About

Fiore dei Liberi (c. 1350 – c. 1420) was an Italian knight, diplomat, and master-at-arms. Born in Cividale del Friuli, he trained under masters both Italian and German and spent decades honing his art through teaching, duelling, and battlefield experience.

Around 1409, Fiore compiled his masterwork: Fior di Battaglia — The Flower of Battle. This illustrated fighting treatise is one of the most complete martial arts manuals to survive from the medieval period. At least four manuscript copies are known today, held in the Getty Museum, the Morgan Library, the Pisani-Dossi collection, and the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

Fiore’s system is remarkably comprehensive. It begins with abrazare (wrestling), then progresses through the dagger, longsword in one and two hands, spear, and pollaxe — each weapon building on the principles of those before it. The system covers both armoured and unarmoured combat, making it a complete curriculum for the medieval combatant.

What makes Fiore’s work exceptional is not just its breadth but its pedagogy. He organises his techniques into “plays” — flowing sequences that demonstrate how one action leads naturally to another. His seven “swords” (fundamental principles) and twelve guards form a coherent framework that makes a 600-year-old system accessible to modern practitioners.