A little break from home led the Martial Arts Nomad to the Maryland Renaissance Festival south of Annapolis one recent Sunday. The festival is a big medieval fair, apparently the largest such gathering in the US, and there you will find merrye men and ladies, hussards and wenches in costume carrying on in this medieval wonderland. We went through this  the enchanted forest for food, ale and mead, and enjoyed the entertainment. We found even that it is possible to mix alcohol and nasty weapons! We went off to the midway area with our ale and throw either half a dozen knives, stars or axes for a measly $2.oo. What an incredible bargain! The objective is to hit the heart, and you win a prize. I got a bullseye with a throwing star and won a ticket into the maze. I ended up giving it away later.

We wandered some more and found swords, helmets, elephants, turkey legs, and the jousting tournament. Of course its all for the enjoyment of the crowd, but handling a horse in heavy armor waving about a weapon of some kind and making it look real is not as easy as it looks.

It just goes to show that martial arts can be found everywhere.

Academie Duello offers a very creative repertoire of martial arts courses, particularly in the ways of European swordplay and historical styles of fencing, and knightly arts. This summer I enjoyed seeing my nephew, Cassius Page, in action at the summer Knight Camp, a program for youths to learn the fundamentals of the ways of medieval chivalry, with experience in combat with sword and shield. During the five day program, the students learn a wide array of skills, and learned the traditions of strategy and tactics, the core of techniques common to knights, such as was required at medieval games.





The skills of medieval fair play and sword combat might not seem, at first glance, to be very applicable in today’s world. But you may just consider otherwise when learning the ‘Ten Knightly Virtues’ at the core of the program. These virtues are applicable to all the martial arts, indeed to everyday life.

Knightly Virtues:

Obedience, Nobility, Mercy, Justice, Integrity, Valor, Charity, Faith, Courage, Humility.

Its a tall order to learn all the knightly virtues in a few days. We would get to see the result of the hard work on graduation day. The graduation day was a presentation for all friends, family, and commoner alike to witness the advancements of the young knights in demonstration combat, archery, and chivalry.

The contest for best knight of the tournament involved special challenges, with using sword, shield and longstaff, as well as archery. Wins in combat are scored by hitting legal areas of the body. As soon as a hit is made, the duel stops, and the combatant is asked if the hit was a good one. Did they deliver a good hit, or was it a fluke? Winning by a fluke it seems is not very honourable, and in such cases, the combatants reset and the match continues. The lesson in this program is to win honourably and justly, and there is no point in winning at any cost. At the end, the students receive knightings and honours in recognition of their efforts.

Shin Ken Kai is a MUSO JIKIDEN EISHIN RYU (MJER) Iaido (traditional Japanese swordsmanship) group with its home dojo in Vancouver, Canada. Shin Ken Kai took part in the Kagami Biraki celebration at North Shore Aikiaki on January 17, 2009.