Saturday, October 25, 2008

AEMMA in Ljubljana, Slovenia

The "Narodni muzej Slovenije " (National Museum of Slovenia), the organizers of the workshop, and sponsors of the workshop were "BTC City" (Slovenian business, shopping, recreational – entertainment and cultural centre) and "Rauch d.d." (provider of juices) presented "Delavnica srednjeveških Evropshik borilnih veščin " or Medieval European Martial Arts Workshop, the second of its kind in Slovenia on October 11-12, 2008. This follows the first workshop by David M. Cvet of AEMMA in 2005. This year's workshop featured five instructors including David M. Cvet from AEMMA Toronto. The first half of Saturday covered Fiore dei Liberi's "abrazare " (grappling) and "spada " (sword) by David. The lessons were oriented towards the application of distance and timing concepts. This was followed with the second half of Saturday with a Slovenian instructor from the Celje area, Igor Sancin, who has been working with Sigmund Ringeck's treatise for more than a decade. He is also in the process of publishing Slovenia's first Slovenian translation of a historical fencing treatise within a year. His technical understanding of Ringeck was clearly demonstrated during his class, conveying the necessary technical skills to incorporate Ringeck's concepts into German longsword fencing.

The second day of the workshop featured two instructors in the first half, Petr Matoušek from the Czech Republic and Martin Fabian from Slovakia representing "Spoločnosť pre výskum a praktické prevádzanie vznešeného umenia šermiarskeho " (The Free Brotherhood of the Honourable Art of Fencing) instructing initially on "ringen" or wrestling techniques of Ringeck, von Danzig and from the Codex Wallerstein. This was followed by longsword techniques led by Martin sourcing Joachim Meyer. The last instructor for the second half of Sunday was instructor Roman Vučajnk, from Ljubljana covering grappling and dagger techniques derived from Filipo Vadi.

The workshop's venue was a large gymnasium in central Ljubljana offering extremely high ceiling and tall windows creating an excellent workshop environment. Twenty students registered for the workshop and all felt very satisfied with the level and quality of training received. The weekend workshop included visiting the "Narodni muzej Slovenije " at 8:00pm for the opportunity to physically examine numerous medieval arms and armour artifacts from the museum's collection. A rare opportunity for the students of the workshop, and the second time the museum has offered students of such a workshop the chance to examine the artifacts, the first being on the Sunday evening after the weekend workshop in 2005.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Proclamation of the Grant of Arms, Flag and Badge to AEMMA

L-R: Dr. Claire Boudreau, Chief Herald of Canada, David M. Cvet, founder of AEMMA, Dr. Darrel Kennedy, Assiniboine Herald, Canadian Heraldic Authority, assigned to the file, Bruce Patterson, Saguenay Herald. Canadian Heraldic Authority

The Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts received its offically granted arms by proclamation at a formal event in Montreal, on October 4, 2008. The proclamation certificate text is reproduced below.

"In 1988, by Royal Letters Patent of her Majesty the Queen of Canada, the Governor General received the authority to grant armorial bearings, such grants being part of the National Honours System.

Pursuant to this authority now vested in Her Excellency The Right Honorable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, and to the terms of my commission of office, I, Claire Boudreau, Chief Herald of Canada, do hereby proclaim the arms, flag and badge of the Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts as granted by me, entered in Volume V, Page 197 of the Public Register of Amrs, Flags and Badges of Canada, to be borne and used for ever hereafter by the Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts according to the terms of the grant and the law of arms of Canada.

These Letters Patent were signed and sealed at Rideau Hall in the City of Ottawa on the fifteenth day of January in the year two thousand and eight and proclaimed and presented here in the City of Montreal on the occasion of the Annual Meeting of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada, this fourth day of October in the year two thousand and eight.

God Save the Queen."