By the Sword

‘A seminal book about swordplay’ Rick Broadbent, The Times

‘The definitive study, hugely readable, of man’s most deadly art’ Simon Winchester

The classic history of sword fighting, as told by national sabre champion and Olympic fencer Richard Cohen.

The art and science of sword fighting goes back almost to the dawn of civilization and has been an obsession for much of mankind throughout recorded history. Evidence of this passion is all around us to this day: we shake hands to show that we are not reaching for our sword. A gentleman offers a lady his right arm because his sword was once attached to his left hip. Men button their jackets to the right to give them swifter access to their swords.

From the Roman arena to feudal Japan and from the duellists of Europe to the development of modern-day Olympic fencing, Richard Cohen traces the course of swordsmanship with wit and erudition in a fascinating and wonderfully wide-ranging account. He lets us see swordplay as graceful and brutal, balletic and deadly, technical and fiercely competitive – the most romantic of martial arts. Superbly written and impeccably researched, By the Sword is a tribute to a perilous but beautiful skill, the mastery of which for centuries defined what it meant to be a man.