Academy of Historical Arts

Academy of Historical Arts

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Historical fencing with professional, modern teaching.

The Academy of Historical Arts was founded in 2010, and has gone through various evolutions since then to become the organisation that it is today. We operate a full-time professional training centre in Glasgow, and another professional club in Liverpool, while also performing the role of umbrella body to oversee and help the many HEMA clubs affiliated to us from all across the UK. We run an onlin

Big swords - unisex t-shirt — Academy of Historical Arts 26/01/2026

A comfortable, nicely-fitting Bella Canvas t-shirt in a variety of colours, proudly emblazoned with a fencer and montante across the chest. Great for those who enjoy their big swords!

https://www.academyofhistoricalarts.co.uk/shop/big-swords-unisex-t-shirt/

Printed-on-demand and shipped directly to you from the printing facility.

Big swords - unisex t-shirt — Academy of Historical Arts A comfortable, well-fitting Bella Canvas t-shirt in a variety of colours, proudly emblazoned with a fencer and montante across the chest. Great for those who enjoy their big swords!

Zwerhaw – short-sleeve unisex t-shirt — Academy of Historical Arts 23/01/2026

A comfortable, nicely-fitting Bella Canvas t-shirt in a variety of colours, showing the Zwerhaw crossing from side to side.

https://www.academyofhistoricalarts.co.uk/shop/zwerhaw-short-sleeve-unisex-t-shirt/

Printed-on-demand and shipped directly to you from the printing facility.

Zwerhaw – short-sleeve unisex t-shirt — Academy of Historical Arts This t-shirt is everything you’ve dreamed of and more. It feels soft and lightweight, with the right amount of stretch. It’s comfortable and flattering for all. • 100% combed and ring-spun cotton (Heather colors contain polyester) • Fabric weight: 4.2 oz/yd² (142 g/m²) • Pre-shrunk fabri...

Sword and buckler - unisex t-shirt — Academy of Historical Arts 20/01/2026

A comfortable, nicely-fitting Bella Canvas t-shirt in a variety of colours, proudly emblazoned with a sword and buckler across the chest. Great for those who enjoy their sword and shield fencing!

https://www.academyofhistoricalarts.co.uk/shop/sword-and-buckler-unisex-t-shirt/

Printed-on-demand and shipped directly to you from the printing facility.

Sword and buckler - unisex t-shirt — Academy of Historical Arts A comfortable, well-fitting Bella Canvas t-shirt in a variety of colours, proudly emblazoned with a sword and buckler across the chest. Great for those who enjoy their sword and shield fencing!

04/12/2025

We are running a clearance sale on all the remaining copies we have of Guy Windsor's series of "The Rapier" workbooks, both left-handed and right-handed.

You can have them for 50% off RRP. And have a look at the other items in our clearance section while you are there!

(Link in comments below.)

29/04/2025

More new items in stock in our shop! This time we have the Black Knight mitten gauntlets from HF Armory.

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Black Knight HEMA Gloves are plastic mitten gauntlets. These are the most protective model of gloves made by HF Armory. Sold as a pair.

They are designed for maximum protection when using them for longsword fencing, and a comfortable enough grip to use them with one-handed weapons without complex hilts (such as Polish sabre or arming sword).

The Black Knight HEMA Gloves are made from tough polypropylene with quilted inner padding. The palm is covered with leather for better grip. The outer plates are overlapped to give both mobility and protection for the hand. The plastic thumb is made from overlapping plate pieces, making a rigid frame to provides excellent protection for the thumb. The cuff plates are connected by laces to provide excellent mobility for the wrist.

Together, the pair weigh less than 1 kg.

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Link for purchase in the comments below.

28/04/2025

New items in stock in our shop! Black Knight elbow protectors from HF Armory.

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Sold as a pair. These are elbow protectors with rondels, to protect the elbow joint from all sides. They have a conical shape so that some of the impact from strikes will be redirected away from the joint.

Each elbow protector fastens with a sturdy strap and buckle, and also has two separate ties (above and below the elbow) to help with fastening the protector to any mounting points present on your jacket.

The Black Knight elbow protectors by HF Armory are plastic arm protection for HEMA, LARP, SCA, and other kinds of non-Olympic fencing. They have the aesthetics of knightly plate amour from the latter part of the 14th century, and have been developed specially for HEMA fencing, based on many years of experience in HMB and other kinds of historical fencing.

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Link for purchase in the comments below.

Vytis Light Gorget — Academy of Historical Arts 10/01/2025

Vytis gorgets back in stock!

Goodness. That took a while. They were supposed to be dispatched to us in October, to reach us by early November at the latest - but clearly that didn't happen.

But now they have arrived and we will be packaging up the pre-orders and getting them out to people as soon as possible.

https://www.academyofhistoricalarts.co.uk/shop/vytis-gorget/

We have also placed our next restocking order already, so that hopefully there won't be quite as much delay when we inevitably sell out of this batch.

Vytis Light Gorget — Academy of Historical Arts This is a protective, slim, and form-fitting gorget that is comfortable to wear while providing essential protection for the throat and neck.

Expected Restocking Dates — Academy of Historical Arts 07/01/2025

--- Restocking Updates ---

https://www.academyofhistoricalarts.co.uk/shop/expected-restocking-dates/

Our new stock of Pahlavandles arrived quickly in late December.

Our delivery from Superior Fencing has arrived at last and we are currently getting the website updated with all the new things that came to us.

And our delivery of Vytis gorgets is expected to arrive tomorrow, FINALLY, after being held up in customs for almost 3 weeks. As soon as they arrive, we'll be packaging up all the pre-orders and will be getting them out to people!

Expected Restocking Dates — Academy of Historical Arts We often have restocking orders that our suppliers are in the process of fulfilling, although lead times cannot are not always accurate.

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Our Story

We are an umbrella organisation to coordinate and aid the research and practices being undertaken by our component groups and societies. Our belief is that if many like-minded groups work together towards a common goal then the end result is so much greater than if the groups all tried to work by themselves. Some groups do differ in their approaches, but we feel that this merely adds to the colour and flavour of the Academy!

For more information about our activities in Glasgow: www.vanguardcentre.com

For more information about our activities in Liverpool: www.liverpoolhema.com

Address


63 Commerce Street
South Lanarkshire