Class offers a clash of steel on a summer evening

The students are being instructed by summer resident David Cvet in the fine 15th century art of using a sword to do unto others before they do unto you. His high parry defence turns into a downward thrust, and the idea of a lengthy sword fight shows itself as a piece of Hollywood fiction.

Cvet is staging the introductory eight-week program in medieval martial arts with a class of men mostly in their 20s and 30s, but a young teen finds himself squaring off over crossed practice swords with a 68-year-old. The self-defense techniques of grappling, dagger and single-hand sword have yet to catch on here with the women, although Cvet’s academy in Toronto has female students.

Student Mark Amirault Jr. was among the first to express his interest in the training.

“As he (Cvet) said, swords are cool,” said Amirault. “And I’m a big fan of medieval history. I always wanted to try fencing but there was never anywhere around here to try it.”

Cvet is founder and president of the Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts, a non-profit school focused on the research, practice and training of a fighting art called as documented in a comprehensive treatise from the 15th century by Fiore dei Liberi.

The use of swords—using blunt aluminum practice weapons—is taught on front lawn where there’s room to swing the weapons, but the grappling and dagger lessons move indoors once the evening mosquitoes arrive with their own sharp weapons.

Grappling is vertical wrestling where the object is to throw down the opponent, and the dagger instruction just moves opponents farther apart. Grappling is also the basis for modern-day self-defence, says Cvet.