Parry (fencing)

This article is about the manoevre known as "Parry" in fencing. The word is also used in several other ways

Table of contents

1 Parry
2 Formal Positions
3 Importance for Each Weapon
4 Right of Way

Parry

(v) - To deflect the advancing blade of the opponents weapon, with the aim to either counter or obtain right of way.

From the engarde or extended position, there are standard formal positions for the parry, although there are many unrecognised variations in use by "instinctive" fencers.

Positions of parry vary according to the particular school of fencing taught, although for foil and epee they generally take the form of the division of the opponents chest into numbered quarters. There is then a position for each quarter based on whether the hand is palm-up or palm-down. This provides 8 basic parry positions. These are often referred to by a standard number. For example, a "Parry Four" is the first parry learned by most foil fencers.

Variation to these positions takes place with Sabre fencing, as the alteration of the target area and the method of attack with the weapon make the former positions less than fully effective. Thus the sabre positions vary.

Importance for Each Weapon

The relative importance of parrying varies depending on the weapon.

In foil, due to the limited target area, it is fairly easy to parry an attack. In addition, right of way requires that an opponent's attack be deflected before a fencer can counter. For these reasons, parrying is a key element in foil matches.

In sabre, the pace is very fast. Attacks can use either point or edge, and can change direction easilly. This makes parrying difficult and unreliable. Skill at parrying tends to be less important than a fencer's ability to control the distance between himself and his opponent. Some sabre fencers rarely parry at all.

The epee is heavy and (comparatively) slow, making epee attacks much easier to parry than those in sabre. However, there is no requirement to parry before making a counterattack, as there is in foil. Hence, parrying takes on a role that is somewhat less important than in foil, but significantly more important than in sabre.

Right of Way

When fencing with Foil or Sabre, there exist rules of right of way (required prior to being able to execute a hit), which are obtained either by extension of the fencing arm, or by the way of contact with the opponents weapon while they have right of way.