Combatives researcher Phil Mathews has put together another excellent biographical article on yet another combatives pioneer. This time the subject is none other than William Ewart Fairbairn, possibly the biggest name in the field.
Fairbairn spent time in the Royal Marines in the 1900s, the Shanghai Municipal Police in the 1920s, then taught combatives at Camp X in Canada and in America during WWII. During that time he studied judo, jujutsu, chinese boxing and various other arts which he synthesized into his own style of dirty fighting that he taught to law enforcement and soldiers.
How dirty was Fairbairn’s dirty fighting? My favorite line from Phil’s article is the quote from a Fairbairn student: “Within 15 seconds, I came to realize that my private parts were in constant jeopardy!”
The article fills in some gaps and clears up some misconceptions about what “everybody knows” about Fairbairn’s life and work. To read it in full, see William Ewart Fairbairn: The Legendary Instructor
Phil also recommends Peter Robins’ book The Legend of W.E. Fairbairn, Gentleman and Warrior: The Shanghai Years:
For more on the 1920s Shanghai Municipal Police, also check out Robert Bickers’ Empire Made Me: An Englishman Adrift in Shanghai:
I believe that the works of W.E.Fairbairn are probably the most effective collection of techniques available. Further I find their effectiveness not so much to be in the technique themselves but rather the manner in which they are executed. Simular techniques may be found today and back to the 12th century, but it is the mindset, the pure aggression and ruthlessness with which they are applied that makes these techniques, and therefore, the man deadly.
Owner and instructor: fairbairn-protocol-h2h@canada.com
I think something worth looking at with the World-of-Fairbairn is in particular the way he taught…his pedagogy…his techniques are basic and effective and given the time he had to teach in – some of the best…but his technique of teaching- in such a short time- was what allowed the students to pick up the techniques -