*snipped from the Chicago Swordplay Guild facebook page*
Be It Known
To All that Profess the Art of Arms:
Through intensive study & performance
Erin Fitzgerald & Davis Vader
Have successfully completed all Promotional Requirements & Examinations in Abrazare, Two-Handed Sword, Arming Sword, Spear & Dagger for the Grade of Laureato d’Armizare or Free-Scholar of the Art of Arms. And having Played the Prize against no less than three Challengers with each of these weapons in public exhibition, we do hereby give leave and license for her to style herself as such within the Chicago Swordplay Guild
Given this 11th day of March, Two-Thousand & Seventeen, at the Sala d’Arme Forteza in Chicago, Illinois.
Gregory Mele
Dean and Guildmaster
Chicago Swordplay Guild
__________________________________________________
Greg here —
This past weekend the Chicago Swordplay Guild held a Playing of the Prize for the Grade of Free Scholar of Armizare, the first we have held under the auspices of the International Armizare Society. The candidates were Erin Fitzgerald and Davis Vader, each with more than seven years of continuous training within the CSG.
Having already taken about six hours of skills exams in the various sub-arts, as well as a written exam and research project, by Guild custom, the candidates played the prize in the following fashion:
Part One: Three, four-minute bouts with three weapons: Longsword, arming sword and spear, against those of Free Scholar or higher rank.
These bouts were fought against Jesse Kulla, CSG Free Scholar, Sean W. Hayes, Northwest Fencing Academy and Christian G. Cameron, Hoplologia/Company of the Rose. (Full video is forthcoming.)
Part Two: “The Ordeal” holding the floor against all Guild scholars who wished to challenge them to three landed blows with longsword or arming sword. In this case, there were 12 Scholars in arms.
I am EXTREMELY proud of both candidates and pleased to count them in in the Guild’s roll of Free Scholars.
Finally, I mentioned that each candidate has a research project, This can be written, video, etc. As a professional artist, Erin chose to make hers the creation of a 8′ x 6′ segno, combining elements of the Getty, Pisani-Dossi and Florius manuscripts, with additional late medieval decorative elements. This was painted in oils (after we decided tempura on board would prove impractical) with gold leaf, and it is just as stunning as it sounds! It now hangs proudly in our sala d’arme!
Joe here –To put this into some perspective the Compagno grade is earned after 1-2 years of study (generally), Scholar about 3-4 years, and Free Scholar after at least 7 years if not longer. As Greg said in the announcement the Free Scholar test is the completion of: “…about six hours of skills exams in the various sub-arts, as well as a written exam and research project…” In the entire Chicago Swordplay Guild we have 4 Free Scholar’s in the Medieval curriculum and 5 overall. We had 2 (in the Medieval curriculum) from 2008 till last weekend. To prevent me missing anything here’s a link on the CSG page that explains our grades and their rationale: http://www.chicagoswordplayguild.com/…/grades-and-prize…
Ms. Tasha Kelly also posted a write up on the process that went into Erin Fitzgerald’s Free Scholar project here: http://cottesimple.com/manusc…/coloring-segno-della-spada/
