Classic fencing: four lines

During the classical period and in our time, fencing masters have divided the goal of the foil into four specific areas. These are usually called lines, and sometimes lines of attack, lines of defense (Rondelle 1892) or lines of parry (Cass 1930). The result is a separation of the target into high and low, external and internal lines, creating four quadrants. As you understand, these quadrants depend on how they are described and illustrated.

Illustrations are key to how many fencers, even today, think about the goal. They appeared in several texts and are divided into two categories:

• Illustrations that show the lines as units on the chest of the fencing jacket.
• Illustrations that show lines with a swordsman holding a gun.

The difference is significant. Illustrations based on the subdivision of the chest, such as Colomore Dunn (1891), show the target, divided transversely and vertically into four similar areas. Vertical division down the center line of the chest and abdomen; horizontal separation splits the target into two essentially equal parts. The weapon is not released without telling how the quadrants will align with the weapon. It seems that these are fixed segments based on the shape and size of the fencer’s body.

In contrast, illustrations (for example, Pinto Martins 1895 and Cass 1930), which include weapons, show squares in relation to weapons. This is important because a punch to the upper front quadrant of a chest can have a punch in either of two high frequency quadrants, depending on the location of the arm.

The quadrants themselves are described equally in most sources based on the French school. There are four lines:

• The high line is all above the horizontal line drawn through the guard or the arm of the swordsman.
• The low line is all under the horizontal line drawn through the guard or by the hand of a swordsman.
• The inner line is everything from the vertical line through the guard to the chest and belly of the swordsman (to the left-handers on the left if they are right, or to the right if left-handed).
• External line - everything from the vertical line through the guard to the flank and back (to the swordsman to the right, if right or left, if left).

The combination of lines leads to four quadrants:

• High Inside - also called the fourth.
• Low Inside - also called the seventh. Rondelle counts this low fourth.
• Low Outside - also called Second or Eighth. Rondell considers this the Sixth.
• High Outside - also called the third or sixth.

Note that in each case the point from which the line is determined differs from the guard, arm or arm of the weapon, in virtually the same place (Heintz 1890, Rondelle 1892, Manrique 1920). As the guard moves, the lines themselves move up and down, inwards or outwards, with the result that the quadrants increase in size and shape, sometimes suggesting an intense target area, sometimes very small.

Since attacks and defenses are described by fencing in terms of lines, it is important to understand the terms. Since the method of attack or defense is described in the context of strings, the use of technology tactically requires an understanding of not only the location, but also the mobility of the lines.