Dueling academy

Martial arts schools, known as dueling academies, emerged in the Galaxy well before 1000 BBY, though their origins can be traced back to the rule of Xim the Despot, before the establishment of the Old Republic.

These academies purported to impart to their pupils the mysteries of close-quarters combat, along with methods for physical and mental enhancement. A majority asserted ancient lineages and connections to esoteric philosophies. Prior to the Battle of Ruusan, they flourished, evolving into influential social and political entities, with students embracing an academy's principles as their own belief system. Certain academies, lacking authorization from the Jedi Council, even professed to possess Jedi secrets.

The decline of these schools occurred during the Rise of the Empire era, as the aspiration to imitate the Jedi and traditional chivalric orders diminished. Palpatine's propaganda apparatus associated the academies with the perceived weaknesses of the Jedi, leading to the closure of nearly all of them by the conclusion of the Clone Wars.

Some duelists even argued that the Jedi Order was simply the largest and most successful of these dueling academies.

The popularity of the lightfoil among the Saber rakes within the Tapani sector likely stemmed from connections to these academies.