Van Humbeek's Fencing with the Sabre

Leopold van Humbeek (1871-1942) was fencing master at the Royal Navy Academy in Amsterdam as well as at other military academies in the Netherlands, and at various civilian clubs. In 1912, he coached the Dutch fencing team in sabre fencing at the Olympics in Stockholm, where the Dutch team took bronze in sabre and in épée. In 1905, Van Humbeek published his Handleiding voor het Sabelschermen, in which he gives a clear and useful description of sabre fencing, supported by 20 photographs that show the author demonstrating postures and techniques. Van Humbeek wrote that the style of fencing that he taught originated from Italy, and indeed his work fits well within the successful tradition started by the Italian maestro Radaelli, as, for example, described by Luigi Barbasetti a few years earlier. Central to this system are cuts that are made from the elbow rather than from the wrist.