A good book!, June 20, 2002

Mark Rector has put together an interesting volume that serves both as a historical reference to old Scottish swordplay, and a guide to those individuals interested in the recreation of old styles of sword combat. Happily, it is also easy to read, and nicely illustrated. As the author of "THE ART AND SCIENCE OF FENCING," "THE INNER GAME OF FENCING," and "THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE SWORD," and the editor/publisher of "FENCERS QUARTERLY MAGAZINE," I recommend this book.

To help counterbalance the misleading review from October, 2005, this is a terrific book on swordsmanship. The costuming might not be completely accurate, but that's hardly the point of the book.One would be hard-pressed to argue against the text of the manuals themselves, as they were written in period, at least one of them by a man (Donald MacBane) who had to rely repeatedly for his very life upon the skills set forth in the manual. The interpretations of the authors seem spot on with the text. Overall, I would say that this is an excellent introduction to the ways in which the basket-hilted broad- and backswords were actually used in mortal combat.I hardly think the editors were unaware that a "Highlander" was a "Scottish Gael." The simple fact is that the manuals contained in this book were written by lowland scots, and the "Highland" in the title is used for marketing. If you own or are thinking of getting a baskethilt, chances are you've either...

This books is a wonderful resource for writers or reinactors. It pays ode to the romanticising of Scottish fighters such as Rob Roy, Wallace, The Bruce and Bonnie Prince Charlie, but goes past these legendary images to show you the reasons for certain practices. It covers the basics of offence and defence,especially in the fencing techniques of the 17th through 19th centuries. I do wish I would have covered the medieval aspects of Highland swordsmanship: The Claymore. The movements for using the longest two handed sword is wonderful to see in action, so I had hoped this book would cover that.