conte'', if you take perfect arms in your hand, and not stand with all your spirit, and with all your intent judgment? </p>
 
<p>ROD: I would not say now that you cannot do all those ways of striking, of warding, and of guards, with those weapons, and equally with these, but you will do them imperfectly with those, and most perfectly with these edged ones, because if (for example) you ward a thrust put to you by the enemy, beating aside his sword with a ''mandritto'', so that that thrust did not face your breast, while playing with ''spade da marra'',<ref>It is conspicuous that in every other instance in the present text, (at least, in the sections translated here) Viggiani uses the term “''da giuoco''” (of play/practice) to refer to practice arms. Sydney Anglo (''The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe'' p.324, footnote 102) refers to evidence showing that in late 16th century Spain the ''spada da marra'' was considered to be an Italian equivalent of the ''spada negra'', a blunted weapon with a button, and discusses the significance of the different terms. “''Marra''” in modern Italian is “hoe, fluke of an anchor”, and is given by Florio (''A Worlde of Wordes'', 1598) to mean “a mattock, a spade, a shovell, a rake to mingle sand and lome together, a pickaxe, or such rusticke instrument.” Thus “''spade da marra''” may simply mean “swords of blunt metal”, and represent a standard type of practice weapon. Of possible relevance, “''smarra''” is used to refer to the practice rapier by Marcelli (''Regole della scherma'', 1686) and others, presumably as a linguistic descendent of “''spade da marra''” (Gaugler, ''The History of Fencing'', 1998, p. 92); turning again to Florio, “''smarrare''” is given as “to pare or shave down” and so “''smarra''” may simply derive from the meaning of “a sword whose point has been pared down”, rather than a contraction of “''spada da marra''”. It is intriguing to speculate that the term was originally pejorative, suggesting something akin to “swords like shovels”.</ref> it will suffice you to beat it only a little, indeed, for you to learn the ''schermo''; but if they were spade da filo, you would drive that ''mandritto'' with all of your strength in order to push well aside the enemy’s thrust. Behold that this would be a perfect blow, done with wisdom, and with promptness, unleashed with more length, and thrown with more force, that it would have been with those other arms. How will you fare, ''conte'', if you take perfect arms in your hand, and not stand with all your spirit, and with all your intent judgment? </p>
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| rowspan="13" | <p><small>''It is necessary that the warrior remain intent on the point of the weapon of his enemy.''</small></p>
  
 
<p>CON: Yes, but it is a great danger to train with arms that puncture; if I were to make the slightest mistake, I could do enormous harm. Nonetheless we will indeed do as is more pleasing to you, because you will be on guard not to harm me, and I will be certain to parry, and I will pay constant attention to your point in order to know which blow may come forth from your hand, which is necessary in a good warrior. </p>
 
<p>CON: Yes, but it is a great danger to train with arms that puncture; if I were to make the slightest mistake, I could do enormous harm. Nonetheless we will indeed do as is more pleasing to you, because you will be on guard not to harm me, and I will be certain to parry, and I will pay constant attention to your point in order to know which blow may come forth from your hand, which is necessary in a good warrior. </p>
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| rowspan="3" | <p><small>''Proposition of a ''schermo'' which is of a single strike, and a single parry, of a single guard, and in a single time.''</small></p>
  
 
<p>ROD: Well now, I want to teach to you today a ''schermo'' I have never seen to be done by others, and of which I was simultaneously my own tutor and student, which is not to be done otherwise than with good swords, and a single strike, and a single parry, and a single guard; and each of these three things together in a single ''tempo''; with which parry you will be able to ward every sort of blow and offense; and this strike is superior to every other sort of strike, and from this guard every other guard proceeds. </p>
 
<p>ROD: Well now, I want to teach to you today a ''schermo'' I have never seen to be done by others, and of which I was simultaneously my own tutor and student, which is not to be done otherwise than with good swords, and a single strike, and a single parry, and a single guard; and each of these three things together in a single ''tempo''; with which parry you will be able to ward every sort of blow and offense; and this strike is superior to every other sort of strike, and from this guard every other guard proceeds. </p>
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| rowspan="3" | <p>CON: If thus it is, this seems to me the foundation and base of all this art; indeed the sword has among all the arms the grandest privileges. </p>
 
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<p>from whence springs the practice that Emperors had borne before them an unsheathed sword, as an emblem of justice, by which they administered, as much as saying that there is no other fitter medium or instrument by which justice may punish the wicked, and defend the good, than by the sword, truly copious in every defense, and in every offense, fine, proper, and an ornament to man. King and Prophet David says in his Psalms, “Gird your sword over your thigh, O Baron, and that will be your ornament, and your splendor.”<ref>Psalm 45:3.</ref> Did God not have in His hand a sword with which to punish the kings, as is to be read in many places in the Holy Scripture? Did the Angel of the Lord not appear with unsheathed sword in hand to Joshua in Jericho? I would say that in sum the sword is the most perfect, the most agile, the most worthy arm that is to be found, and of greater honor and ornament to the knight, and I believe it may be said that it is the beginning and end of all arms, both offensive and defensive. </p>
 
