Hutton Sabre anyone?

Introduction to the Dover Edition (2006)
by Ramon Martinez

Over a century ago in Victorian England, Captain Alfred Hutton, career military officer, teacher of swordsmanship, historian, and antiquarian, observed the state of fencing in England (particularly sabre fencing) and concluded that is was in a sad state—or, to use his own words, the direction it was taking was “destinctly retrograde.”

Captain Hutton’s book “Cold Steel”, published in 1889, sought to offer a solution to this perceived decay in the art of fencing. Part of his solution involved the development of his own unique system of sabre fencing, employing a weapon made to his own specifications. This lightweight weapon was similar to those used in European fencing academies of his time, especially in Italy. In Hutton’s opinion this type of sabre offered more variety and finesse of technique than the clumsy, heavier weapon still being used in the English schools.

In the book, Hutton states that the system he created and advocates is based on “Old English backsword play of the eighteenth century combined with the ‘modern Italian school.’” However, there is much more to his method, as his system also contains elements and techniques of Italian rapier fencing, French foil, and smallsword. Hutton makes this eclectic approach evident throughout his treatise by incorporating techniques of the old masters and making many references to their treatises to support the use of such historical methods in using the pommel of the sabre to strike the adversary in the face and “commanding”—that is, seizing the person and/or weapon of the adversary with the unarmed hand. All of these were commonly subjects of instruction in the days when men carried swords at their hips and knowing how to use one’s sidearm could be a matter of life or death.

In essence, Alfred Hutton based his methods of swordsmanship on the fundamentals of the French school of fencing, in which he received his early instruction at the famous school of Angelo. This institution of London society had been founded in the eighteenth century, and operated continuously through the nineteenth century until it finally closed in 1897. Hutton observed from his own experience and historical sources, the advantages of beginning with the foil and then proceeding to learn the use of the sabre. He admits and includes the use of all of the foil parries in his system of sabre fencing and commences his instruction upon the premise that the pupil is already well versed in the use of the foil.

Hutton’s system has often been thought to be a relatively simple system of “military” sabre fencing. However, a meticulous reading of “Cold Steel” shows that nothing could be further from the truth. Hutton’s unique system of sabre fencing is neither civilian nor military, and cannot be relegated solely to the floor of the salle d’armes, or thought of as a weapon to be used only in time of war. His system of sabre fencing could have been used on the dueling field, the battlefield, or as a method of self-defense.

As a professional military man, teacher of fencing, accomplished swordsman, and fencer since his youth, Hutton realized the value and importance of training in fencing for military personnel; however, he was also cognizant that the methods and training learned in schools of fencing could not be directly applied on the battlefield exactly as they were taught and practiced in the schools. Nevertheless, Hutton felt that they served as a strong foundation upon which combative methods and techniques could be developed for fighting in earnest where the purpose was to stop the enemy by hurting, maiming or killing. For Hutton, fencing was the queen of all athletic endeavor. Besides being one of the best methods of exercise for physical conditioning and maintenance of a sound physique and health, this type of training, more importantly, provided practice in instant decision-making, strategic thinking, and tactical considerations. Futhermore, the practice of fencing against a wide variety of training partners provided opportunities to cultivate an acute comprehension of hand-to-hand combat—the very essence of being a soldier and warrior. In Hutton’s unmechanized age, even an officer might have to engage physically with the enemy. The attributes honed on the floors of the fencing schools thus provided tools that no career military officer could afford to be without.

Hutton’s sound thinking on this point is shown in the sections in “Cold Steel” devoted to the use of the sabre when facing a soldier armed with a bayonet. He even goes so far as to include a section on the use of the sabre when facing a man armed with the French sword. Although Hutton realized that this sort of practice was obsolete, since thrusting swords of this type were no longer carried in his time, it nevertheless provided a method for both swordsmen to test themselves and their skills of judgment, strategy, and tactical application. Hutton also delves into the use of other weapons whose methods of use he also incorporated in the training and practice of fencing, including the French dueling sword, the great stick, the constable’s truncheon, and the short sword-bayonet or dagger. In discussing all of the weapons covered in his book, the author adheres to the theory and practice of fencing, which he viewed in all his writings as the basis for obtaining a complete comprehension of armed combat.

Alfred Hutton devoted much of his life to the revitalization of fencing in Britain, and the comprehensive treatment given to the sabre and other weapons in “Cold Steel” was intended to bring the art and science of these weapons up to date with his times. This republication will, I hope, show Hutton’s system to be equally relevant to our own age. It is therefore with great satisfaction and enthusiasm that I present again one of the most well-known and well-received texts on the skillful management of the sabre. I hope that all contemporary aficionados of the sabre delight in this book as much as I have.

Maestro Ramon Martinez
President, Association for Historical Fencing
Founding Member, International Masters at Arms Federation
Director, Martinez Academy of Arms

The discoveries and advances in this subject made by men like Hutton, Castle, and their comrades evidently did not survive past WWI. The generation of youth whom they taught and inspired perished in the horror of the trenches. It was not really until the 1990s that the approach to historical fencing studies they promoted was attempted again. The ARMA itself was to a large part created as a way of following the effort these men first began. John Waller, head of fight interpretation at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, has expressed how the efforts of Hutton and Castle were a direct influence upon the museum’s conception of historical fencing demonstration. In many ways, today's enthusiasts of Historical European Martial Arts attempting to construct a modern curriculum are the inheritors of the efforts by these “private gentleman devoted to the noble science”. It can only be hoped that in a hundred years, some of us today are remembered as fondly for our contributions.