During my physical culture workshop at VISS last weekend, we looked at a few feats of strength. Some of these might be thought of as cheating, others are outright stage illusions. Victorian Classic Strength First up, classic feats from the Bartitsu Compendium I, in a section called “How to Pose as a Strongman”. Using a […]

The front headlock is a very common position that occurs in many forms of wrestling. It is so instinctual that many children use it in play fighting without ever having seen it before. Although there are two directions for “chancery” in bare-knuckle boxing, the front headlock is by far the most common. Despite the popularity, […]

Slate.com contains a column By Troy Patterson called “Gentleman Scholar” in which he offers etiquette advice for the contemporary man. One of his articles from April 2014 was brought to my attention recently: A Gentleman’s Guide to the Umbrella. His advice regarding buying an umbrella is the same advice I give: don’t get a $5 […]

To be grabbed or pulled can induce panic even if it isn’t painful. You are trapped and it feels like a violation of your freedom. When an attacker grabs you, they have intent to follow that up with some other action. It may be to bring you with them, control your motion to make you […]

If you enjoyed the section in the Bartitsu Compendium called “Self Protection on a Cycle”, Tony Wolf has found some more period pictures from a 1905 edition of the Italian journal La Stampa Sportiva. Enjoy the full series on Bartitsu.org: http://www.bartitsu.org/index.php/2014/12/self-defence-with-a-bicycle-italian-style-1905/

Our four-session introduction to Bartitsu includes the four component disciplines of the art: Jujitsu, pugilism, savate and walking stick self defence. However, there is a critical fifth component: the mind. Your brain directs your body in voluntary actions, and control of your focus, awareness and choices is critically important in dangerous situations. Your assailant likewise […]

Since everyone’s talking about it, here’s the fight scene from the show “Gotham” in episode 10: Although there’s some boxing (and a training scene in which Alfred coaches some boxing with old leather gloves), some stick fighting and a drop throw at the end, let’s not get carried away and call this Bartitsu. I admit […]

The most recognizable element in Bartitsu is walking stick self defense. It is both a differentiator from other martial arts, and unique in shape compared to other stick fighting arts. However interesting the uses in Victorian and Edwardian settings such as Sherlock Holmes or fantasy settings such as steampunk, it seems to be the least […]

The following is a partial list of western martial arts that use a stick in one hand, but should not be mistaken for each other: Vigny’s Walking Stick Savate’s La Canne Singlestick The list of Eastern martial arts that use a short stick is longer, but I don’t think there’s as much confusion about their […]

You have two hands to punch and grab, and two legs to kick with. Kicking is common in many martial arts from the Eastern Hemisphere, but most are unaware of the foot-centric Western Martial Art that is still practiced today called Savate. The third week of our introduction to Bartitsu adds kicking to our arsenal. […]