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Ridolfo Capo Ferro
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Ridolfo Capoferro or Capo Ferro of Cagli was a fencing master in the city of Siena who published a rapier fencing manual in Italian in 1610, entitled

"Great Simulacrum of the Art and Use of Fencing / by Ridolfo Capoferro of Cagli / Maestro of the Most High German Nation / In the Famous City of Siena / Dedicated to the most Serene Signore Don Federigo Feltrio delle Rovere / Prince of the State of Urbino."

Printed by Salvestro Marchetti and Camillo Turi in Siena, Ridolfo's origin is unclear. The reference to the Holy Roman Empire may indicate that he studied with masters of the German school. Cagli (in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino) appears to be his place of origin, while he was active as a fencing master in Siena (in Tuscany). Ridolfo's teachings, however, do not reflect perceptible German influence, but are soundly in the Italian tradition with a notable influence from the earlier Italian school of swordsmanship of the 1500s.

Capoferro's treatise is divided into two parts: Art and Practice. In the first part, he gives the general principles of swordsmanship and fencing, with the second part of his book covering actual techniques, described in text with accompanying illustrations. His work is interesting in that some methods that he denigrates in his theory he uses in his actions; most notably, he dismisses feints as dangerous or useless (depending upon the situation) and then uses them liberally in various actions in the second part of his book.

Ridolfo's book must have been reasonably popular, as it was reprinted several times, although not many of the fencing treatises written in the next generation mention him and those that do are not necessarily complimentary. An interesting example of this is Francesco Alfieri, who, in his 1640 treatise La Scherma, refers to Capoferro as Capo di Ferro (literally: 'Head of Iron'). However, he was strongly praised by later notable swordsman such as Egerton Castle who says in his 'Schools and Masters of Fence (1893)', "...but of all the Italian works on fencing none ever had such a share in fixing the principals of the science as 'Great Simulacrum of the Use of the Sword, by Ridolfo Capoferro", later adding "for once the title of the book fully represented its contents." A later edition of Capoferro's work also incorporated Biblical scenes drawn into the backgrounds of the plates.

The book covers the use of single rapier, including basic sword grappling, as well as Rapier and dagger, Rapier and cloak, and Rapier and Rotella, a most unusual combination for the period, though far more common in the tradition of swordsmanship of the 1500s which preceded it. The Rotella is a medium size concave round shield of approximately 60 cm in Diameter with two straps to hold it. Similar metal shields survive, particularly from Spain in this period, though very few from Italy, implying that these shields were made of a perishable material such as wood or leather or a composite of such materials. The manual also includes techniques for fighting against a left handed opponent.

While many modern reference books state that rapiers were either blunt on their edges or only had sharp edges in order to discourage blade grabs because they were not suitable for the cut, should be noted that nearly 30% of the techniques included in Capoferro's treatise use the cut as a primary or secondary option.

In the fictional work The Princess Bride by William Goldman, Inigo Montoya and The Man in Black duel atop the Cliffs of Insanity where they mention various fencing techniques they have studied, including those of Capoferro.

A Note on the Spelling of Capoferro: Because there is an apparent space in the name of the author in the original publication, Capoferro is often spelled as two words: Capo Ferro. However, a look at some sources where he is named or listed, such as in the works of other fencing masters (for example, see page 6 of Giuseppe Morsicato-Pallavicini's 1670 fencing treatise), Jacopo Gelli's fencing bibliography, Dr Anglo's book The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe, the listing of his books in the US Library of Congress, the Latin form of his name over his portrait (Rodulphus Capoferrus), and the spelling of the surname in modern Italy does support that it is one word. Despite this, other sources of the time such as "Prima [e secundi] parte dell'Historia siciliana (1606)" clearly show the name spelt as two words. Other works such as "Bibliotheca Stoschiana sive Catalogus selectissimorum librorum quos Collegerat Philippvs Liber Baro De Stosch" (1759), have the name hyphernated (Capo-Ferro).

Rapisardi Giovanni Autore di Libri dell'autore: Capoferro Ridolfo

Libri dell'autore: Capoferro Ridolfo
Gran simulacro dell'arte e dell'uso della scherma
di Capoferro Ridolfo, Rapisardi Giovanni
20Euro