Fancy a Fight? In Paraguay, Dueling is Still Legal.

You don’t have to be a Sith lord or a Jedi (though I think it would help!); as long as both parties are registered blood donors, you can choose to settle things with a straight up blood-fest.  Light-sabers obviously aren’t compulsory but I find it’s a lot more fun!

What The Fact?

Let’s get the terms right before we get started. It’s important to remember that when I say duel,…I mean just that; there are rules and a code of honour that is expected to be upheld.  You can’t just lop off some guys head because he pulled out of a junction in front of you, no matter how much of an arsehole he might be!

Curiously, the precise rules for a duel in any specific country seem to be pretty elusive. So where do you find the rules for such a duel? Well, although when dueling was common, rules varied by region, the principles of a document called the  ’Code Duello‘ were considered a good rule of thumb.  I can only assume that it’s still the case.

What are the Rules of the Code Duello?

The Code Duello was written in 1777 by a group of Irishmen delegates and was considered the ‘official’ rule set from then on in many countries. These 26 rules were surprisingly detailed and weighted heavily towards the reconciliation and preservation of life rather than settling disputes with sword, guns, light-sabers or possibly nunchuks.

Clearly, 26 rules is too many to go through one by one so if you’re considering dueling a mortal enemy any time soon then I’d refer you this website to check the full list but the rules can basically be separated in to four sections; the apology, dueling protocol, the seconds and how a winner is decided.

Apologies

The very first rule in the Code Duello lays out who is to apologize first in any given umbrage.

Rule 1. The first offense requires the first apology, though the retort may have been more offensive than the insult. Example: A tells B he is impertinent, etc. B retorts that he lies; yet A must make the first apology because he gave the first offense, and then (after one fire) B may explain away the retort by a subsequent apology.

The Code Duello Apology | "What's my name?!?"

In the case where the first insult is a physical one, like a punch in the eye, a verbal apology isn’t enough.  Rule 5 states that in this case, one option is for the offender to offer a cane to the injured party to be used on his own back (pictured right) and offering a verbal apology at the same time.

One particularly interesting case of apology was the arranged duel between Abraham Lincoln and James Shields (Illinois State Auditor) when Honest Abe made libelous claims about Shields’ honesty, courage, integrity and national origin.  The impending duel was to take place by the Mississippi river in Alton, Ill on September 22, 1842 where Abe’s choice of weapon was the large cavalry broadsword; but after an impressive display of reach and strength by Lincoln alongside a heartfelt apology, Shields withdrew the offer to duel and the two became friends.

Handbags at Dawn!

Dueling protocol is considered a matter of honour and since the Code Duello encouraged duelists to reconcile their differences before any physical duel begins it strongly discourages dueling at night since night duels are more likely to be held in the heat of the moment.  Duelists are advised to sleep on their discontent and compete the next morning with calm head.

Rule 15. Challenges are never to be delivered at night, unless the party to be challenged intend leaving the place of offense before morning; for it is desirable to avoid all hot-headed proceedings.

Other rules governing the conduct of a duel detail things like what weapons may be chosen, how firing might be regulated (in the case where guns are used) and how cheating should be dealt with.

Rule 9. All imputations of cheating at play, races, etc., to be considered equivalent to a blow; but may be reconciled after one shot, on admitting their falsehood and begging pardon publicly.

Legion Of Doom

Go Co-Op on their Ass!

Where is the fun in fighting if you can’t bring along a friend right? Each duelist must be accompanied by a ’second’ who’s primary role is to assist the duelist handling things like deciding who made the first offense, how any gunshots should be timed and loading or preparing any weapons.  The seconds mys be of equal social standing to the duelist and must attempt to reconcile with his opposing second after the duel.  Being a second doesn’t have to be that boring though,..if they want, seconds can join in on the action and get involved in the duel but according to the rules they have to fight at right-angles to the duelists so no ‘Legion of Doom’ style tag-teaming!

And Stay Down!

Flawless Victory

One of the key themes in the Code Duello is that you’re not really supposed to be killing each other in a duel, it’s more about regaining honour than just bustin’ caps!  For a duelist to be considered a winner, their opponent must be, in the words of the Code Duello, “well blooded, disabled or disarmed”

One of the stranger rules is,..

Rule 22. Any wound sufficient to agitate the nerves and necessarily make the hand shake, must end the business for that day.

I’ll be honest, I don’t know whether that means that if get stabbed in the arm, for example, and can’t fight you have to come back tomorrow and face another punishing or you call it a day at that point but either way, it doesn’t sound to pretty!

So,..

Have Paraguay got it right? Should we bring back dueling in our own countries? Some say it would bring accountability and justice back to the masses while others say it’s just senseless sport. Let us know what you think.