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TIM BURTON
30th December 2000, 13:22
There was a system called “DEFENDU” which was created by Fairbairn and Sykes when they were employed in the Shanghai Municipal Police 1n the 1930’s. It was I believe a mixture of many martial systems that they had found effective in real situations and included empty hand, stick work, a form of binding a prisoner with the truncheon’s strap and of course restraining techniques.
These men went on to be employed by the British Armed Services during the 2nd WW where they greatly modified their system into a Hand to Hand Combat system designed to kill the adversary. I believe it was these two who also created the “Commando Knife”.
Today many people have begun to appear that state they have learnt the WWII Hand to Hand (H2H) Combat skills from Fairbairn, Sykes and Applegate.
I think that DEFENDU and its related systems are worthy of a discussion, there must be people out there with a great deal of knowledge on the subject, some may have received training in it during the war and some may have been taught since.
If anyone knows where I can lay my hands on a copy of DEFENDU by Fairbairn I would be very interested as this seems to be the first British manual of what is now termed Officer Protection by the British Police and is distinctly separate from Taiho Jutsu.

Tim BURTON Taiho Jutsu.

Michael Becker
30th December 2000, 20:42
http://204.95.207.136/vbulletin/showthread.php?threadid=3160

Have a look here.

Joseph Svinth
31st December 2000, 08:17
For background, see also http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum35/HTML/000301.html (That is one LOOONG thread, so expect to be there awhile.)

Rare book dealers ought to be able to turn up DEFENDU; the original was published in Shanghai by the North China Daily News & Herald, Ltd., in 1925, so the British Library may not have a copy. "Scientific Self Defense" is another by Fairbairn; it was published in Shanghai in 1931 by the Chinese American Publishing Co.

In a worst case scenario, Graham Noble or Richard Bowen could probably point you toward someone in the UK who would let you read a copy on site. Probably said books would kept the old fashioned way, spine inward, chained to the wall, while some evil librarian trained in breaking fingers without allowing a sound to escape your lips watches your every move, but such is life.

Scott
2nd January 2001, 07:38
Here is the listing in the Library of Congress:

LC Control Number: unk83028941

Type of Material: Book (Print, Microform, Electronic, etc.)

Personal Name: Fairbairn, W. E. (William Ewart)

Main Title: Defendu (scientific self-defence) The official text book
for the Shanghai municipal police, Hongkong police and
Singapore police,

Published/Created: Shanghai, North-China daily news & herald, ltd. 1926.

Description: 171 p., incl. front. (ports.) illus., facsims. 26 cm.

LC Classification: GV1111 .F3 1926

______________________________

CALL NUMBER: GV1111 .F3 1926
Copy 1

-- Request in: Jefferson or Adams Bldg General or Area Studies Reading
Rms
-- Status: Not Charged


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Walker
3rd January 2001, 01:17
If you want to get a flavor of Fairbairn check out Get Tough! first as it is in print and easy to find. Also much of the material appears in Applegate’s Kill or be Killed. The big plus in Scientific Self Defense is a Gatsbyesque Fairbairn tussling in the photos. Damn frightful hair old boy.

Kyoshinko
3rd May 2007, 12:10
http://www.paladin-press.com/detail.aspx?ID=1518

A reprint is available at the above link.