The Exiles

The Exiles is a company of Western Martial Artists concentrating on the hand-to-hand fighting techniques of Western Europe during the medieval and early renaissance periods. We are active participants in the growing international Fechtbuch community, interpreting a variety of surviving historical manuals and intensively practicing the techniques we uncover.

Whilst our main focus is on a period running roughly from the mid-fourteenth to the late-fifteenth century, an era that saw the increasing reproduction of such martial manuals, we also attempt to learn from other periods and practice their styles. The forms that we concentrate on include unarmed striking and grappling, pole-arms (staff, spear, poleaxe, etc.), longsword, sword & shield, and sword & buckler.

Our aim is to learn to fight just as trained men of the period, well enough that we could rely upon our skills to defend ourselves in both historic and modern-day situations. We are not a show or reenactment group. However, we do take part in recreational events for fun and to promote our study.

The techniques we practice have been researched not only by members of our group but also by members of many other groups and societies, with whom we often work to further our common goal of recreating Western European Martial Arts. Although it is a relatively recent development, this community of like-minded groups is growing rapidly, encompassing members from Oriental martial arts, sport fencing, historical reenactment and other backgrounds.

Although we attend a varied cross-section of events including occasional reenactment shows, these are not compulsory and our main emphasis is on our weekly practice sessions. If you are interested in finding out more about this field of martial arts, why not contact us.