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Colonel Thomas Hoyer Monstery was one of the most celebrated swordsmen in American history. During his long life, he served under the flags of twelve nations, participated in more than fifty duels with the sword, knife, and pistol, and took part in countless battles, conflicts, and revolutions.In this semi-autobiographical novel, originally published in 1881 under the title El Rubio Bravo, King of the Swordsmen: Or, the Terrible Brothers of Tabasco, Monstery recounts his adventures in Spanish America, where he journeyed during the 1850s as a soldier-of-fortune and itinerant master-of-arms. Among its pages-which read like a combination of swashbuckler, Spaghetti Western, and Indiana Jones, and with shades of Robert E. Howard-Monstery tells of his duels with espadachíns (sword-wielding bravos), of evading assassination among moonlit tropical glades, of battling bandits in the wind-swept deserts of Mexico, and of pursuing a lost Aztec civilization, reportedly still in existence deep within the jungles of the Yucatan. Accompanying Monstery on these journeys are his two indefatiguable companions: the revolver-toting, pugilistic Englishman, Dr. Charlie Brown, and the honorable but roguish Hispanic cavalier, Don Jose Ramirez. Together, these three seek their fortunes while attempting to rescue the beautiful but fiery Carmelita Ximenes-a character directly based on Monstery's own wife.Of this classic adventure novel, now in print again for the first time in more than a century, one modern scholar has favorably written:"A curious work that reads (apart from occasional romantic elements) much like an authentic account by one of the early nineteenth-century travelers in Central America...It is one of the very few dime novels worth reading for their own merit." - Everett Franklin Bleiler, Science-fiction, the Early YearsThis edition has been annotated, and contains a new, extensive introduction by the editor. Drawing upon a wealth of previously unknown sources, Monstery's historical activities in Spanish America have been chronicled in greater detail than ever before, so that readers can now dissect the facts of his real life from the fiction of his novel. The text has also been supplemented with nearly one hundred rare photographs and engravings from the period.

The martial heritage of Scotland and its legendary swordsmen have captured the imagination of readers worldwide for centuries. Likewise, enthusiasts of swordsmanship have cherished classic Scottish fencing treatises by those such as William Hope and Donald McBane. However, up until now, a number of obscure Scottish treatises on the use of the sword have evaded the notice of authors, scholars and researchers. Presented here are five such texts, now published again for the first time in more than two centuries. They include: I. Examination & Vindication of the Highlander's Manner of Attacking and Fighting the Enemy in a Day of Action. - Though not a fencing text, this is an unique early eighteenth century manuscript on battlefield techniques that has never before been published, and is now presented here with the permission of the Royal Library at Windsor Castle. Authored by an anonymous Highland veteran, it includes a spirited defense of the native manner of fighting, and provides new insight into the use of the targe during the period of the great Jacobite conflicts. II. The Sword's-Man; Containing a Series of Observations on the Use of the Sword. - This treatise, authored in 1788 by Edinburgh fencing instructor John Ferdinand, contains instruction in the use of the most popular side-arms of the period: the broadsword, small-sword, and spadroon. III. A Dictionary, Explaining the Terms, Guards, and Positions, Used in the Art of the Small Sword. - This useful and interesting glossary on the art of fencing is embedded with numerous instructions, and was written by Hary Fergusson, a native of Aberdeenshire who taught fencing in Edinburgh and North America during the 1760s and 1770s. IV. A Treatise on the New Sword Exercise. - This treatise on the use of the cavalry saber was first published in 1797, shortly after the widespread adoption of the 1796 pattern cavalry sword. Its author was Sholto Douglas Sorlie, a native of Edinburgh, Sergeant in the 7th Queen's Own Light Dragoons, and later a veteran of Salamanca, Vittoria, Pyrennees, Navelle, Orthes, and the Peninsular War. V. This final chapter explores the life and career of Donald McAlpine, a soldier from Inverness and officer in the famed Queens Rangers (an early Special Operations unit), who taught the use of the back-sword in Boston during the American War of Independence. His student sketched what is currently the earliest known illustration of fencing technique in the American colonies. The full, original page containing the illustration of McAlpine's instruction is faithfully reproduced herein for the first time ever. CONTENTS Acknowledgments I. Introduction and Notes by Paul Macdonald II. Examination & Vindication of the Highlanders' Manner of Attacking and Fighting the Enemy in a Day of Action III. John Ferdinand by Ben Miller IV. The Sword's-Man by John Ferdinand V. Hary Fergusson by Ben Miller VI. A Dictionary, Explaining the Terms, Guards, and Positions, Used in the Art of the Small-Sword by Hary Fergusson VII. Sholto Douglas Sorlie by Ben Miller VIII. A Treatise on the New Sword Exercise by Sholto Douglas Sorlie IX. Donald McAlpine by Ben Miller About the Cont