Many a time our dashing heroes are compelled to defend their lady’s honor in a duel. In Amanda Quick’s novel, Mischief, Imogen Waterstone is horrified that Matthias Marshall, the Earl of Colchester, has contracted a duel with the villain Lord Vanneck. We are all too familiar with the statement "my seconds will call upon yours" so that the hero and villain can meet at dawn over a pair of dueling pistols.

The dramatic scenes can be exciting, but as expected, our heroes survive the ordeal either through circumstantial intervention or their own skills. Duels and dueling, however, are not a fictional contrivance of the historical romance author. Private combat between opposing men did exist even in some parts of Europe until after World War I.

The duel can be traced back to the time of the Middle Ages. In the beginning, knightly combatants would fight in the lists* in the presence of the king. Unresolved disputes would be handled in this fashion.  The man who won the duel was viewed, from a divine intervention perspective, in the right.

All participants adhered to strict rules and the formality of the event. The challenged man had the right to select the weapon of choice for the duel. In earlier times, charms, magic, or assistance from friends and spectators was strictly forbidden.

*Lists: the enclosed area where tournaments or jousts were fought.

The act of the duel changed through the ages, particularly with the advancement of weaponry.

The practice of dueling continued, but there were no "teeth" in the laws until Louis XIV of France ascended the throne in 1643. Combatants could now be executed for participating in duels. As a consequence, during the late 17^th and early 18^th centuries, the "rencontre" or "accidental encounter" replaced the prearranged duels where "seconds" were present.

The development of firearms in the middle of the 18^th century provided another option for weaponry use by duelists. Although a double-barreled shotgun could be used, the pistol was the most practical and characteristically used if a firearm was chosen.

By the 1770s and 1780s, the use of pistols for duels was commonplace. It was during the reign of George IV that dueling reached is peak. The fatal duel between two army officers, the Duke of Wellington, Lord Winchilsea, the Marquis of Londonderry and Beau Brummel was the catalyst for making it an offense to conduct a duel. In turn, dueling soon became unfashionable in civilian society as well.

The rules of the duel were simply identified:

•The challenged party had the selection of weapons

•The first insult required the first apology

•Once both participants had arrived at the dueling ground, no apologies were accepted until there had been an exchange of shots

The duels that occurred in early English and American duels required distances of 8 -12 paces for a duel. In later practice, the distance was increased to 20 paces. In France, an acceptable distance for a duel could be 25-30 paces.

The position of the duelists were determined by lot. After walking the necessary paces, a command was given to turn and fire. The men were not permitted to take deliberate aim. However, a rule that developed during the 19^th century allowed for an apology on the field of honor. The party could raise his pistol to the air and shoot. This was called "deloping."