Tire Machet

Combining fencing techniques from French colonists and African stick fighting here is the martial art or Tire Machèt

Using one of the most valuable tools of the colonial sugar trade, Haitians who brought about the first successful slave revolt in 1971, turned their machetes into weapons and forged a style of martial art they dubbed Tire Machet (pulling machetes). Today, "Papa Machete", a short film that aims to tell this story, was written by local Jason Fitzroy Jeffers. The style of fighting is said to have borrowed from the techniques of French fencing, proto-capoeira, and African stick fighting. The success of the weapon and technique was proven against the French, as it works well in large combat situations.

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Tire Machèt began as a tribal martial arts skill in the African Congo. When European invaders conquered Haiti, they began importing Congolese slaves, who brought Tire Machèt with them.

The slaves worked on plantations and finally decided to revolt against their masters. They used Tire Machèt as their weapon.

Tire Machèt has endured as a martial art due to the protection it had when Haiti became isolated from the rest of the world. Today, it is a sacred symbol of the Haitian Slave Revolt.

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When Congolese slaves were brought to Haiti to work the plantations, they imported a tribal martial arts form, Tire Machèt.

On the eve of the Haitian Slave Revolt, Tire Machèt was resurrected as an inexpensive type of weaponry the rebel slaves could use to slaughter plantation owners.

When the Haitian Army saw the value of Tire Machèt, they quickly adopted it as a skill to be mastered in basic training.

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The Créole martial arts form, Tire Machèt, has its roots in African tribal traditions. Brought to Haiti by Congolese slaves, it gained ascendency during a period of isolation Haiti endured from the rest of the world.

Prior to the Haitian Slave Revolt, Tire Machèt became weaponry for rebels to destroy their masters' plantations. The Haitian Army adopted Tire Machèt as part of its training and it has evolved to become a modern martial arts skill imbued with sacredness.

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