Description
Hail and well met, clansmen!
Starting in April, The Vanguard Centre will be hosting a return to its routes as a school of the Scottish Broadsword, with a 6 week course in the fighting style of Scottish warriors of the 17th century – from the battlefields of the Jacobite Rebellions to the Napoleonic Wars, and for innumerable skirmishes or duels of honour between warriors from opposing clans, the legacy and prowess of the Highlanders was known across the world.
In this course, we will use modern teaching methods to explain, practise, and test the historical fighting of the period, as taken from period source materials left to history by fencing masters and military instructors. The course will feature use of the civilian, “civilised” Smallsword to learn the basics of distance, range, timing, thrusting, and opposition, and then apply those lessons and more to the Basket Hilted Broadsword or Claymore as used by soldiers, mercenaries, rogues, and most particularly, the Highlanders themselves.
This course will be beginner friendly for those new to HEMA or to The Vanguard Centre, but will provide plenty of challenge and new material for more advanced fencers as well.
Basic equipment will be provided by the Vanguard Centre as part of the course, but suitable clothing and footwear must be brought by each participant.
The course will cost ยฃ90 for 6 lessons over 6 weeks, with entrance guaranteed for all sessions without booking individually with a purchase of this complete ticket.
The lessons are scheduled at 7.30pm on Wednesdays, on the 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th of April, and the 6th & 13th of May 2026.
There will also be an informal social night at our nearby pub after classes on the 22nd April and 13th May, for students to get to know each other a bit better and discuss HEMA matters in a lower-pressure environment.
08/04/2026 Week 1: Intro to the sword, how to puncture a haggis
15/04/2026 Week 2: Opposition, strength, weakness, and timing
22/04/2026 Week 3: The Broadsword, or how to chop a man down
29/04/2026 Week 4: Further cuts, guards, and being in the right place
06/05/2026 Week 5: The complete fight, bringing all the basic elements together
13/05/2026 Week 6: Dirty tricks, sparring games, and end of course tournament
