Ringen
This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2011) |
fechtbuch by Hans Talhoffer | |
Focus | grappling, wrestling |
---|---|
Country of origin | ![]() |
Famous practitioners | Ott Jud, Paulus Kal |
Descendant arts | (German) Folk wrestling, Schwingen |
Ringen is the German language term for grappling (wrestling). In the context of the
The German tradition has records of a number of master-Ringer of the 15th to 16th centuries specializing in unarmed combat, such as Ott Jud.
Medieval and early Renaissance wrestling treatises present both sport and combat techniques together as one art. The distinction is made more frequently by modern practitioners than is present in historical sources, but in a select few examples the terms for sportive grappling or geselliges Ringen and earnest unarmed combat or Kampfringen (where Kampf is the
There are no known sources describing medieval rulesets for Ringen competition. However, many living folk wrestling styles in Europe are fought until a throw is completed. The lack of detailed ground wrestling in the medieval wrestling treatises supports the theory that in both competition and combat the throw was more important than extended ground wrestling.
While sportive grappling had fixed rules that prohibited dangerous techniques, usually starting in
.The German tradition of Ringen was eclipsed during the 17th century as the modern Baroque understanding of nobility precluded the participation of the higher classes in wrestling matches. Wrestling continued to be practiced among the lower classes, giving rise to the various traditional styles of folk wrestling. The still existing Swiss martial art Schwingen is directly related to Kampfringen.[1][2]
History
One of the primary men to have shaped Ringen at the dawning of the Renaissance appears to have been Austrian master Ott Jud. Ott was a master of the early 15th century. He is credited in multiple medieval combat treatises with a series of wrestling techniques, including joint breaks, arm locks and throws. No treatise from Ott's own hand has survived, but his system is taught by several fencing masters of the later 15th century, including
Other treatises that contain material both on Ringen and on swordsmanship include those of Fiore dei Liberi (c. 1410), Fabian von Auerswald (1462), Pietro Monte (c. 1480), and Hans Wurm (c. 1500).
Wrestling fell out of fashion among the upper classes with the beginning
Grappling techniques in swordsmanship
Many manuals combine fencing and wrestling into a specialized branch of kampfringen called Ringen am Schwert ("grappling at the sword"), designed to be used during armed combat. This included closing techniques, disarms, weapon-seizures, pommel-strikes, and weapon-aided joint-locks.
Grappling techniques are particularly central to the discipline of armoured fighting (
Mounted grappling
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/De_Fechtbuch_Talhoffer_259.jpg/220px-De_Fechtbuch_Talhoffer_259.jpg)
Several manuscripts detail grappling techniques for
See also
- Historical European Martial Arts
- German school of fencing
- Academic fencing
- History of wrestling
- Grappling
- Hand-to-hand combat
References
- ^ Brockmann-Jerosch, Heinrich (1929). "Schweizer Volksleben: Sitten, Bräuche, Wohnstätten".
- ^ "Jahrbücher der deutschen Turnkunst: Blätter für die Angelegenheiten die deutschen Turnwesens, vornehmlich in seiner Richtung auf Erziehung und Gesundheitspflege". 1884.
- ^ Maister ott jud der der hern von osterrich ringer gewessen yst (k. k. Ambraser-Sammlung, ca. 1470)
- ^ Welle 1993, p. 259
- ^ "Neuerdings hat Ginsburger ('Les Juifs et l'art militaire' in REJ 87 [1929]) nachgewiesen, daß der herzoglich österreichische Ringmeister 'Ott Jud' ein Judentäufling war. Aber ob das wirklich als 'preuve presque certaine' aufgefaßt werden darf, daß der von G. erwähnte Autor eines Buches über Fechtkunst namens Andreas Jude ebenfalls jüdischer Abkunft war, erscheint mir zweifelhaft." Zeitschrift für die Geschichte der Juden in Deutschland, vol. 3 (1931).
- ^ Vollständiges Ring-Buch / darinnen angewiesen wird / wie man Adversarium recht sol angreiffen / sich lossmachen / die schläge pariren / unterschiedliche Lectiones und die contra-Lectiones darauff machen / mit Fleiß beschrieben und mit vielen nothwendigen kupffern außgebildet. 1659, reprint 1663 Halle (S.), Melchior Oelschlägel; English translation by Eli Steenput, Journal of Western Martial Art, November 2000 [1]
- ^ "Leib-beschirmende und Feinden Trotz-bietende Fecht-Kunst; Oder: Leicht und getreue Anweisung auf Stoß und Hieb zierlich und sicher zu fechten : Nebst einem curieusen Unterricht vom Voltigiren und Ringen / Deutlich und gründlich beschrieben/ Und mit saubern darzu gehörigen/ Nach den Actionen gezeichneten/ Kupffern an das Licht gestellet$hVon Johann Andreas Schmidt/ Des H. Röm. Reichs Freyen Stadt Nürnberg bestellter Fecht- und Exercitien-Meister". 1713.
- Rainer Welle, "--und wisse das alle hobischeit kompt von deme ringen": Der Ringkampf als adelige Kunst im 15. und 16. Jahrhundert , 1993, ISBN 3-89085-755-8.
External links
Media related to Ringen at Wikimedia Commons