“So you want to play with swords?” asks the Gotham Swords website, a challenge to beginners and experts alike.
In a rented studio in midtown Manhattan, Gotham Swords instructors and students gather to learn, practice and perfect their swordsmanship in weekly classes. Other rooms are often rented by performers, and sometimes muffled singing can be heard over the shouts of German forms and the clash of wood or steel.
Gotham Swords is one of many Historical European Martial Arts, or HEMA, groups across the world dedicated to studying and reviving historical European fighting styles and techniques. They practice longsword, saber, sword and buckler (small shield), spear, messer (German for knife) and many more.
BROOKLYN: Before leaving his apartment, Frank Lewis, a Gotham Swords student, packs his swords and protective gear in a large bag that doesn’t obviously contain Medieval weaponry. Lewis bought this bag from another HEMA enthusiast who designs equipment and accessories for their fellows.
MANHATTAN: Senior instructor Josh Wickman carefully handles the wooden waster longswords used in lessons. Though these practice swords have no sharp edges, they are handled like real, bladed weapons so students learn to treat them with respect and care. Gotham Swords and the larger HEMA Alliance emphasize safety.
Senior Instructor Peter Haas, dressed in appropriate HEMA attire, explains an upcoming longsword drill designed to teach his students about reach. Distance is highly important in sword fighting — one must know when they’ll be able to hit an opponent with their sword and when they are close enough to be hit themselves.