The instructors for the Historical Fencing Training Camp 2024 were:
Dan Arnold
Dan has been actively training and competing in HEMA for over a decade as well as having trained in modern fencing. Dan loves all kinds of martial arts, he holds a Black belt in Jissen Budo and a Purple belt in Brazillian Jujitsu, which he teaches professionally.
He is a successful tournament fencer with over 100 recorded tournament match victories and several 1st, 2nd and 3rd placings throughout his career. He believes in a strategic principles based approach to fencing, and that technique arises from correctly applied principles.
Dan’s main areas of interest are Longsword, Sabre, Grappling, Dagger and Foil.
James Buchanan
James Buchanan is the principal long sword instructor at Fechtschule Victoria (FSV). Unsurprisingly, his training focus is primarily on Liechtenauer’s long sword. However, he also trains and assists in the instruction of Kreussler small sword and Berliner Turnschule sabre. When teaching, James’ focus is on understanding the underlying principles of the styles he teaches. This permits him to deconstruct the ‘techniques’ and instead teach simplified, systematic decision-making frameworks which reduce cognitive overload when fencing. He generally delivers this instruction through interactive learning exercises designed to look at the core idea/s being covered in different ways, supported by constraint-based learning driven games. In addition to his class-based teaching, James’ experience at deconstructing systems makes him confident in unpacking and analysing fencing styles to identify mechanical adjustments for technical improvement in one-on-one coaching.
Tm Green
Tim Green (pronouns: they/them). Tim is an enthusiastic scholar of fencing from Victorian Britain, with a strong focus on sabre, epee and dagger.
Their passion for historical swordplay started while studying history at Macquarie University in 2004, with their degree culminating in writing an honours thesis on the cultural context of Alfred Hutton’s works. When fencing Tim’s main focus are British sabre/cutlass systems of the 1880s and 1890s based on the works of R.G Allanson-Winn, Alfred Hutton, John Musgrave-Waite, and others, along with early epee fencing according to Jules Jacob and Alfred Hutton,, and Victorian Era knife fighting according to Alfred Hutton.
Tim’s lessons focus on using gamification, active learning principles, and constraints based coaching. Workshops revolve around using problem solving to enrich techniques or develop new skills for sword fighting, and encourage active participation from fencers.
Tim is always happy to fence or talk about swords and history, so feel free to hit them up between workshops.
Nelson McGuigan
Nelson is a coach-competitor focusing on Liechtenaurian Longsword, Radaellian Sabre, and Fabrisian Rapier. In 2022 he became the only fencer ever to place in the top 8 at every ranked Australian competition in a calendar year.
Nelson is known for delivering training that is as fun as it is challenging, and a tactics-driven approach to fencing that is cerebral, assertive, and a little playful. In his athletes he endeavours to cultivate fencing derived purely from historical sources that brings them genuine use and reward.
Outside of fencing, he dabbles in various martial arts, primarily Judo, Australian Jiu-Jitsu, and Boxing..
Mark Holgate
Mark is a professional HEMA instructor and head of Adelaide Sword Academy. His major interests are in 16th and early 17th century fencing, especially Joachim Meyer’s works. He is a successful tournament fencer across multiple weapon forms, and has instructed throughout Australia and the US. Mark’s passion is for the embodiment and mastery of the Art at a grass roots level – master to student, and peer to peer.
Daniel Pope
Daniel is the coach at Scholar Victoria, where he teaches and practices Longsword with a foundation in Liechtenauer and Joachim Meyer, as well as 16th century Sidesword and 19th Century sabre and foil.
He is an avid competitor and maintains a top 100 rating across sidesword, sabre, and rapier, and has been in the top 20 longsword rankings since 2017. Daniel has also cross-trained extensively in other martial arts, including training to black-belt level in classical jujitsu and kenjutsu. Daniel’s approach to training emphasises a union of modern pedagogy and historical texts. His lessons unpack simple problem solving exercises in order to organically develop historical techniques and fencing motifs, based on the individual’s response to natural cues.
He has applied this approach in group and individual lessons, as well as on YouTube where he breaks down techniques into brief deconstructive lessons for the broader community.
Monika Stankiewicz
Monika aka Momo (she/her) started her historical fencing journey in 2016 and has been teaching and coaching at AUSCA in Adelaide since 2019. Her strength lies in building healthy fencing culture that attracts and addicts people to fencing. Currently, her research focuses on Giganti’s rapier and rapier and dagger. The values she embodies are inclusivity and kindness.
Iain Stein
Iain Stein, is the Chief Instructor at Historical European Fighting Tasmania and has been a student of HEMA for the past 10 years, specialising in Liechtenauers 4 knightly disciplines (Spear, Sword, Dagger, Wrestling). He loves wrestling and Longsword, a warrior at heart with a passion for (simulated) violence he loves any sort of challenge be it physical or mental.
Gindi Wauchope
Gindi teaches fencing professionally, and practices Northern Italian and Iberian fencing from Fiore to Rada with a focus on Rapier, Sidesword (& Buckler), & Two Handed Sword.
Gindi is known for his attention to detail, systematic technical orientation, and welcoming approach. In his teaching practice he actively works to foster an inclusive and diverse teaching environment, helping everyone to grow towards meeting their HEMA goals. Any ‘spare time’ he has is spent translating 16th century Italian texts, reading fiction, and playing with his children.