<p>from whence springs the practice that Emperors had borne before them an unsheathed sword, as an emblem of justice, by which they administered, as much as saying that there is no other fitter medium or instrument by which justice may punish the wicked, and defend the good, than by the sword, truly copious in every defense, and in every offense, fine, proper, and an ornament to man. King and Prophet David says in his Psalms, “Gird your sword over your thigh, O Baron, and that will be your ornament, and your splendor.”<ref>Psalm 45:3.</ref> Did God not have in His hand a sword with which to punish the kings, as is to be read in many places in the Holy Scripture? Did the Angel of the Lord not appear with unsheathed sword in hand to Joshua in Jericho? I would say that in sum the sword is the most perfect, the most agile, the most worthy arm that is to be found, and of greater honor and ornament to the knight, and I believe it may be said that it is the beginning and end of all arms, both offensive and defensive. </p>
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Revision as of 22:54, 19 November 2023

Angelo Viggiani dal Montone
Died 1552
Bologna (?)
Relative(s) Battista Viggiani (brother)
Occupation Fencing master
Genres Fencing manual
Language Italian
Notable work(s) Lo Schermo (1575)
Manuscript(s) Cod. 10723 (1567)
Translations Traduction française

Angelo Viggiani dal Montone (Angelo Viziani, Angelus Viggiani; d. 1552) was a 16th century Italian fencing master. Little is known about this master's life, but he was Bolognese by birth and might also have been connected to the court of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.[1]

In 1551, Viggiani completed a treatise on warfare, including fencing with the side sword, but died shortly thereafter. His brother Battista preserved the treatise and recorded in his introduction that Viggiani had asked him not to release it for at least fifteen years.[1] Accordingly, a presentation manuscript of the treatise was completed in 1567 as a gift for Maximilian II (1527-1576), Holy Roman Emperor. It was ultimately published in 1575 under the title Lo Schermo d'Angelo Viggiani.

Treatise

Note: This article includes a very early (2002) draft of Jherek Swanger's translation. An extensively-revised version of the translation was released in print in 2017 as The Fencing Method of Angelo Viggiani: Lo Schermo, Part III. It can be purchased at the following link in softcover.

TEMP

Additional Resources

The following is a list of publications containing scans, transcriptions, and translations relevant to this article, as well as published peer-reviewed research.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Unspecified service to Charles is mentioned in his brother's dedication on page 3.
  2. Literally, “Braggart”.
  3. Literally, “Iron Mouth”.
  4. It is conspicuous that in every other instance in the present text, (at least, in the sections translated here) Viggiani uses the term “da giuoco” (of play/practice) to refer to practice arms. Sydney Anglo (The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe p.324, footnote 102) refers to evidence showing that in late 16th century Spain the spada da marra was considered to be an Italian equivalent of the spada negra, a blunted weapon with a button, and discusses the significance of the different terms. “Marra” in modern Italian is “hoe, fluke of an anchor”, and is given by Florio (A Worlde of Wordes, 1598) to mean “a mattock, a spade, a shovell, a rake to mingle sand and lome together, a pickaxe, or such rusticke instrument.” Thus “spade da marra” may simply mean “swords of blunt metal”, and represent a standard type of practice weapon. Of possible relevance, “smarra” is used to refer to the practice rapier by Marcelli (Regole della scherma, 1686) and others, presumably as a linguistic descendent of “spade da marra” (Gaugler, The History of Fencing, 1998, p. 92); turning again to Florio, “smarrare” is given as “to pare or shave down” and so “smarra” may simply derive from the meaning of “a sword whose point has been pared down”, rather than a contraction of “spada da marra”. It is intriguing to speculate that the term was originally pejorative, suggesting something akin to “swords like shovels”.
  5. Psalm 45:3.
  6. The word for which I substitute the phrase “dull edge” is, in the original, “costa”; the relevant meaning given in Florio is “the back of a knife”. Viggiani uses it to refer, first, to a dull false edge (as in a backsword); and second, to a dull portion of either the false, or, more likely, both edges (as an extended ricasso). I am unaware of a discrete word in English that could stand in adequate stead.
  7. Psalm 149:6-7.
  8. This is almost certainly an error in the original. The text reads “se nascerà la punta dalle parti dritte, chiamerassi punta rovescia”. This is, of course, the complete opposite of what is meant by “punta rovescia”, and Viggiani immediately contradicts this statement on pg. 56V, endnote immediately following.
  9. Here the correct definition (contrary to the preceding endnote) is given: “Se si ferirà con la punta, o nascerà dalle parti diritte, & chiamerassi punta diritta, o dalle parti stanche, & chiamerassi punta rovescia…
  10. Interpreting this maneuver is problematic. It may refer to the practice of arresting a fendente by meeting it at the agent’s hand, hilt, or at worst, forte; yet no mention is made of the patient closing distance to do so, creating the impression of simply putting a hand or forearm in harm’s way rather than take the blow in the head. The relevant passage in the original is “…il suo braccio stanco tien cura, & custodia della testa in pigliare il colpo con la mano, o in ritener co’l braccio la forza sua…
  11. A braccio is a unit of length of approximately 60 centimeters. The specified distance is therefore about 30 cm, or one foot.
  12. This is, of course, in full, “guardia larga, offensiva, imperfetta”.