Ott Jud/Jay Acutt 2016

A brief lesson and introduction on how to bring about advantage in wrestling, etc.

If you want to be skillful in Knighthood
Then you must, before all else, learn wrestling.
When I say to you honestly,
Wrestling is indeed a foundation
for all Knightly activity
Much more goes from it,
And though you are skilful/agile in body,
When you cannot therefore perform with advantage
For whilst you are young,
Strength is what one calls the ‘Golden Art’
And you can’t be helped any further,
by offering more advantage, etc.
A foundation in it for fencers,
that thereby a wrestler has,
Whether in sword, dagger, buckler,
Staff, halberd and long spear,
As well fighting with Messer: without wrestling
Much does evade your grasp
Also if you don’t throw with strength
the Javelin or heavy stones,
you don’t stand a chance in any duels -
Condemned then, if you cannot wrestle.
Accordingly I have told myself,
To abstract these to bestow upon you,
If by describing every fantasy,
Alive-and-well is Chivalry,
But I may not, at length, conclude,
Because many words do sprout disinterest,
Therefore, this alone I consider:
that the reason for such splendour
Is so you then have,
for yourself much decency, etc.

Wrestling begins:

Exalt it in God’s name
Observe whether your opponent moves high or low,
With the hands seize his left
Pull him from the right side
Stride with the right foot behind his right,
Push with your right arm on his left side
Then downward he must fall,
Gone over your right foot.

Firstly you should, in any wrestling, fighting and duelling ask God and the Holy Ghost with total humility, when beginning any of the Art, be God-fearing. Then embark on wrestling, and seize, at first, his left hand with both hands, and pull him onto your right side, and stride with your right foot behind his right foot, and reach with your right arm on his left side, and throw him over your right foot.

The other [2nd] wrestle

But should someone with cunning
ensnares you with both hands
locked under both your arms
Therefore don’t give up
Especially with both your arms
Do wrap up around outside his elbows
Shove them well together
Over both his elbows
Lift him upward with strength
Thus his arm does break.

If someone has you with both arms around underneath both your arms, then seize him underneath with both arms, wrapping around the outside of his elbows and squeeze your arms together, under his elbows and lift upward with strength, and break him by the arm.

The 3rd Wrestle

Then you are at him with both arms
Notice what is said to you
Hold him high by the throat,
Or quickly at the jaw-bone,
do the neck-punch to him
pressing him well over the back,
But must with your arm,
Reach well through his.

Item: if you are up-most with both your arms, then you may, up high, grab by the throat, or by the jaw-bone, and, penetrating, wrap around the neck or over the back or you may at the same time, reach your arm through his arm.

The fourth

Then you have your left hand underneath,
and may, with it behind his right foot, he fall
With the right on the throat
Act by stepping quickly,
By him about the neck,
Throw him, gripping him outside once-more,
to whichever side you want,
he would fall being bravely,
so you have gone rightly
He would not to shoot upon it

You are with your left arm underneath, then drop him with the right hand on the throat and stride with yours behind his right foot, and press him therefore by his neck,

and throw him over the foot, to both sides.

The fifth

When you take someone with both hands,
He be threatened by the sides,
And is as if you, or a wrestler.
Grasps them with nothing less,
Lock your hands firmly together
Outside his back and lift him
upon your left side [hip],
Abide upon all effort
You do to your break of his back
He will hardly be able to save himself

Notice when you have reached someone through with both arms on his arm, and he is also a little like you, or a wrestler, then seize him around the waist and slip your hands firmly together around his back and lift him up on your left side. And when you manage to have swung him, then push him down on the left, and break his back towards yours.

The wrestling concludes

Thus you have the basics,
Now I will give you the end,
This knighthood,
The other exercises that they do,
That has wrestling also be named,
That I shall signify,
Creating fewer words is useful,
Therefore I will let you get underway,
When with many words and yapping,
He will not be like me,
So I did not choose any more,
Because uncouth people,
Have everything chosen already in hand,
Thinking nothing more about it,
Also they be ridiculed in many things,
Before people, then they shall submit,
Because you have enough for wrestling
And made a good start thereon,
the techniques twenty and nine,

How the charging and wrestling should be.