The History of Fighting

A Japanese headsman tells his Chinese prisoner the best way to hold his head
for a smooth decapitation. The picture was taken in 1938 during the Nanking massacre.

This picture of warrior monks from the Shaolin Temple in the Henan Province was taken some time in the 1920s. It clearly demonstrates that they had become modernized in their fighting methods, learning from the mistakes of an earlier generation of monks who believed they could use traditional forms of fighting against soldiers with guns. They used talisman and spells to protect them from bullets during the Boxer Rebellion of 1901, a mistake that led to the uprising being easily quashed and one that cost many people their lives.

A demonstration of Wu style Tai Chi Chuan by Chu Minyi, disciple of Wu Jianquan, filmed in 1937 in Shanghai. Chu shows the Wu style set, tuishou and his 'modern and scientific' approach to kung fu including his 'stick' and 'ball' training methods.

This small-scale model is of the Archer XI of the west pediment of the Temple of Aphaia (c. 505–500 BCE), which is dedicated to a Greek goddess of the same name and was worshipped almost exclusively on the island of Aegina in the Saronic Gulf.

A group of samurai warriors dressed in traditional costume photographed towards the end of the Edo Period in the 19th century.

Edith Margaret Garrud was an early 20th century female jujitsu expert who used her considerable skill to train a group known simply as the Bodyguard. They were tasked with giving protection to Emmeline Pankhurst and other suffragettes, who were regularly manhandled and harassed by police.

In 1913, Garrud made a short film (from which the pictures above are taken) to demonstrate her jujitsu and show than even in the male dominated world of the early twentieth century, a well-trained woman could hold her own against anybody.

Original Image

Hirokazu Kanazawa performing Jion

The origins of the kata Jion (Mercy) is highly debated by scholars of world martial arts. It starts with the left hand covering the right fist, kamae that probably has its roots in Chinese boxing. It is thought to have come through the Tomari-te style of Okinawan karate, however according to the legendary Hirokazu Kanazawa (above), the kata originated in the Chinese Buddhist Jion Temple (where the monks were accomplished martial artists) and then spread to the Tomari region at a later date. Others believe this is not the case and it was simply developed by someone with a connection to the temple however with the name evidence and the kamae, it seems likely that Kanazawa was correct.

More Kata History

An old illustration of two samurai warriors engaged in hand to hand combat on the battle field. The grappling
moves being displayed are an example of fighting techniques that come from an early form of jujitsu.