Our group is named for Saint Didacus of Alcalá, known locally as San Diego. As a lay brother he, like common merchants and tradesmen, would have learned sword fighting for both exercise and civil defense. Without access to professional fencing masters from the large cities, they learned from manuals, travelers, and each other.
The Scholars of Alcalá focus on fencing manuals written in the 16th and early 17th century. This includes the knightly arming sword, the two-handed longsword, the common soldiers’ long knife, and the civilian’s rapier.
The Scholars of Alcala was founded in December of 2012 and joined the HEMA Alliance, a 501c3 non-profit, the next year.
Membership Cost
For insurance purposes, all participants must be a member of the HEMA Alliance. They offer a free two-month trial, after which you must pay $26/year.
Your first month with the Scholars of Alcala has no cost. We provide everything you need (other than groin protection).
After that we ask for $40/month from people who attend more than two sessions a month. This covers equipment rental/maintenance, handouts, and our other expenses.
If you only attend once or twice a month, or have significant financial limitations, we are willing to wave our normal dues.
For our other policies see the Policies page.
HEMA Alliance Code of Conduct
For more information see Provisional Code of Conduct and U.S. Center for SafeSport Reporting — HEMAA
Our Community & Expectations
- Those who use and/or contribute to our services, which include:
- HEMAA Facebook Group
- HEMAA Membership Checker
- HEMAA Forums
- HEMAA Calendars
- HEMAA Resource Pages
- Active HEMAA Members
- Sponsored/Supported Events
- Sponsored Vendors
- Projects Sponsored/Supported by the HEMAA
Expectations
Everyone within the HEMAA community is entitled to respect and dignity within a supportive environment — one free of racist, sexist, homophobic, ableist, elitist, entitled, and unjust attitudes, comments, behaviors, and actions.
Non-Harassment Policy
The HEMAA does not condone nor does it tolerate any form of harassment based on race, sex, sexual orientation, gender, genetic information, national origin, age, color, disability, religion, pregnancy, or any characteristic not listed that is protected by law.
“Harassment” includes offensive language, jokes, and/or other conduct whether, visual, verbal, written, or physical that would make a reasonable person experiencing such behavior feel uncomfortable or would interfere with the person’s participation in the HEMAA Community — Even if the participant offending did not mean to be offensive.