Armored combat (sport)
Full contact sport based on medieval hand-to-hand combat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Armored combat or buhurt[1] (from Old French béhourd: "joust", "tournament")[2] or historical medieval battles (HMB) is a modern full contact fighting sport with steel blunt weapons characteristic of the Middle Ages.[3][4] Rules on armour and weapons for historical authenticity and safety are published on various governing bodies websites.
| Highest governing body | Buhurt International |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | "buhurt", "historical medieval battles", "armored medieval combat", 'medieval combat", "medieval fighting". |
| First played | In it's current form, 1990s in Eastern Europe. |
| Clubs | 100+ individual teams |
| Characteristics | |
| Contact | Full contact fighting |
| Team members | "1 vs 1", "2 vs 2", "5 vs 5", "7 vs 7", "10 vs 10", "12 vs 12", "16 vs 16". "30 vs 30", "150 vs 150" |
| Mixed-sex | Yes, separate. |
| Type | Outdoor or indoor, field or arena. |
| Presence | |
| Country or region | Predominantly North America and Europe, with smaller popularity in Latin American and Asia. |
Fighters are covered in full modern-produced protective armour, made from steel, titanium, (or other metal alloy if permitted)[5] made to aesthetically be close to their historical counterparts.[6] This in contrast to Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA) that uses modern protective equipment such as a modern fencing helmet, padded fencing jacket, modern padded/heavy duty fencing gloves, forearm and leg protection.[7]
Hits and blows may be aimed at any parts of the body (with the limitations set in the regulations); both wrestling and percussive techniques are permitted, thrusts are forbidden.[8][9]
Unlike staged battles, that can be seen at festivals of historical reenactment of the Middle Ages[8] the competitions in buhurt are the full contact sporting events that are refereed by the referees called knight marshals who have special training and combat experience.[10]
As of 2026, the current active international governing bodies are Buhurt International, International Medieval Combat Federation, Magna Carta, and Alianza Latinoamericana de Combate Medieval.[11] There are national governing bodies in 30+ countries predominately in North America and Europe, as well as Latin America with some in Asia, such as China.[12] Popular US fight promotions and leagues, are Armored MMA, Armored Combat Sports, and Armored Combat Worldwide.[13]
History
Armored combat as a modern sport began in the 1960s when a group of hobbyists in Berkeley, California, hosted a tournament in their backyard, leading to the creation of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). SCU would create SCA armoured combat with the first tournaments held in 1966. SCA armoured combat would use historically accurate armor in mock combat using rattan based weapons.[14]
The first tournaments Armored combat, also referred to as Buhurt, commonly became distinct from SCA armoured combat date back to the first large-scale battles with the use of steel weapons, which were held in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine[15] in the late 1990s and the beginning of the 21st century, at times when in the rest of the Eastern European countries reenactors used wooden or textolite weapons. An example is the festival "Zhelezny Grad" (Iron Town) held in Izborsk, where buhurts involving hundreds of fighters took place or Sword of Russia tournament from 1996.[16]
The first European Championship took place in Ukraine in 2005, with nominations "Sword and Shield", and "Sword vs Sword".
The expansion of buhurt as a sport truly began after the first held Battle of the Nations in Khotyn Fortress in Ukraine[17] where participants from Ukraine, Poland, Belarus and Russia competed under unified rules and regulations. This event attracted participants from the rest of Europe and outside of it and buhurt gained worldwide attention from the reenactment community.[18] Battle of the Nations was held every other year at a new fortress or castle. The popularity of buhurt grow in the United States in the 2010's. One such organization, Armored Combat League (which split in 2019, creating Armored Combat Worldwide and Armored Combat Sports) was featured in a series called Knight Fight on History Channel.[19][20] Other governing bodies would form, such as International Medieval Combat Federation (IMCF), founded in 2013.[14]
In 2022, Battle of Nations canceled their tournament series and later dissolved due to the Russo-Ukrainian war.[21] Due to concerns about HMB International’s Russian controlled governance led the U.S. and several other countries to break away forming Buhurt League, which would later evolve into Buhurt International, which became the primary international governing body for armored combat. In the United States, Medieval Combat USA (MCUSA) became the official national representative of Buhurt International.[14] Alianza Latinoamericana De Combate Medivieval is the primary international governing body for Latin America.[22]
In 2022, the fight promotion Armored MMA (AMMA), would be formed. Armored MMA organizes outrance fights in an MMA style octagon cage match as well as promotes and broadcasts fights more similar to traditional pro martial art fights, attracting spectators in person and online, with various matches and clips going viral, helping to draw attention and grow the sport.[23]
Competitive categories
Armored combat, like any other sport, has several categories. All its categories can be divided into mass and singles.[24]
Single categories
Single categories, namely "one vs one" are divided into tournaments and professional fights.
