By the Sword: A History of Gladiators, Musketeers, Samurai, Swashbucklers, and Olympic Champions; 10th anniversary edition

By the Sword: A History of Gladiators, Musketeers, Samurai, Swashbucklers, and Olympic Champions; 10th anniversary edition
ISBN-10
0812969669
ISBN-13
9780812969665
Series
By the Sword
Category
History
Pages
560
Language
English
Published
2003-08-05
Publisher
Modern Library
Author
Richard Cohen

Description

“Like swordplay itself, By the Sword is elegant, accurate, romantic, and full of brio—the definitive study, hugely readable, of man’s most deadly art.”—Simon Winchester With a new Preface by the author Napoleon fenced. So did Shakespeare, Karl Marx, Grace Kelly, and President Truman, who as a schoolboy would practice fencing with Bess—his future wife— when the two of them returned home from school. Lincoln was a canny dueler. Ignatius Loyola challenged a man to a duel for denying Christ’s divinity (and won). Less successful, but no less enthusiastic, was Mussolini, who would tell his wife he was “off to get spaghetti,” their code to avoid alarming the children. By the Sword is an epic history of sword fighting—a science, an art, and, for many, a religion that began at the dawn of civilization in ancient Egypt and has been an obsession for mankind ever since. With wit and insight, Richard Cohen gives us an engrossing history of the world via the sword. Praise for By the Sword “Touché! While scrupulous and informed about its subject, Richard Cohen’s book is about more than swordplay. It reads at times like an alternative social history of the West.”—Sebastian Faulks “In writing By the Sword, [Cohen] has shown that he is as skilled with the pen as he is with the sword.”—The New York Times “Irresistible . . . extraordinary . . . vivid and hugely enjoyable.”—The Economist “A virtual encyclopedia on the subject of sword fighting.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Literate, learned, and, beg pardon, razor-sharp . . . a pleasure for practitioners, and a rewarding entertainment for the armchair swashbuckler.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Get the book

Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Search the book
eBay.com
eBay.com
Search the book

Other editions

Similar books

  • By the Sword
    By the Sword
    By Mercedes Lackey

    Granddaughter of the sorceress Kethry, daughter of a noble house, Kerowyn had been forced to run the family keep since her mother's untimely death.

  • The Book and the Sword: A Martial Arts Novel
    The Book and the Sword: A Martial Arts Novel
    By Louis Cha, Yong Jin

    "The Book and the Sword was Louis Cha's first novel, published in 1955. The story has a panoramic sweep which has at its heart a few unbeatable themes: secret societies,...

  • Living by the Sword: Weapons and Material Culture in France and Britain, 600–1600
    Living by the Sword: Weapons and Material Culture in France and Britain, 600–1600
    By Kristen Brooke Neuschel

    Nicholson, Lewis E. “Hunlafing and the Point of the Sword.” In Anglo-Saxon Poetry: Essays in Appreciation, for John C. McGalliard , edited by Lewis E. Nicholson and Dolores Warwick Frese, 50–61. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame ...

  • The Privilege of the Sword
    The Privilege of the Sword
    By Ellen Kushner

    Ellen Kushner. “If one wants to locate the high ground of fantasy fiction, as this new millennium begins, it is a very good idea to see where Ellen Kushner and Delia Sherman are.” —Guy Gavriel Kay THOMAS THE RHYMER Winner of The World ...

  • Blood and Steel: By the Sword
    By Palmer Blackstock

    Death is a fickle thing.

  • The Book of the Sword
    The Book of the Sword
    By Sir Richard Francis Burton

    The Book of the Sword

  • The Destiny of the Sword
    The Destiny of the Sword
    By Dave Duncan

    Wally is not quite convinced he should, but goddesses can be very persuasive . . . This is the third and final exciting book, after The Reluctant Swordsman and The Coming of Wisdom, in the Seventh Sword Trilogy.

  • Soul of the Sword
    Soul of the Sword
    By Julie Kagawa

    In this fantastical second series installment by New York Times best-selling author Julie Kagawa, a wish was made and a sword of rage and lightning was forged, one thousand years ago.

  • Heart of the Sword
    Heart of the Sword
    By Mark Chin

    For almost three centuries, the Tokugawa Shogunate has held sway over Japan, bringing an unprecedented period of peace and political stability where once anarchy reigned.

  • By the Sword
    By Greg Costikyan

    Nijon, a young barbarian and son of the god Mongoose, performs heroic deeds--such as killing a lioness barehanded, outsmarting a dragon, rescuing a princess, and outwitting a king.