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State University, CA Maestro di Scherma, Accademia Nazionale di Scherma, Naples, Italy (photo of Dr.
Gaugler from the backcover of THE HISTORY OF FENCING, Laureate Press, 1998)
Epic Encounters Between Italian and French Fencing Masters 1881-1911
of the 20th century were among the most popular and well-attended sports events of the time. They
ranged from conventional matches with foil, sabre and epee to spectacles resembling circus
performances. For instance, in 1893 over 20,000 people saw an international fencing tournament
fought with sabres on horseback in New York's Madison Square Garden. Most tournaments, however,
were conducted in the traditional manner, on a fencing piste. The encounters that attracted the most
attention were generally between leading Italian and French professionals -- for example, in 1903, in
Buenos Aires, more than 4000 spectators gathered in the largest theater in Argentina to see the
famous Sicilian master, Agesilao Greco fence the French epee champion, Jean Joseph-Renaud.
Beside the competitions held in theaters and music halls, encounters were also arranged in
ballrooms and in private fencing salles. French masters visited Italy, and Italian masters France, in the
hope of fencing as many local masters as possible. Fencing teachers arranged tournaments open to
the paying public in their salles. Camille Prevost in Escimeurs et Duellistes (Paris 1937), described the
procedure in Franco-Italian fencing matches during the final decades of the 19th century. Juries
consisted of three Italians and three Frenchmen. Each judge, without saying a word, noted the hits he
believed valid, and at the conclusion of the match withdrew with his colleagues to a room near the
fencing hall to arrive at a consensus in the scoring; meanwhile the competitors and spectators waited
anxiously to learn who the winner was. National pride seems to have been a significant factor in
assigning hits: for instance, after a team match in 1895 an Italian judge claimed that the Italian
fencers at won 540 to 36.
Pairse, in his publication, Trattato teorico-practico della di spada e sciabola (Rome 1910), observed
that fencing was a science and an art. Skilled fencers were designated artists; and good form was
deemed as important as the ability to score hits. The fencer who adopted an unorthodox stance, and
delivered thrusts with a bent arm, or deliberately engaged in close combat, was generally regarded
with contempt.
In retrospect, it seems probable that the adulation of professional fencers during this era was a
result of romanticism. Indeed, the theatrical behavior of the great swordsmen, and their mania for
duels is perfectly consonant with the age of Gabriele D'Annuzio, Eleonora Duse, Edmond Rostand and
Sarah Bernhardt. Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac was, after all, one of the great theatrical successes of
its time.
Many stories have survived concerning the casual manner in which duels occurred. Cravache, for
instance, in his book I trent'anni di Agesilao Greco (Rome 1926) , recounts how Greco, while seated in
the Ristorante Caracciolo in Naples, overheard a Roman nobleman at a nearby table speaking
disrespectfully of a lady Greco knew; the Sicilian fencing master turned to the offender, insulted him,
and immediately arranged for a duel. Joseph-Renaud, in his treatise on epee, L'Escrime (Paris 1911),
remarked that Greco challenged virtually everyone in sight, and that he expected his own turn would
come soon - and it did. A misunderstanding following statements to the press led to a challenge.
Fencers Quarterly Magazine, 848 South Kimbrough, Springfield, MO 65806
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