Duels
Points / hits are counted in one on one tournaments known as duels. A fighter must score the most amount of points to win, this is usually done in rounds of one minute with points scored based on striking. The duels categories are divided into:
- "Sword and shield" fighters use a sword and shield in two rounds of one minute, with an extra round of thirty seconds if the result of the first two rounds is a draw. A strike to the head or torso is worth two points with the rest of the body worth one point. At the end of the rounds the fighter with the most points is declared the winner.
- "Sword and buckler" fighters use a sword and buckler, in three rounds of no longer than one minute, each round is continued until a fighter reaches five points or the time runs out. All strikes are counted as one point. The fighter who wins two rounds first is declared the winner.
- "Longsword" fighters use longswords in two rounds of one minute, with an extra round of thirty seconds if the result of the first two rounds is a draw. Strikes to the head and torso are worth two points with the rest is the body worth one point, strikes to the head and torso are worth one point if only one hand is used for the strike. At the end of the rounds the fighter with the most points is declared the winner.
- "Polearm" fighters use polearms in two rounds of one minute, with an extra thirty seconds if the result of the first two rounds is a draw. A strike to the head and torso are worth two points with the rest of the body worth one point, strikes to the head and torso are worth one point if only one hand is used for the strike. At the end of the rounds the fighter with the most points is declared the winner.
There is also a category called "Triathlon": three rounds with different weapons, the first one – "longsword", the second one – "sword and buckler", the third one – "sword and shield."
Outrance
The second "single" armored combat category is outrance, also referred to as pro-Fight.[25] A fight is held in the format of "two rounds of two minutes" with a third round if the fights end in a tie. According to the rules, any techniques aimed at delivering blows to any part of the body are allowed, with the exceptions of: blows aimed at the neck, back of the knee, groin, eyes, feet, back of the head, and thrusts, which are prohibited in all armored combat categories. All other things, including 10-second ground fighting with no active movements of the opponents are allowed.
Mass categories
- "5 vs 5"
- "10 vs 10"
- "12 vs 12"
- "16 vs 16"
- "30 vs 30"
- Buhurts
The rules of mass battles are slightly different. The “kill zones” are the same, but the winner is the one who remains standing on their feet, hits are not counted.[24]
In addition to these categories, there are some others, such as the "2 vs 2" which are held in the “deathmatch” mode: several two-member units meet on the lists, the battle is "all against all" and the winner is the two-member unit, of which at least one fighter is on his feet; "10 vs 10" and others. Armored combat categories often can be created for a specific festival, depending on its objectives and specific requirements of historicity, such as "7 vs 7" or the rare "150 vs 150" category.[26]
"Soft"
"Soft" category uses a safe model of a sword and shield made from non-metal materials, allowing for training and competition without metal armor. The category is primarily used, though not exclusively, for tournaments for athletes younger than 18, as well as for training without heavy armor, and for people interested in the sport but have not bought the metal equipment.[27]
Training and preparation of fighters
Workouts are held in accordance with the most effective modern methods of training available in the martial arts. HMB fighters practice weight lifting, related martial arts, and cardiovascular workouts. Fighters often use groundwork of other contact martial arts in their training practices.[28] Sometime fighters will train using "soft" padded weapons instead of metal weapons, allowing for training within a metal suit of armor.
Regulations
There are unified international rules for the battles. They prohibit a number of very traumatic techniques, as well as regulate the admission of fighters and their weapons in order to observe the historical reliability of equipment, and also to eliminate serious injuries. Due to the fact that different countries used to have different fighting rules, the first unified rules were developed specifically for the world championship on Armored combat, "Battle of the Nations". However, the rules used at a local tournament may still differ, for example it may be prohibited to deliver blows to certain areas such as below the knee, or elbow, but the international rating events are conducted in accordance with the accepted international rules for Armored combat.[24] Weapons are checked for correct measurements and safety before fighters enter the list. Due to the risks and injuries involved with the sport, participants must be over the age of 18 to participate, with the exception of the "soft" category events.