Author Archives: BartitsuSociety

Visiting the Site of the Original Bartitsu Club

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Sunday, 10th December 2017 Martial arts enthusiasts who find themselves in central London may wish to visit the site of the original Bartitsu School of Arms and Physical Culture (a.k.a. the Bartitsu Club).  The Club … Continue reading

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Mitsuyo Maeda in England (1907-08)

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Tuesday, 17th October 2017 Of the select group of Japanese judoka and jiujitsuka who pioneered their martial arts in the West at the turn of the 20th century, Mitsuyo Maeda is almost certainly the most … Continue reading

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A Memoir of the Production of “Bartitsu: The Lost Martial Art of Sherlock Holmes”

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Tuesday, 19th September 2017 By Tony Wolf My friend Ran Braun, who is a fight choreographer and also a prominent stage director of operas in Europe, first proposed the idea of a Bartitsu … Continue reading

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Art for Art’s Sake: the Value of Recreational Bartitsu

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Friday, 23rd June 2017 By Tony Wolf Recent History The modern Bartitsu revival is now fifteen years old and, like all teenagers, it’s undergoing some significant changes. Most of the original cadre of … Continue reading

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A “New Art of Self Defence” in Ballarat, Australia (1902-09)

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Friday, 12th May 2017 Aside from the curious demonstrations of “baritzu” by Australian soldiers circa 1906, E.W. Barton-Wright’s martial art may have inspired at least one other Aussie enthusiast during the early 20th century – although the … Continue reading

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May the Fourth be with You, Sherlock!

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Friday, 5th May 2017 May 4th of 1891 is recognised as the date of consulting detective Sherlock Holmes’ fateful hand-to-hand battle with the Napoleon of Crime, Professor James Moriarty. Their fight took place … Continue reading

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Why Bartitsu is for Everyone

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Wednesday, 21st September 2016 By Tony Wolf The HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts) blogosphere and social media networks have recently caught the edge of the prevailing cultural debates about political correctness, social justice, … Continue reading

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Bartitsu Sparring

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Wednesday, 9th October 2013 Highlights from several rounds of recreational medium/hard contact sparring at the Bartitsu Club of Chicago. The object of this type of sparring is to pressure-test one’s skills while (re-)discovering the … Continue reading

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Fun and Games at the London Bath Club

Originally published on the Bartitsu.org site on Friday, 7th December 2012 The famous Bath Club features significantly in the history of Bartitsu.  Founded at #34 Dover Street in 1894, the Club was named for its large indoor swimming pool, which was a … Continue reading

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Tommy Joe Moore Teaches the 52 Hand Blocks

Editorial note: several years ago I had the privilege of traveling with my adult son and my teenage nephew to a boxing gym in the Bronx, NYC and meeting with Daniel Marks, who had, over the previous decade, done much … Continue reading

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