Classification
There are nine parries in the classical systems of épée and foil fencing. Parries are classified based on three attributes: 1) The direction of the blade in relation to the hand: up or down. 2) The position of the blade in relation to the fencing line: inside or outside. 3) The rotation of the of the wrist in the hand holding the weapon: supinated' (wrist up) or pronated (wrist down).
| Name | Description (foil and épée) | Description (sabre) | Diagram |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prime - Parry 1 | Blade down and to the inside, wrist pronated. Sometimes known as the "Looking at your watch" Parry. | Blade points down and "cutting edge" faces away from the fencer's flank side. | |
| Seconde - Parry 2 | Blade down and to the outside, wrist pronated. | Arm half-extended laterally, blade pointing forward with downward incline, cutting edge facing towards fencer's flank side. | |
| Tierce - Parry 3 | Blade up and to the outside, wrist pronated. Not often used in either Foil or Épée. | Standard en garde but rotated so cutting edge faces further in the flank direction, i.e. guard kept low, sword upright with a slight forward tilt, cutting edge facing 45° to the flank side. | |
| Quarte - Parry 4 | Blade up and to the inside, wrist supinated.
This parry can be Lateral or Circular, as can most all parries. The Counter Parry. The Circular Parry, also known as "Contre Quarte", is a circular or oval shape. It begins in either the neutral or quarte position, and with a twist of the wrist it ends in the carte parry. |
Similar to tierce on the chest side or prime flipped upside-down; guard low, cutting edge facing away from flank, sword upright with slight chest-direction tilt. | |
| Quinte - Parry 5 | Blade up and to the inside, wrist pronated. Not often used in Foil or Épée | Blade held up almost horizontally with bent arm, cutting edge facing upward or forward, blade has a slight tilt meaning that the point is higher than the guard. | |
| Sixte - Parry 6 | Blade up and to the outside, wrist supinated.
This parry can be Lateral or Circular. The Lateral Parry is from Quarte to Sixte. The Circular Parry, also known as "Counter Sixte", is a D shaped parry, dropping the points and bringing it up on the inside bringing your point back towards your En Guard line. |
The arm position is a mirror image of quinte (supinated, forearm vertical on opposing side of head). Point is diagonal across the body covering the head, but towards the opponent, and slightly upwards (or forwards for a direct riposte in opposition). | |
| Septime - Parry 7 | Blade down and to the inside, wrist supinated. Point dropped, the wrist is in the same place as in Quarte.
This parry is semi-circular, the point is dropped from Quarte to Septime (or the opposite). |
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| Octave - Parry 8 | Blade down and to the outside, wrist supinated. Point is dropped, the wrist is in the same place as in Sixte.
This parry is semi-circular, the point is dropped from Sixte to Octave (or the opposite). |
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| Neuvieme - Parry 9 | The tip of the blade is on the inside and dropped as in Septime, while the hand is raised. For this reason, Neuvieme is sometimes referred to as "high septime". This parry is often used to sweep through the upper lines of the fencers target, or as a ceding parry. |
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