Fencing as a sport developed as practice in the use of the sword in case one should find oneself involved in an "affair of honor." To a lot of gentlemen, it was both a precaution in the event of such involvement, and a recreational activity and means of keeping fit (making sure one's breeches would still buttoned despite last night's roast pheasant). As dueling faded into history (much more recently than most people suspect), the sport—and art and science—developed.

The smallsword (for which the foil was developed as a practice weapon) was the gentleman's sidearm in a world where, walking down the street at night, one might suddenly be set upon by footpads (muggers). The sudden appearance of three feet of cold, slender, sharp, gleaming steel was often enough to send the footpad or cut-purse scuttling off into the dark. Should a robber or other person of ill intent be similarly armed, the well-trained and well-practice gentleman was usually able to protect himself quite well. In such a fight, rules usually did not apply; although principles of good swordsmanship—which sometimes involved a few dirty tricks learned in the salle d'armes for just such an occasion—did.

A street-fight or brawl was one thing. But a formal duel was another.

When there was an offense or an affront to a gentleman's honor (or to the honor of someone under the protection of that gentleman), if the matter couldn't be settled any other way (say, an immediate retraction and an apology), the offended gentleman would send his seconds (a couple of friends) to the offender and issue a challenge. If they couldn't persuade the offender to apologize, or reach some other acceptable accommodation, an affair of honor—a duel—was arranged. The offendee's seconds would meet with the offender's seconds, and if they still couldn't negotiate a peaceful conclusion, they would usually make the arrangements, deciding the time and location, and oftentimes the weapons to be used. If one was an excellent swordsman and the other was not, they would probably opt for pistols. Or vice versa. If either of these options gave one to the combatants an unfair advantage, they may choose a weapon—say, cavalry sabers—that neither of them was very good with.

In the Bois de Boulogne (or some similar relatively isolated location), the small, somewhat sinister group, the two combatants, their seconds, and usually a doctor, would gather at the appointed time, often early in the morning, and if the two principles were still adamant, the combat would begin. It was the duty of the seconds to make sure that decorum was maintained and that neither adversary took unfair advantage of the other. Depending on the nature of the offense and/or the tempers of the combatants, the duel might be for first blood (slight wound, honor satisfied) or to the death (mortal offense). Or until the seconds, or the doctor, or both—or even, possibly, one of the combatants—called a halt.

Movie duels are usually wild and wooly as far as action is concerned, but in relation to real formal duels, they are a travesty. The best fencing I've ever seen in a movie (good form and good, clean technique used by two actors who were also very good fencers) was the duel scene between Tyrone Power and Basil Rathbone in the alcalde's study in the 1940 movie, The Mark of Zorro. But it's anything but authentic for the period. They are using modern sport-fencing sabers and fencing techniques that didn't exist until maybe a hundred years after the period being portrayed. But there is a minimum of running up and down stairs, no swinging from chandeliers, and only a small amount of tripping over furniture and slipping on rugs. It's a whacking good duel scene for the kind of stuff Hollywood usually does. And, in my opinion, it's still the best Zorro movie ever made.

For a movie with some very realistic duel scenes in it, see The Duellists. It deals with an officer during the Napoleonic Wars who is an obsessive-compulsive duel-freak and who has it in for another officer. The duel scenes are, as I say, very realistic and show what a thoroughly nasty business dueling really is. Most unusual for the movies.

Both, as indicated, are available on DVD and are undoubtedly rentable of "NetFlix-able."

Don Firth