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Cornish Wrestling Association

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Exclusive offer!

Limited edition AOBC club key rings at

only £3-50 each!!

To order see Tina on a training night or drop us an email.

Featured in the newly released book ‘We could be Heroes’

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to order your copy now!

Available from all good book retailers.

NOTICE

Due to a computer crash (Nov 09), all details for quarterstaff/cudgel orders have been lost. If you are waiting to have your order sent to you can you please email us at info@backswording.co.uk

Many thanks

Welcome to the

TE-MA®

School of Defence

Traditional English Martial Arts

combined fighting style

Featured on the 2 disc special edition DVD of

Reclaiming the Blade

Current 2009/2010 Club Champions

AOBC Colchester Oyster Fayre Cup Champion

Jed ‘Joker’ Pasco

AOBC South Wales Backsword Champion

Pete ‘Buzzsaw’ Holland

UK AOBC English Country Backswording Champion

Tom  Reynolds

UK BFHS Open Glorianna Cup Backsword Champion  

Pete ‘Buzzsaw’ Holland

AOBC East of England West country shin kicking champion Paul Edwards

“We are fighters not fencers”

We are scholars and practitioners of the Ancient and Noble Science of Defence and that most excellent of ancient country sports, English Country Backswording Circa 1600.

Our main focus is in the study of the single-handed Backsword/Broadsword and the English Quarterstaff/Tip staff which also involves the close study of English pugilism, indigenous wrestling styles and as George Silver recommends, Strikes with the feet and the knees.

These are all built on a foundation using the Principles of the True Fight as laid down by George Silver in his Paradoxes of Defence in 1599 and his unpublished manuscript A Brief Instruction upon my Paradoxes of Defence.

By training in these indigenous martial arts we therefore practice a complete martial combat system that we term as TE-MA, a combined fighting style which is not only traditionally English but is as affective as any other martial combat system you may think of in the 21st century.

TE-MA is not only about learning an extremely effective and exciting armed and unarmed combat system but it is also a great way to keep fit, maintain mental focus, gain self confidence and learn about British and European history as well as enjoying being part of a growing revival in western martial arts (HEMA, Historical European Martial Arts) with all the benefits such as cross training with other schools of defence, attending workshops, seminars, tournaments and much more.

The AOBC operates in a friendly and competitive atmosphere and caters for a wide spectrum of  students from juniors to veteran martial artists, both male and female of all ability's.

AOBC Lincolnshire

AOBC Letchworth - Bedfordshire

AOBC Shefford - Bedfordshire

Fitness through Sport

A large part of what the AOBC stands for is our strong commitment to developing a healthy lifestyle through personal fitness. Training in TE-MA helps you to develop and improve your own personal fitness level through applied fitness training allowing each student to progress at their own rate in an enjoyable group environment.

Its fair to say that not a day goes by in the 21st century that we are all told to eat healthily and take regular exercise to maintain a healthy body and mind and it is interesting to note that this is by no means a new way of thinking. Over four hundred years ago George Silver wrote these words concerning the regular practice of the Ancient and Noble Science of Defence…

“ This noble Science defend the bodie from wounds and slaughter. And moreover, the excersing of weapons putteth away aches, griefes and diseases, it increaseth streangth, and sharpneth the wits, it giveth a perfect judgment, it expelleth melancholy, cholericke and evill conceits, it keepeth a man in breath, perfect health, and long life.”

(George Silver, Paradoxes of Defence 1599)

So now please take the time to browse our web site to discover what training in

TE-MA’s combined fighting style can offer the modern day student and to learn more about the absorbing and exhilarating sport of English Country Backswording!  

If you require any further information that you can’t find the answers to on this site or wish to become a member of the AOBC

please get in touch with us via our contact page

We are taking on new students at our Letchworth & Shefford Classes

TE-MA is very popular so  

book  your place now!

CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS

TOM REYNOLDS WINS AGAIN!

THE 2010 ENGLISH COUNTRY BACKSWORDING UK FINAL AT THE UFFINGTON WHITE HORSE SHOW WAS WON FOR THE SECOND YEAR RUNNING BY TOM REYNOLDS OF SHEFFORD BEDFORDSHIRE MAKING HIM THE UK ENGLISH COUNTRY BACKSWORDING CHAMPION 2010. RUNNERS UP WERE ROSS BROWN SILVER MEDALLIST AND BARRIE VOICE BRONZE MEDALLIST. (above from the left Ross, Tom and Barrie)

Want to up your personal fitness level ?

Be the best and beat the rest, join a

TEAM TE-MA FITNESS

class now and boost your Martial Arts fitness level.

JOIN NOW!