La Verdadera Destreza “The True Art” of the Sword was a Spanish system of fencing that was practiced from the end of the 1500’s into the early 1700’s noted for its circular movements, upright guard, and dance like footwork. Coach Ernesto Maldonado has studied historical rapier since 1989, Destreza since 2007, and Spanish Golden Age Dance since 2022.
The instruction in class is based primarily on the works of Luis Dias de Viedma (1638) and Nicolas Rodrigo Noveli (1731) along with movement based on Novelli’s dance treatise along with insights 30+ years of study of historic sources and rapier competitions.
The Tuesday class includes an initial 30 minutes primarily focused on footwork.
Destreza (Spanish Rapier)
Students can expect to learn:
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The Spanish approach of space and distance in a bout
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A schema to quickly describe the complex footwork of the Spanish system
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A Refined approach to controlling the angle and leverage of blade engagements
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A well-developed approach to approach various attacks and binding actions
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A basic understanding and comfort with historic Spanish dance in a format to improve your fencing
Skill Level: All Levels Welcome
Minimum Gear Required: Fencing Mask, fencing jacket, leather gloves (preferably unpadded for more nimble hand movements inside of a complex hilt).
Gorget and shoes with thinner soles are recommended.
CBA has a limited number of rapiers available to borrow during class times.
Classes are:
Tuesday 7:00-8:30 PM
Thursday 7:00-8:00 PM
CBA Master Schedule ->
About the Coach
Ernesto Maldonado
Coach Ernesto began his study of historic fencing in 1988 within the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) where he earned their top awards in both historic fencing and in historic arts with a focus on rapier treatises and taught at multiple regional and national workshops. Additionally, he has studied historic dance and stage combat having choreographed both dances and fight scenes at multiple Renaissance Festivals across the country.
Outside of those environments, he has been part of the broader Western Martial Arts/Historic European Martial Arts community attending training events across the country since 2005, and traveled to Spain, Italy, and Vancouver to train with instructors across a broad range of historic disciplines, and takes monthly online dance courses with instructors from Spain.
