Scorners of Death: Fighting Skills of the Medieval Gaelic Warrior

Described as “very great scorners of death” by the English writer Edmund Spenser, the Gaelic warriors of medieval Ireland and Scotland included aristocratic mounted skirmishers as well as the guerrilla fighters known as kerns or caterans, and the ferocious gallowglass and redshank mercenaries armed with battle-axes and two-handed swords.

One of the first works to focus on the weapons and fighting skills of the medieval Gaelic warrior, Scorners of Death offers instruction in the use of the medieval Gaelic sword, sword and buckler, two-handed sword and battle-axe (including both the Lochaber axe and the sparth axe of Ireland), as well as a detailed discussion of the warriors who used these weapons and the strategic context in which they fought.

Although there are no technical manuals for the use of these weapons, the authors have developed a training method based on the best historical evidence available. These techniques will be useful for reenactors portraying the Scottish highland or Irish warriors of the Middle Ages, especially in the time period between 1300 and 1600, as well as for any practitioners of Historical European Martial Arts (or HEMA) with an interest in Scottish or Irish history.

This book was created by a team of researchers associated with the Cateran Society, including:

Christopher Scott Thompson, founder of the Cateran Society and author of several books on the Highland broadsword and Gaelic martial culture.

Heiko Große, 2nd President of the Cateran Society and Head and founder of the Broadsword Academy Germany. He wrote the first book on Highland Broadsword in the German language and several articles on Highland and Military Swordsmanship.

Ken Pfrenger, the founding member of the Cateran Society, better known as a founder of Cumann Bhata and NEOHEMAS.

Randal Gustitis, Level II Mentor in the Cateran Society, head of Broadsword Academy Pennsylvania and student of many martial arts disciplines from all around the world.