Caution:The contents of this article are for education purposes only. The principles described are extremely dangerous and are for military close combat training and operations only. Their application applies solely to the military.
This section will service questions received from readers in relation to military close combat, self defence and related training.
Having being trained first hand by Colonel Applegate and learning from him Fairbairn's system as well, what do you consider the difference in Applegate and Fairbairn systems?
In the Special Operations armed modules their teachings were very alike in many ways. In the unarmed combat practises for military purposes again methods were similar. Fairbairn was quite commercial in the civilian publication market and Col Applegate told me that some of the content of his publications were in fact based on enemy fighting arts that he would never use as part of his military programmes and in fact considered to be simply not right for military roles.
Fairbairn was a descendent of the European Military close combat and was also charged with learning all he could of enemy and allied fighting arts and as such had a wide knowledge and vast experience. He had come in contact with hundreds of violent situations while working as deputy police commissioner of the Shanghai Municipal Police in the 1930s and was well skilled in combating the martial arts of these offenders.
He once told Col Applegate that most of what he had learnt in Japan, China and Korea was simply to complex or based on a traditional code of honour that was non-existent on the battlefield or in the violent back streets of big cities of the West.
Col Applegate on the other hand had no martial arts back ground and was a product of European military close combat.
Everything was a military science with Col Applegate and he only taught the best of battle proven options with no view to sport art or tradition and with no concern for how dirty or disgusting his deadly methods were. It was combat and combat only he was concerned with and the operators lives that his methods relied upon. He had a vast knowledge of military European close combat and was a master of special operations close combat. His only non-military knowledge was that of Western boxing and European wrestling that he considered the gentlemanly sport derived from the deadly means of winning.
He did however have a vast knowledge and battle proven experience of combating enemy fighting arts so as such had an understanding of their workings.
He was a big strong man and Fairbairn was a wiry slightly built man, but both agreed on one thing for military close combat; the dirtier and deadlier the better.
Do you have manuals or videos on your phase two and three programmes?
No they are not public and the practises are to a large degree restricted content as they are my most up to date and proven means for military purposes.
Have there been many new techniques in close quarters combat since world war two?
Yes very much so, the close combat doctrine must be kept at the forefront of effective options to combat never ending and changing types of threats and weapons.
The programmes are not only working on countering enemy armed and unarmed threats but also the practises of initial assault and escape and evasion.
Then there is the need to develop or change methods based on post incident reports where actions have been taken in a new unusual or changed manner.
How does one know if some of the people you read about in hand to hand combat adverts and articles are qualified or not?
Forget about what they claim to be or have done and ask to see their proof of qualifications in the form of certification course records or reports log books or instructor licenses.
References mean little without the qualifications to back them up as they could be instructing anything to anyone on any programme.
The qualified will have come up through the ranks and have proof and certainly will be known by those who have been there and done that. Ask the hard questions and demand the answers and proof.
Think straight; some pimply-faced young man that claims military combative master rank is hardly going to have had time to come up through the ranks and qualify.
Do you know of a weapon like a smatchet or small wide sword?
Yes Colonel Applegate referred to it as a Fair Sword or a short sword that was straight, short and wide, and double edged to a pencil like point.
In your knife defence against a straight thrust you move to the inside of the knife not the outside as many martial artists and unarmed combat books do.
Yes the reason for this is simple, one skill for all situations to lower the risk level through having to decide in a high stress situation which side to evade to.
My principles are simple evade away from the travel of the weapon at the last possible moment when it is on its final approach to you the target.
I also never instruct edged weapon defence I promote only weapon disarming.
So if you were to use the same evasion against a forehand round slash as you would with the outside evasion against the straight thrust, you would be moving into the path of the on coming weapon.
My method does put you between the weapon and free hand but reduces confusion and a knife attacker's predominant focus is on the weapon and weapon hand not the free hand initially.
Interested in Close Combat Training? Todd Group Depots are located throughout New Zealand and at various overseas locations.
For more information on Todd System of Close Combat see the following books, dvds and cds:
- Close Combat Books
The Do's and Don'ts of Close Combat – Tactical C&R – Control and Restraint – No Nonsense Self Defence – Military Close Combat Systems Phase One – Combative Masters Of The 20th Century - Close Combat DVDs
Self Defence of the Elite – 80 Years of Combative Excellence – Primary Option Control & Restraint – Military Unarmed Combat – Phase 1 - Close Combat CDs
Technique To Command – Combative Code of Conduct
