Swetnam Fencing 2: Single Rapier Outside Parry

The last time we talked about Swetnam, we discussed how to counter an "inside" thrust to the body. Today we're going to learn how to counter an "outside" thrust. Such a thrust might be directed at your sword arm or launched at your body after a feint to pull your hilt to the left.

The counter for an outside thrust is to keep your hilt out to the right and place your left hand on the blade of your sword. Using your left hand, you gain extra leverage to position your blade to parry the attack.

With your hand on your blade and your opponent's blade under your control, you can step forward to deliver your counterthrust. Again, you get a convenient opportunity to grip your opponent's blade so that you can keep it under control while you launch your attack.

In practice, we've discovered that you can use this parry offensively. With your left hand helping to control your blade, you can deliver a very strong beat against your opponent's blade to throw it off target without letting your own point wander off target.

Part 3