Thimm's 1896 book, A Complete Bibliography of Fencing and Dueling: As Practiced by All European Nations from the Middle Ages to the Present Day, he included an article about the duel that was featured in the London evening newspaper Pall Mall Gazette on August 23, 1892. However, this duel went down in history as the first 'emancipated duel' because it involved female participants, as well as female 'seconds', who were responsible for communication between the duelists, and a female medic. In order to avoid the unseen danger, she advised them to remove their clothing from the waist up.ĭuring this time, duels between women were rare, but not entirely unheard of. However, the decision to duel topless was not made by the two rivals, but was actually a safety precaution recommended by Baroness Lubinska, a female medic who oversaw the sword fight that took place in Vaduz, the capitol of Liechtenstein.Īccording to The Women of Action Network, The Baroness, who had a degree in medicine, was prepared to treat any wounds that incurred while the Austrian nobles dueled with rapier swords until first blood was drawn.Īnd unlike the topless fights ogled by men today, the decision to duel topless was merely practical - not sexual.īaroness Lubinska told the women that that many minor dueling injuries became septic due to strips of clothing being forced into a wound by a pointed sword.
#MY WALLPAPER AND I ARE FIGHTING A DUEL TO THE DEATH SERIES#
In a video from its series about unusual duels, Atlas Obscura details how Viennese royal Princess Pauline von Metternich and Russian-born Countess Anastasia Kielmansegg agreed to a duel in the summer of 1892, after a disagreement erupted between the two, which was though to be over the flower arrangements for an upcoming Vienna Musical Theatrical Exhibition. This is the same kind of fight detailed in the videoĪ Princess and a Countess fighting topless over floral arrangements may seem sound like a plot line from an episode of the Real Housewives of New York City, but the unusual duel between two nobles actually took place in 19th century. Wild fight: Two unidentified women are pictured dueling topless in this late 19th century postcard.