Talho

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Talho is the basic cutting strike of the montante, the Iberian two-handed sword, attested in the treatise Memorial da Prattica do Montante, written in 1651 by Diogo Gomes de Figueyredo. It is delivered from below upward or in various directions. The very first rule prescribes a talho from behind, from below upward, with a simultaneous step forward on the right foot; the seventh calls for a talho forward, toward where people are, again with a step forward. The treatise distinguishes talho from revez, a cut delivered in the opposite direction; the second rule joins them in a sequence of revez and talho to the shoulder. In total the treatise contains 32 rules, 16 simple and 16 compound, combining footwork, body position and talho sequences for a duel against one or several opponents. According to the treatise, all attacks with the montante should be delivered so that the body remains stable at the end of the natural movement. The montante was used in Spain and Portugal from the 15th to the 17th century and stands developmentally between the European longsword and the German two-handed sword. Figueyredo, a Portuguese officer and fencing master, died in 1685 and dedicated the treatise to Prince Theodosio; the text represents the old Iberian fencing tradition preceding the Spanish Destreza.