Achille Marozzo

Quick Facts

Date of Birth1484

Date of Death1553

Country of OriginItaly

Biography

Achille Marozzo was a Bolognese fencing master and the author of the treatise Opera Nova of 1536. He was born in 1484, according to Wiktenauer in San Giovanni in Persiceto and according to English Wikipedia probably in Bologna, and he died in Bologna in 1553.

His father was Lodovico Marozzo. He studied fencing in Bologna under Guido Antonio di Luca, of whose school he wrote in the preface that more fighters came out of it than out of the Trojan horse. Another pupil of di Luca was Count Guido Rangoni, to whom Marozzo dedicated his work.

Opera Nova was published in Modena on 23 May 1536. In five books it describes the sword and buckler, the sword and dagger, the two-handed sword, polearms and duels. Reprints appeared in Bologna in 1546 and in Venezia in 1550, a revised edition of 1568 to 1569 was prepared by his son Sebastiano with copperplate engravings, and the last edition appeared in Verona in 1615.

Wiktenauer names as his pupils Giovanni Battista da i Letti, Giacomo Crafter d'Agusta and his son Sebastiano. Giovanni dall'Agocchie, Angelo Viggiani and Mercurio Spezioli were influenced by his teaching. Marozzo is buried at the military hospital in Bologna.

Early life

Achille Marozzo was born in 1484. Wiktenauer gives San Giovanni in Persiceto, which belonged to Bologna, as the place, and English Wikipedia probably Bologna. His father was Lodovico Marozzo, and his son Sebastiano was at the same time his pupil. In 1531 he received permission to build a water wheel drawing water from the river Reno, and what it was used for is not clear.

Training and teachers

He studied fencing in Bologna under Guido Antonio di Luca, whose name differs in transcriptions. In the preface to Opera Nova of 1536 he praises his teacher with the words that more fighters came out of his school than out of the Trojan horse. Another pupil of di Luca was Count Guido Rangoni, Marozzo's patron. Wiktenauer believes that Marozzo may have been attached to his court.

Contribution and innovations

Opera Nova was first printed in Modena, the colophon giving 23 May 1536 and the house of the priest Antonio Bergola. The work is dedicated to Count Guido Rangoni and has five books on the sword and buckler, the sword and dagger, the two-handed sword, polearms and duels. The fifth book refers to the treatise De Duello by Paride del Pozzo. The woodcuts of the first edition may have been made by Hans Sebald Beham. The revised edition of 1568 to 1569 was prepared by his son Sebastiano and printed in Venezia by Antonio Pinargenti with copperplate engravings by Giovanni Battista Fontana.

Legends and documented facts

The place of birth is disputed. Wiktenauer gives San Giovanni in Persiceto and English Wikipedia probably Bologna. Also uncertain is the authorship of the woodcuts of the first edition, which Wiktenauer only cautiously attributes to Hans Sebald Beham. In the case of Giovanni dall'Agocchie, Angelo Viggiani and Mercurio Spezioli, according to Wiktenauer it cannot be distinguished whether they were direct pupils or merely influenced by his teaching. Marozzo's activity at the court of Count Rangoni also remains a conjecture.

Legacy

According to Miente Pietersma, reprints appeared in Bologna in 1546, in Venezia in 1550 and 1567 to 1568, and the last edition in Verona in 1615. Wiktenauer names as his pupils Giovanni Battista da i Letti, Giacomo Crafter d'Agusta and his son Sebastiano. Giovanni dall'Agocchie, Angelo Viggiani and Mercurio Spezioli were influenced by his teaching, and whether they studied with him is not clear. English Wikipedia states that in 1885 Egerton Castle judged Opera Nova to be a work far ahead of its time. The treatise was translated into English by Heidi Ferguson and William Wilson. Marozzo died in Bologna in 1553 and is buried at the military hospital.

Associated Martial Arts

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