Welcome to August at The Vanguard Centre!
Summer special offers!
There’s still time to book for our summer specials! Until August 13th, we have some special deals on group bookings for archery or sword fighting lessons. Sessions can be booked Tuesdays to Fridays from 1pm until 4pm. Contact us for more details.
SUMMER ARCHERY DEALS
| Number of people | Length of session | Price |
| Up to 4 people | 60 mins | £35 |
| Up to 6 people | 60 mins | £45 |
| Up to 8 people | 90 mins | £65 |
| Up to 10 people | 90 mins | £75 |
These sessions are available to book between Tuesdays and Friday, from 1pm until 4pm, subject to availability.
All bookings must be paid for at the time of booking.
Sessions are suitable from ages 8 years +
Summer Sword Lessons
| Number of people | Length of session | Price |
| Up to 4 people | 90 mins | £45 |
| Up to 6 people | 90 mins | £55 |
| Up to 8 people | 90 mins | £75 |
| Up to 10 people | 90 mins | £85 |
These sessions are available to book Tuesdays to Friday from 1pm until 4pm, subject to availability.
All bookings must be paid for at the time of booking.
Sessions are suitable from ages 12 years +
To arrange a booking, please email us at contact@vanguardcentre.com
Or give us a call on 07477234020.
Saturday Sparring
Beginning on Saturday the 24th of August, we will be hosting weekly sparring sessions! These sessions will be 2 hours long, from 2pm until 4pm. Cost of these sessions is £10 per person or a tick off your session pass. Come along and and challenge your sword skills. Sessions are open to all Vanguardians and other HEMA enthusiasts!
Blacksmithing at The Vanguard Forge
As always, Paul is busy in the forge. If you fancy trying your hand and some forging then we have plenty of options for you to choose from. Come along and make your own pendants, coat hooks, fire strikers, to name but a few of the courses we have on offer. Full details can be found here.
Scottish Fighting Arts
Medieval Street Fighting in Scottish Fighting Arts Classes
In August we move onto a different system of fighting in our Tuesday night classes – rather than looking at the sources or techniques of one particular weapon, we will instead be practising fighting in a very different environment. In historical context, fighting was only rarely one-on-one duelling, more often commited in gangs or small units of combatants beyond the battlefield or even in civilian streets, so for a bit of fun in August we will be trying to recreate the feeling and the fury of armed self-defence and turf warfare of the 14th and 15th centuries.
These lessons will be less strict about individual performance and mechanics, although those will always be helpful and will be coached as necessary, and the classes will instead look at the tactics and method of fighting in groups – there are considerations of movement, footwork and angles of attack that are more or less helpful in a multi-directional fight, and better or worse still in a confined space! Learn how to cover or rescue your friends in a brawl, stand alone against multiple foes, fight back to back when surrounded by your enemies, and the most useful of all, how to do the bare minimum to run away!
These classes will make use of common weapons of the period such as single sword or messer (fighting knife), sword and buckler, and the two-handed longsword. Anyone with at least some experience in these systems is welcome to give them a try in these stressful group situations.
We will also take the opportunity to practise some rarer forms of engagment like escort duty, bodyguarding, snatch-and-grab a prize, and the infamous tavern brawl…
Team Deathmatch, Last Man Standing, Domination, Capture The Flag, Juggernaut, and other game modes available!
Medieval Street Fighting will be hosted on Tuesday nights through August at 8.00pm
That’s all for August! For regular updates on classes and activities at the Vanguard Centre, follow us on Facebook.