Tom LeoniFlowers of Battle: The Complete Martial Works of Fiore Dei Liberi, a Master at Arms at the Turn of the Fifteenth Century: Historical Overview and the Getty Manuscript (1)

In full disclosure, I am a student of Gregory Mele's at CSG in Chicago.That aside, this is an incredibly important book to own if you are studying Fiore or any of the related European fencing masters. While there are multiple translations of Fiore's work, the importance of this book is that it puts Flower of Battle in the context of Fiore's time and provides the keys a modern student needs to understand it. Fiore's system is pedagogical, written for a male of noble birth who had already had martial training and lived in the late 14th or early 15th century unlike laters masters like Meyer who treatise is more accessible to a modern reader. The essays found in this book provide the context and explanation for how Fiore systemized his martial art you can study his treatise directly.For those looking to learn to Armizare (outside studying with a qualified instructor), I would recommend Bob Charette or Guy Windsor's books as a complement to this volume since they are written to teach a modern student in a language and format that is more familiar.

Both Authors, Greg Mele and Tom Leoni are well respected publicist and authors as well as accomplished practitioners of "The Art". It was therefore with great expectation that I ordered my copy. In short it's well worth every penny. I've done a lot of reading on Fiore and have many practical and historical efforts in my personal library. Simply put, I was blown away with Flowers of Battle Vol 1. The embarrassing bit was after all my own research, this book clearly demonstrated how little I really knew. It's clear, methodical, well written...a true treasure. Buy it. Buy 2!!!

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