lol

I watched Sherlock Holmes on DVD last night for the first time. Interesting seeing some of the fight techniques, seems to be an ecclectic mix of Kung Fu (according to the special features Robert Downey Jr. is a practitioner of Wing Chun Kung Fu in real life), Jujutsu (esp. the scene where Holmes and Watson are double arm-barring that big French dude!). I haven't read Sherlock Holmes since I was a child, but that movie brought lots of memories back - and something I'd completely forgotten is that of course, Holmes was meant to be a very competent fighter. In the books, Holmes is meant to be a skilled practitioner of Baritsu, a fictional martial art that Doyle had created and is probably based on or inspired by the Bartitsu -- an English martial art that emerged from the late Victorian Era. Apparently the name Bartitsu may have been inspired by the word "Jujitsu" (which in itself is a corruption of the word "Jujutsu" <--which is how it's pronounced in Japanese), but the techniques themselves are from Western roots - namely from Western boxing, wrestling, fencing, savate and stilleto (knife/dagger) fighting. Bartitsu apparently also specialises in using the walking stick as a defensive weapon - which we see with Dr. Watson's fighting form.

Some images of Bartitsu stick or cane fighting:
http://www.fullcontactmartialarts.or...k-fighting.jpg
http://www.headmountedlasers.com/MU/.../twohanded.jpg
http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/...mages/BW20.jpg
http://www.bartitsu.it/images/Stock-Kampf

And here's an image of unarmed Bartitsu fighting (boxing):
http://martialhistory.com/wp-content...10/08/BW02.jpg

Here's a pic of people practising modern Bartitsu today:
http://www.modernbartitsu.com/wp-con...64591_6474.jpg

Now I don't know how accurate the actors' forms in the film were to actual Bartitsu, because I've never seen real Bartitsu before (like many Western martial arts, it's very obscure and just doesn't enjoy the same level of popularity as East Asian martial arts); but it was interesting to see a portrayal of Holmes' Baritsu as a full and frenzied down and dirty martial art fighting form, whereas my memories of previous movie/televised incarnations don't show him being terribly physical at all.

There's a web site dedicated to Bartitsu here: http://www.bartitsu.org/
And I found a web site for a UK based modern Bartitsu school here: http://www.modernbartitsu.com/

I just think it's fascinating seeing a film showcasing a Western European martial art, which so seldomly gets any limelight in popular media. Some people think that only East Asian regions developed martial arts, whereas in reality every region where conflict existed would have developed a martial art.

I wish there were a Bartitsu school in Sydney... if I ever found one I'd totally go check it out! I'm personally not interested in taking it up, but I would really love to have a look at it and have a bit of a try. There are some schools in Australia that teach European martial arts, I've seen some people who train in broadsword and Spanish Rapier Brawling, but I've yet to come across a school that teaches Bartitsu.

If anyone happens to find a Bartitsu school, do share your experience(s) with us!