Quarterstaff vs. Rapiers: Peeke’s Three to One

The tale of Richard Peeke, an English sailor captured during a raid on Spanish coastal towns in 1625, was popular during his own time, but showed renewed interest during the Victorian era for Peeke’s display of manly virtue. Today, the tale is often told honoring the efficacy of the traditional quarterstaff, which, common weapon though [...]

A Female Boxing Match (1876)

A blow-by-blow account of two women boxing at Harry Hill’s concert saloon in 1876. To give this tale some context, Harry Hill was an Englishman (born in Liverpool, 1819) who opened his saloon in New York city in 1854 and operated it until 1888 when the reform politicians finally gained control of both the liquor [...]

I’m back.

I’m back, so now we can all rest easy. Let me ease back in by pointing out a few places where you can pan some gold: (1) Stickgrappler’s site. It must have been ten years ago that I first met this cat. A family man and (at the time) finance guy, he was

Will President Bush Pardon Jack Johnson?

Folks, we’re getting down to the wire and I for one am excited to see if this pardon will be granted. As a rule, modern presidents tend to issue a whole slew of pardons right before leaving office rather than doing so earlier. That way, they don’t have to hear a bunch of grief about [...]

Still alive!

Hey all, I’m still around even though I haven’t posted in awhile. I’ll be back to posting relatively soon (I’ve got some great topics, they just need to be actually written), but in the meantime Patrick Parker over at www.mokurendojo.com is about to hit 1000 posts. What a great success- not only quantity, but quality [...]

Quick Update

March was very frustrating, beginning with a month-long fight with my webhost (Startlogic) over abysmal loading speeds and then following with being rear-ended in an auto collision mid-month. Not much fun considering it all followed a separated rib after eating a knee during some stickfighting. April is looking up: my son was born April 1st [...]

Reach Out and Zap Someone

Reach Out and Zap Someone: The Patent History of Electric Stun Weapons   Zaap…zaaap-clack-clack-clack…zaaap. Just the sound and spark of an electric weapon triggers something from childhood that makes you step back when you see and hear the electricity arc through the air between the leads. The two most common forms of today’s electric "stun" [...]

W. C. Heinz

"Your boxing education is lacking," I was told. This came after the recent death of W.C. Heinz, an apparently legendary sportswriter of whom I had never heard. Heinz’s best known work, "Death of a Racehorse," can be found on Google Books and elsewhere on the web, and is one of the best

Myth: Canes Required Carry Permits

You may have never happened across this particular myth, and I just saw it for the first time myself, but a number of sites that discuss the history of the cane perpetuate a myth that around the early 18th century, licenses were required to carry canes in England. There are variations on the theme, but [...]

MMA in MD moving forward

Looks like the decision getting the MD MMA bill out of senate committee will be made by Friday and it is likely to go to the full Senate for voting. Talking to inside sources, the legislation is expected to be passed at House and Senate, but the first real stumbling block will come with the [...]

Fourth Fatality for Modern MMA

Modern mixed martial arts received another inevitable-but-unwelcome addition to the list of fatalities associated with the sport. Canadian Rene Ayangma, 20, was training for his second professional fight when he went into cardiac arrest after finishing a sparring session. Stories here and here. I’ll do a full post after Wednesday’s autopsy results are released.

The Cane as a Weapon (1912)

In 1912, A.C. Cunningham published The Cane as a Weapon, which even today remains the best book I have ever seen on fighting with a cane. It is amazingly succinct and conveys what is as nearly a complete system of cane fighting as a reader could desire, all within 25 pages.

Carnival of Martial Arts #6: Great Books

Black Belt Mama was kind enough to host this month’s carnival and the theme she chose was Great Martial Arts Books.  While she says she chose this theme because she’s out of training with a busted knee, I say anytime is a good time for a good book thread, so here goes. (By the way, [...]

A Woman’s Self-Defence for Women

Health & Vim, May 1912.

A highly interesting and vivid account by PERRY PEAKE, of a young girl whose jujutsu methods of self-defence are arousing widespread comment.

In common with most men, I suppose, I had always held the opinion that the athletic feat-performing woman was of the Amazon type—a heavy, fleshy person of powerful build and unattractive appearance [...]

Reprints are online!

There is a new "LIBRARY" menu option at top right. Our reprints will be available there in the future. Fall Guys is there now and available for reading online, so let me know what you think, especially if you have any readability issues.