Description: This web site contains information about the Spanish style of Renaissance swordplay - the verdadera destreza (the true art).
mary curtis (1) puck curtis (1) verdadera destreza (1) historical spanish fencing terminology (1) jeronimo de carranza (1) luis pacheco de narvaez (1)
Sharing Spanish swordplay with the public
During the 1500s a new system of swordplay began to develop in Europe unlike any the world had ever seen. The Spanish created a new, universal method of fighting based on Reason and Mathematics that could be taught to any student. They called the system La Verdadera Destreza, the True Art.
The Destreza masters were educated men and their writing is filled with allusions to the writings of Euclid, Plato, Socrates and other classics of Western literature and philosophy. The founder of the system, Don Jerónimo Sánchez de Carranza, was a hero of Spain and known throughout Europe for his skill with a blade and his talent as a scholar. He was attached to the Royal Court and was mentioned by Miguel de Cervantes in “The Song of Calliope” in the Galatea: