It is our pleasure to invite proposals for a series of panels sponsored by SHEMAS (Society for Historical European Martial Arts Studies) at the International Medieval Congress, hosted by the University of Leeds across 1st to 4th July 2019. The panels will be given with a view to the publication of proceedings in a forthcoming issue of Acta Periodica Duellatorum.
The academic study of Historical European Martial Arts has made several important advances in the study of fight books, fencing masters, and the wider martial culture of medieval and early modern Europe. With the annual theme of the 2019 International Medieval Congress being ‘materialities’, scholars of Historical European Martial Arts are provided with several ways of approaching their subject through this wider theme, whether through the material nature of the martial practice, or the materiality of the fight books themselves. Given the material focus of the conference, SHEMAS is keen to use these panels to raise awareness both of the society and the emerging field of Historical European Martial Arts Studies. Papers with an interdisciplinary focus are especially welcome.
Subjects for discussion may include, but are not limited to:
- The materiality of fight books, and what this can reveal about their intended function and actual uses.
- Depiction, transmission, and codification of techniques in fight books.
- The role, portrayal, and evolution of arms and armour in fight books.
- The martial context which fight books belong to, and the wider historical context in which they were produced.
- Fencing schools and their developments, functions, and wider social meanings.
- Martial education in medieval and early modern Europe.
Proposals for twenty minute papers should be submitted to jacob.deacon@shemas.org and burkarte@uni-trier.de by 15/09/18. Applicants will be informed of the decision a week after this deadline and invited to submit their personal and institutional details to the conference website before the panel is submitted for consideration by the IMC Organisational Committee. The panels will be fully confirmed later in the year. Proposals should include your name, any academic affiliations, and contact details, alongside a title, an abstract, and two relevant index terms. These terms can be viewed on the IMC website. Please provide a 100 word abstract for our official application to the IMC, and an abstract of no more than 500 words for our own consideration. A short biography would also be appreciated.
We look forwards to reading your abstracts and seeing you at the conference.
Organisational Committee
Jacob H. Deacon – Institute for Medieval Studies, University of Leeds
Dr. Eric Burkart –Trier University