Guards are the position of your sword which you stand In during the fight as a type of stance, but they are also your parry (a defensive block with the sword) positions. As a rule you should place yourself in a guard position which protects you from where your opponent’s sword is at any particular time, but you can also intentionally uncover yourself to create openings or invitations for your opponent to attack. The Inside and Outside guard are the most typical guards to use when in guard (your fighting stance).
Outside Guard
The front or true edge is turned to your right. The tip of your sword is raised (to varying heights depending on source and your preference). This primarily defends against cuts 2 & 6 against your face, and back of your body.
FROM ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition & ANGELO
FROM ROWORTH 2nd Edition
FROM ANGELO
Inside Guard
The front or true edge is turned to your left. The tip of your sword is raised (to varying heights depending on source and your preference). This primarily defends against cuts 1 & 5 against your face and front of your body.
FROM ANGELO & ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition
FROM ROWORTH 2nd Edition
note how the elbow is tucked far more than the Roworth versions.
FROM ANGELO
note how the elbow is tucked far more than the Roworth versions.
Medium Guard
Formed by placing your blade and guard in a middle position, dividing your opponent in two. It guards neither side or really anything at all. In this system it is considered to be an almost useless guard, though it can be very useful for some training exercises.
FROM ANGELO
Hanging Guard
This can be formed on the inside or outside, but the typical and default (as shown in the artwork below) is the inside, or prime hanging guard. The hilt is high, above the head, the blade crosses over to the other side of your body so that you can see your opponent between your blade and your sword arm. The advantage of this guard is that it is very strong and can stop very powerful blows, and it also diverts the energy of a strike away from your sword hand. It is also very versatile and can parry a great many different types of attacks. The disadvantage is that it can fatigue the arm. It is not typical to stand in this position for great lengths of time, but it can be very effective for short periods as you get the measure of your opponent. The Inside hanging guard primarily defends against cut 1 and 5, but it can quickly adapt into other hanging positions to parry almost any strike made against you. The outside or Seconde hanging guard is made by moving the point of your sword to the right to protect your right side.
FROM ANGELO & ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition
VARIANTS FROM ANGELO & MATHEWSON
Guard of St George
This is a variant of the hanging guard where the tip of the sword is brought back closer to your body, and your sword hand is lifted slightly higher. The only purpose of this guard is to parry a cut made relatively vertically at your head. However, it is also often used during slips as a counter to leg cuts to ensure that the sword arm is safely out of the way and primed for a counter cut. It is always depicted in a slip or shift position because this is used as a parry and not as a guard or stance position. Note that the sword must be pushed forward closer to your opponent, and above your head. The tip should also be slightly lower than your hilt, so that the opponent’s blade slips down towards the tip and not towards your hand. This guard is especially useful when using swords with little hand protection, as it is much safer for the hand when parrying vertical cuts than the hanging guard is.
FROM ANGELO & ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition
Half Hanging Guard
This can be formed on the inside or outside and is much like the hanging guard, but with the sword hand at about shoulder height rather than above the head. These guards are primarily used for parrying cuts 5 and 6 when targeting your body, and also to parry leg attacks when the slip is not enough to do so (such as when your opponent gets too close or has a longer blade or lunge and is able to target the rear leg).
INSIDE HALF HANGING FROM ANGELO & ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition
OUTSIDE HALF HANGING FROM ANGELO & ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition
Half Circle Guard
This is an awkward position which is only used as a quick parry where you do not have time to utilize a better guard. It primarily defends against cut 3 made against your wrist. Do not stand in this guard as a stance, like the Guard of St George it is merely a parry for a particular circumstance.
FROM ANGELO & ROWORTH 3rd and 4th Edition
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