There is a thriving HEMA scene in Glasgow, and we are delighted to be part of it all at the Vanguard Centre!
Established in 2015, the Vanguard Centre is a full-time training centre for archery and HEMA. We have a venue just south of Central Station in Glasgow city centre and our sessions are taught by professional instructors with years of experience.
Our HEMA practices are thoroughly based in historical sources. We follow books written by fencing masters of the past and we try to recreate these methods as a functional and enjoyable martial art today.
Safety is of great importance to us, so we wear protective gear such as modern fencing masks and padded gloves. We also work hard to make our space as welcoming as possible and are always happy to chat and see what we can do to help include you in our sessions.
We believe that the Vanguard Centre is one of the foremost HEMA schools in Glasgow (and, indeed, in Scotland), and we strive every day to make this statement true!
Information for Beginners
If you are looking to start practising HEMA and don’t have much experience yet, then we would strongly recommend the Scottish Broadsword & Military Sabre class if single-handed swords appeal to you, or the Longsword Beginner Course if you like the idea of the two-handed longsword.
Alternatively, you can contact us to book some private tuition, where we can give you a more personalised lesson to help you get started.
We can supply all the necessary equipment. You just need to come along wearing sensible footwear and comfortable, loose-fitting clothing so that you can move easily.
Book your place using the online booking system, following the links below, and then come along and let our instructors introduce you to the wonderful world of historical fencing!
Current HEMA Classes
Scottish Broadsword & Military Sabre is the class where we study some of the various different methods for using single-handed cutting swords during the 18th and 19th centuries. Whether you see yourself more as a Jacobite or Covenanter, or if you have an interest in military history, these sessions will have something for you.
Read on for more information about broadsword and sabre.
- Book your participation in one of our broadsword and sabre classes.
- Runs on Wednesday evenings, starting at 7:30pm.
- Great for beginners as well as experienced fencers.
Longsword is a fast-paced and athletic sword-fighting discipline from the 15th and 16th centuries. We mainly practise in a Germanic style, but occasionally dip into Italian sources for comparison. As our most popular HEMA discipline, we run 2 classes on this weapon at different levels on different days – great for finding plentiful sparring partners! Longsword is the perfect weapon for those of a chivalric or adventuring mindset, or want a balanced full body exercise in tactics and co-ordination!
Read on for more information about longsword.
- Book your participation in one of our longsword classes.
- Longsword Fundamentals class is on Saturday, usually starting at 4.00pm, and is a great place for beginners to join us.
- Longsword Intermediate class is on Thursday night at 7.30pm, and is better for students who have already done several months of Fundamentals classes and are willing to take on a bigger challenge.
- Unfortunately, due to staff availability, we will not be hosting Longsword Fundamentals on Saturday 24th of February or 2nd March 2024. Instead, everyone at every level will be welcome at “general purpose” Longsword lessons on 22nd and 29th February.
Rotating Fighting Arts is where we look at a new HEMA discipline every two months, giving an opportunity to taste and experience the variety of fighting systems described in the historical source material. Examples of topics include sword and buckler, medieval dagger, quarterstaff, pugilism, and anything that doesn’t fit into one of our other regular weekly sessions.
Read on for more information about rotating fighting arts.
- Book your participation in one of our rotating fighting arts classes.
- Runs on Tuesday evenings, starting at 7:30pm.
- Accessible to beginners at the start of a rotation – message us to ask what is going on!
- Current rotation of Smallsword in January & February 2024, ending soon.
- Next rotation will be Bowie Knife fighting, starting 5th March 2024.
Tournament successes
At the Vanguard Centre, we have always placed our emphasis squarely on learning how to fence effectively and according to our historical source material. We don’t train specifically for tournaments, but every so often our members will enter a tournament to see how well our training is working – and we do have quite a history of Vanguard Centre members bringing home medals and recognition, not just from the UK, but from across Europe.
We have compiled a list of tournament successes and victories by Vanguard Centre members over the years since 2015, the year in which we opened.
If you have any questions about any of these activities, please send us an email and we will be happy to help.