Martial arts with historical roots in Europe do not exist to the same extent
as in Asia. Boxing as well as forms of wrestling have endured. European martial
arts have mostly adapted to changing technology and are truer to the English
meaning of that phrase, so that while their descendants still exist, martial
arts are focused on things like flying helicopters and infantry tactics for
riflemen. These are generally not referred to as martial arts.
Martial Arts existed in classical European civilization, most notably in Greece where sport was integral to the way of life. Boxing(pygme,pyx),Wrestling (pale) and Pankration (pan, meaning all, kratos, meaning power or strength) were represented in the Ancient Olympic Games. The Romans produced Gladiatorial combat as public spectacle based on a more martial sport.
Some traditional martial arts have been preserved in one form or another. For example, boxing,wrestling, archery, and fencing were preserved by being made into sports; of course this has changed the practice significantly. Some historical fencing has survived, and some groups have attempted to reconstruct old European martial arts from a few surviving combat manuals. This includes such styles as sword and shield, two-handed swordfighting, jousting and other types of melee weapons combat.
Another aspect of the reconstruction effort involves more historically recent martial arts and combat sports, such as those practiced during the 1800s and 1900s. A partial list would include bare-knuckle boxing, Bartitsu, quarterstaff fencing according to late 1800s rules, etc.
Unarmed European martial arts that have survived in active form include English boxing, