Code Duello

The challenge is issued, two gentlemen will settle their dispute by dueling. To turn it down, would  mark a gentlemen as a coward for life. Weapons are chosen and they meet at the agreed location. One or both gentlemen could be severely wounded or killed. No matter, an insult has been spoken and neither gentlemen will yield and honor must be upheld. Doctors are standing by, while seconds watch each other warily.

   Dueling, a one-on-one showdown typically with swords or pistols, was a major part of many societies, shaping the lives (and deaths) of gentlemen. A duel is a very controlled fight. Two men and sometimes women would face each other on equal terms. Duels follow an agreed upon set of terms, begin at a specified time and are held at a specific place.

    Duels didn't happen spontaneously in most cases, because of an insult or slanderous remark, one man would issue a challenge to another, who would often respond by directing further matters to his second. A second was a friend who came along to help prepare your weapons, make sure the other duelist wasn't going to be ambushed. Seconds were also supposed to try to defuse the situation that led to the duel by getting an apology from one party or another. Sometimes, seconds often ended up fighting each other alongside the main duelists. In any event, after one man issued a challenge, the seconds would arrange all the details. The process could in some cases take days. When a duel was declared, any weapon could be used, with either the challenger or his opponent given the choice depending on which set of dueling rules was in use. One of the most common set of dueling rules was the “Code Duello”. This set of rules covered the practice of dueling and points of honor, was drawn up and settled at Clonmel Summer Assizes, 1777, by gentlemen-delegates of Tipperary, Galway, Sligo, Mayo and Roscommon, and prescribed for general adoption throughout Ireland. The Code was generally also followed in England and on the Continent with some slight variations. In America, the principal rules were followed, although occasionally there were some glaring deviations.

 Bon Voyage for now....

More info..

http://www.speakeasy.org/~dr_gary/Naval/Duello/Right%20Frame.htm

http://knowledgenews.net/moxie/todaysknowledge/the-rules-of-duels.shtml

http://www.gwu.edu/~magazine/archive/2005_law_fall/docs/feat_duel.html

http://www.ballindalloch-press.com/society/