Self-Defense for Gentlemen and Ladies
A Nineteenth-Century Treatise on Boxing, Kicking, Grappling, and Fencing with the Cane and Quarterstaff
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Narrated by:
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Steve Hendrickson
About this listen
This 19th-century self-defense manual - written by a master swordsman - will appeal to fencers and martial artists as well as fans of Victorian-era culture, steampunk, and American history
Colonel Thomas Hoyer Monstery was a master swordsman who participated in more than fifty duels, fought under twelve flags, battled gangsters, and was constantly involved in the great conflicts and upheavals of his time. In the 1870s, he began writing his magnum opus - a series of newspaper articles that are now collected here for the first time in Self-Defense for Gentleman and Ladies.
In this book, Colonel Monstery presents a unique look into the Victorian-era fighting world. He describes styles such as British “purring” (shin-kicking), Welsh jump-kicking, and American rough-and-tumble fighting, in addition to providing illustrated instruction in the art of gentlemanly self-defense with a cane, staff, or one’s bare hands. Fifty rare drawings and photographs from the period illuminate Monstery’s world, while an extensive glossary of terms and an introductory biography of Colonel Monstery - including fascinating details of his many duels as well as his groundbreaking devotion to teaching fencing and self-defense skills to women - update his text to make it accessible and useful to gentlemen and ladies of any era.
Contents
Colonel Thomas Hoyer Monstery: The Unknown American Martial Arts Master
I. Introduction.
II. The Logic of Boxing.
III. Standing and Striking.
IV. Advancing to Strike and Feinting.
V. Simple Parries in Boxing.
VI. Parries with Returns.
VII. Effective or Counter Parries in Boxing.
VIII. Offence and Defense by Evasions.
IX. Trips, Grips, and Back-Falls.
X. Rules for a Set-to with Gloves.
XI. Observations on Natural Weapons.
XII. The Use of the Cane.
XIII. The Use of the Cane (continued).
XIV. The Use of the Staff.
XV. The Use of the Staff (continued).
Appendix: Monstery's Rules for Contests of Sparring and Fencing
Glossary
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
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Story
When a mixed martial arts (MMA) gym moves in across the street from his office, Jonathan Gottschall sees a challenge and an opportunity. Pushing 40, out of shape, and disenchanted with his job as an adjunct English professor, part of him yearns to cross the street and join up. The other part is terrified.
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Not what I was expecting
- By Nathan Kemp on 03-07-17
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The Danaher Diaries, Volume 3
- Over 100 more of John Danaher's Musings on Training, Thriving, Quarantines, and Mastery
- By: Heroes of the Art
- Narrated by: David Sweeney-Bear
- Length: 3 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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With the world or combat sports put on hold and hundreds of thousands of students training from home in 2020, the mental study of jiujitsu has become more important than ever. In the highly requested third volume of the Danaher Diaries, there are now over 100 musings from the mind of John Danaher from before and during the worldwide pandemic that drove the BJJ community out of gyms and onto various online training programs. Danaher's writings cover the timely to the timeless as he reflects on the current state of jiujitsu and it's unchanging constants.
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Consistency of valuable content.
- By Will Cohen on 06-19-24
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Legion versus Phalanx
- The Epic Struggle for Infantry Supremacy in the Ancient World
- By: Myke Cole
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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From the time of Ancient Sumeria, the heavy infantry phalanx dominated the battlefield. Armed with spears or pikes, standing shoulder to shoulder with shields interlocking, the men of the phalanx presented an impenetrable wall of wood and metal to the enemy. Until, that is, the Roman legion emerged to challenge them as masters of infantry battle.
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I might be a niche market for this but I loved it
- By Jonathan on 12-17-18
By: Myke Cole
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Survive Week One
- Codename: Freedom, Book 1
- By: Apollos Thorne
- Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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The government has accelerated their super soldier program. Their new Virtual Reality system is the perfect tool to train soldiers for the coming war. There is a shortage of enlisted men and women that possess the "talent". Everyone from athletes to professional gamers must be sorted and vetted. Humanity is on the line. Lucius is one of those lucky few selected to participate in Codename: Freedom, a new game that promises to push Virtual Reality to the ultimate level.
