Bladeworks is our annual HEMA event, consisting of workshops by a variety of instructors, some ‘fechtschule’ style tournaments, and general socialising with some excellent people.
For 2026, Bladeworks is running from Friday 29th to Sunday 31st May. Keep an eye on the Bladeworks 2026 Event Page and main Medieval Combat Group facebook page for updates. We’re pleased to announce that Bladeworks 2026 will be opening Early Bird ticket sales soon! We tend to hit capacity quite quickly for the event – but we’ll put a sign-up for a reserve list live as soon as we sell out, so we can get in touch in the event of any cancellations.
Bladeworks is a residential historical fencing event focused on technical skills development. With classes and workshops in the day-time and food, socialising, and board games in the evening. The event caters for all levels of historical fencer currently training with HEMA groups; from those who have just started to those who have been training for years.
Workshops
At Bladeworks we always strive to provide a good mix of workshops for our visiting HEMA practitioners, allowing us to accomodate a range of skill levels and interests, whilst keeping everything fun and enjoyable.
For 2026 we’re delighted to have a wide range of instructors and topics:
Colin Fieldhouse (Schola Gladiatora) – Mathewson’s Introduction to Sabre
Colin Fieldhouse (Schola Gladiatora) – Swords in the Age of Black Powder
Chris Halpin (York School of Defence) – Cutlass Chaos: Napoleonic Fencing and Boarding Actions
Lauren Ireland (York School of Defence) – Savate
Paul Reck (Goat’s Head Historical Fencing) – Meyer’s Dussack
Mark Penman (York School of Defence) – Pugilism
Ross McKane (Medieval Combat Group) – Liechtenauer Longsword
Ross Bailey (Medieval Combat Group) – Leckuchner’s Messer
And we have a few more people making an appearance we’ve yet to announce!
We’ll be announcing the details of the various sessions in due course, along with any equipment requirements and whether its something we have loaner gear available for.
Fechtschule
On the Sunday of Bladeworks, across the late morning/early afternoon, we’ll be running a range of Fechtschule style tournaments.
Tickets
Tickets are available through the MCG website. Ticket Sales will be open in early February.
Early Bird Tickets are restricted to the first 20 ticket sales.
Ticket prices are:
Full Weekend*: £150.00
Full Weekend (Early Bird): £120.00
Saturday Only: £80.00 (dinner not included)
Sunday Only: £70.00
*If you’re coming to us from within the UK but outside the island of Ireland, Full Weekend is discounted to £140.00. If you’re coming to us from further abroad, Full Weekend is discounted to £130.00.
Also check out other Workshops in Newtownards, Sports events in Newtownards.
