Research and Discussion Forums

s_taillebois wrote:Your proposed soldierly protagonist might spend a fair amount of time down at the local tavern drinking enough to cut the aches...even if he'd never had any important parts cut or sliced up...

He's British - he doesn't need an excuse to go down the pub

Hm, I would say that a lot of weapons were actually a LOT lighter than I had ever anticipated. Swinging them around with force, of course, takes some strength, but merely holding them shouldn't give you the impression that they're heavy at all. In fact, quite far from it - a two or three pound rapi...

http://books.google.com/books?id=kSOMTo4ZoM8C&pg=PA136&lpg=PA136&dq=falcons+and+courtly+love&source=bl&ots=DR_Ifz7bWl&sig=1VOjDsQVsJ_DrXxgfKbN4vtEZxM&hl=en&ei=LnA9SpDGJYGmNZ3XpKkO&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10 Might also look in Google Books...

Ah, well, Bayeux is half a millennium before the period I'm writing about - I'm not sure the practice was still extant at Elizabeth's court!

Interesting, I've not come across the business with falcons in any of my (extensive) reading on the medieval and renaissance periods. What are your sources?

Thanks for the replies! Yes, I was aware of Saviolo, who had a school in London at the time I am writing about, and my hero owns a copy of Grassi's "Ragione..." :) With regard to the small sword, I am going by summaries of Silver's writings, in which he advocates a shorter rapier than was ...

Sorry - my bad re the name! Re the length, I was thinking of the Statutes of Apparel which states: "no man shall, after ten days next following this proclamation, wear any sword, rapier, or any weapon in their stead passing the length of one yard and half a quarter of blade at the uttermost&quo...

Hi I'm currently writing a novel set in 1590s London, and although I can find a good range of resources on historical fighting techniques and suchlike, what is harder to find is information about the practicalities of going around with a 36-40" rapier strapped to your hip! I'm therefore hoping ...