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Combat Heavy
- By Austin on 10-29-18
By: Apollos Thorne
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Hagakure
- The Book of the Samurai
- By: Yamamoto Tsunetomo, William Scott Wilson - translator
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 5 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Living and dying with bravery and honor is at the heart of Hagakure, a series of texts written by an 18th-century samurai, Yamamoto Tsunetomo. It is a window into the samurai mind, illuminating the concept of bushido (the Way of the Warrior), which dictated how samurai were expected to behave, conduct themselves, live, and die.
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Great Way to Experience the Book Again
- By WildKarrde on 07-10-17
By: Yamamoto Tsunetomo, and others
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The Danaher Diaries, Volume 2
- 100 More of John Danaher’s Musings on Learning, Teaching, Strategy, and Mastery
- By: Heroes of the Art
- Narrated by: David Sweeney-Bear
- Length: 2 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Ready to return to the mats? New concepts, new stories, and more brilliance from the leading mind in Brazilian jiu-jitsu can be found in the follow-up to the surprise 2019 hit. This is the perfect companion for your BJJ journey. Short, thought-provoking entries can be listened to as you sit in the parking lot before the gym opens, or after class when you're reflecting on training. Be a fly on the wall in the famous blue basement as you study with the kingmaker to champions like Gordon Ryan, Garry Tonon, and Georges St-Pierre.
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The back control section.
- By Anonymous User on 06-24-24
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The Boxing Kings
- When American Heavyweights Ruled the Ring
- By: Paul Beston
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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The Boxing Kings tells the story of the heavyweight title in the days when it was a defining institution in the United States. Author Paul Beston places special emphasis on those champions who held a central place in American culture beyond just in the boxing ring, including John L. Sullivan, who made the title a commercial property; Jack Johnson, who in 1908 became the first black man to claim the title; Joe Louis, whose contributions to racial tolerance and social progress transcended even his greatness in the ring; and many more.
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An outstanding book on heavyweight champions
- By LSmith on 02-01-18
By: Paul Beston
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The Sweet Science
- By: A. J. Liebling
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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This collection of A.J. Liebling's classic New Yorker pieces on the "sweet science of bruising" brings vividly to life the boxing world as it once was. It depicts the great events of boxing's American heyday: Sugar Ray Robinson's dramatic comeback, Rocky Marciano's rise to prominence, Joe Louis' unfortunate decline. Liebling never fails to find the human story behind the fight, and he evokes the atmosphere in the arena as distinctly as he does the goings-on in the ring.
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Liebling is a master wordsmith, Gardner an incredible narrator
- By Josh on 03-29-16
By: A. J. Liebling
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Casca the Eternal Mercenary
- Casca Series, Book 1
- By: Barry Sadler
- Narrated by: Gene Engene
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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This is audiobook number one in the Casca Series. When they flew Casey into the hospital at Nha Trang, the medics were sure he would die. That he didn't was only the first surprise. The second, and bigger one, was that Casey had been fighting for two thousand years, ever since that day on Golgotha when he thrust his lance into the side of the man on the cross.
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An interesting story for every Soldier to read.
- By Jonathan Love on 09-22-11
By: Barry Sadler
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Hagakure
- The Secret Wisdom of the Samurai
- By: Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Alexander Bennett - translator
- Narrated by: Tim Campbell
- Length: 7 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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The comprehensive and accurate edition of the Hagakure is a must-have for serious martial artists or fans of samurai and the Bushido code.
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awesome book on samurai history.
- By Christian Knight on 10-02-20
By: Yamamoto Tsunetomo, and others
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The Face of Battle
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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In this major and wholly original contribution to military history, John Keegan reverses the usual convention of writing about war in terms of generals and nations in conflict, which tends to leave the common soldier as cipher. Instead, he focuses on what a set battle is like for the man in the thick of it.
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Amazing! But probably better in print.
- By D. Martin on 04-20-13
By: John Keegan