When you think about juggling, you’re probably imagining a circus or a talent show, a man with clown make-up and bowling pins – not a gladiatorial battle. But Combat Juggling is just that: a fight to the last person standing, or in this case, last person juggling. 

Combat Juggling transforms the rather benign skill of maintaining three objects in the air, into a team sport where members must stay juggling while destroying their opponent’s ability to do the same. Easy enough, right? 

Actually, the advent of Combat Juggling, as with any sport, has evolved to incorporate a litany of tactics, strategies and techniques to rack up points and secure wins. 

Read on to learn how juggling turned rugged!

How Combat Juggling Works

The basic rules of Combat Juggling are as follows: The players all begin juggling three clubs at the same time. Players are allowed to interfere with opponents’ juggling patterns, typically by launching one club high into the air to give the attacking player enough time to knock out one of the other player’s airborne clubs. To make things a bit more interesting, there are a variety of ways to play Gladiator.

Aggregated 5 on 5

Two teams, 5 players on each team. Three players from each team begin combat, with the remaining players entering upon their teammates’ elimination. When a team runs out of players, their opponent wins. 

Sumo Combat

5 minute rounds. Each team lines up outside a 10-foot-diameter circle (combat area). One player from each team enters the circle, losing only if they drop a club or get pushed out of the circle. This game mode is extra feisty because pushing with your body is allowed!

Breach

10 minute rounds. A team picks a player to protect, while he or she tries to cross the end line of the opponent’s field. If there’s a touchdown, they change position. The only way to win is by knocking the runner down. 

Zombie

5 players from each team. If you drop a club, then you’re a “zombie” (you can’t move your feet). But you can attack players in range, or assist other zombies by tossing them clubs to interfere with other opponents. 

360 Combat

This one’s got a bit more pizazz. 3 rounds, one minute each in one-on-one combat. The team that completes the most pirouettes wins. 

If this already sounds quite involved, buckle up because there are even more ways to play! 

How Combat Juggling Started

Contrary to popular reports that Combat Juggling (or “Gladiator,” as it is often called) was invented by Jason Garfield, it was most likely invented by the technical and comedy juggler, Edward Jackman. 

The earliest appearance of Combat Juggling occurred in 1970s Los Angeles, CA. As the story goes, Edward Jackman and his friend, 11-year-old Daniel Rosen, attended the 1976 IJA Festival. It was soon after this experience that Rosen would officially begin his juggling career. He later credited Edward Jackman as one of the original creators. 

Rosen said: “It was Edward and us (the Los Angeles juggling community) at UCLA when we were kids in the mid-70s. I left school and juggled there all day with him. He started Combat Juggling with me.”

While it has been disputed that Edward Jackman was the sole creator of Combat Juggling, it cannot be denied that he revolutionized and popularized the sport. Jackman turned Combat Juggling into a visually striking, competitive contact sport. He even got the World Juggling Federation to air Combat Juggling on ESPN3 !!!

The “Combat” of Juggling

This game probably wouldn’t have lasted as long as it has if you were allowed to physically injure your opponent. In the spirit of good jugglemanship (is that a word?) the act of “kicking, tripping, spitting, head butting, puking, or any body contact other than arm-to-arm” is strictly forbidden. 

So, no funny business! This is all very serious… 

Think you’re up for it? Grab a few pins and see what you’re made of!

The post The Wild Sport of Combat Juggling  first appeared on History In Memes.

Divorces are usually pretty messy: Families unravel, mutual friends are forced to choose sides and children get caught in the crossfire. Medieval Germany took “messy” to a whole new level. In 1467,German fencing master Hans Talhoffer created the “Fechtbuch” or “Fight Book.” This combat manual contained various detailed images of men and women fighting to the death. These “divorce duels” were a last resort in settling marital disputes or ensuring a judge’s impartiality. 

The images, attached with specific combat instructions,  are quite shocking. The images provide both genders with tips and strategies to thwart their spouse-turned-opponent. 

Historical analysis shows that divorce duels were real and actually kind of common. Let’s take a look through the intense history of spousal combat!

The Origins of Judicial Duels

According to University of Oklahoma Associate Professor Kenneth L. Hodges, trial by combat started to fade out as the Middle Ages drew to a close. But, it was still a part of the accepted legal theory throughout the Renaissance.

You may be wondering: Why would an established legal system still allow duels at all? One of the reasons is that judges operated as extensions of the king. Therefore, accusations of treason pitted the defendant against the sovereign himself. 

So, in order to keep things fair and square, the accused could demand trial by combat. This trial was an impartial battle against whoever the king put up to fight. Guilt or innocence was determined by the survivor. 

Why Women Chose Divorce Duels

Hodges research also showed it was very common for men and women to settle marital disputes in state-sanctioned combat. But there are some skeptics who find this claim surprising, if not unlikely. 

This is for a couple of reasons:First, the woman was at an obvious physical disadvantage. In addition, women were subjugated to an overwhelming amount of religious and political discrimination that would never allow them a real shot at hurting a man. 

But, Talhoffer’s manual and further research revealed understandable reasons why a woman might want or have to take the risk. 

For example, the man she would normally pick to fight on her behalf is the man she’d *currently* be trying to kill. So, she has to fight instead. Also, the legal system went through almost comical lengths to provide an “even” playing field. 

Talhoffer’s images show the man positioned in a hole with a club and the woman standing above him with a rock-filled cloth. Sure, seems fair enough… 

The idea was that both weapons would be the same length. And the woman would be given an advantage in mobility. But, Talhoffer’s descriptions of how the fights could occur were even more crazy.

Talhoffer’s Tips on Divorce Duels

As a combat expert, Talhoffer was definitely qualified to imagine and document all of the different strategic moves a battling husband and wife could use to settle a dispute. Divorce duels in medieval Germany must have been a sight to behold (as seen below in Talhoffer’s descriptions).

Scroll and take a look at these combat photos! 

If only these couples had the guys from Wedding Crashers to help mediate!

The post Divorce Duels: Medieval Trial by Combat first appeared on History In Memes.