Mensur & Schmiss

This second edition of Mensur & Schmiss: German Dueling Societies expands and enhances the visual chronicling of this fascinating cultural custom of ritualized swordplay we published in 2017. It presents celebrations and social functions alongside all elements of the Mensur: the preparation, fight, and aftermath with combatants, seconds, referees, spectators, and attending surgeons. Over 100 photographs have been added to the more than 175 images of the first edition of the first published photographic history of the student academic duel, the Mensur.

This revised compilation includes a foreword by Dr. Clemens Marschall, contemporary 19th-century perspectives by Mark Twain, Jerome K. Jerome, and an English student, a list of appearances of Mensur in media and entertainment, a section on mail photographic postcards, and an expanded section on student prisons (Karzer).

This book vividly documents the camaraderie, courage, and ceremony of the art of Mensur, a highly regulated ritual in which the participants, or Schlagende, slash sabers at each other from a set distance. Also referred to as academic fencing, this test of courage, stamina, and fortitude evolved from the duel and has been practiced in Germanic countries since the eighteenth century. Landsmannschaften, Burschenschaften, Corps, and other exclusive student fraternities often required Mensur participation for membership. These violent challenges frequently resulted in a scar known as a Schmiss. This facial scar was cherished as a badge of honor, signifying masculinity, bravery, and high social position.

SHIPPING APRIL 2025