The Guards and Lessons of the Highland Broadsword

In 1798, Henry Angelo, a member of famed Angelo dynasty of swordmasters, published Hungarian and Highland Broadsword, twenty-four plates designed by Thomas Rowlandson. This was a collection of 24 posters illustrating guards, defences and striking techniques for a man on foot or on horseback. In fact, only five of the 24 posters dealt with men on foot; the remaining 19 posters illustrated the use of the sword when mounted. The following year, in 1799, he published a poster called The Guards and Lessons of the Highland Broadsword, in which he set out his “10 lessons” (sometimes called the “10 divisions”), a set of sequences with which the Army regiments could drill and learn the system.

This facsimile has been recreated from the collection of original posters owned by the Academy of Historical Arts in Glasgow. Each poster has been photographed carefully and edited to provide an exacting reproduction of the highest quality. The larger poster of 10 lessons has been provided in its original form and also broken up to demonstrate the lessons on individual pages with higher resolution. Additionally, the work includes a brief biography by Keith Farrell describing the Angelo Dynasty, their schools and their publications.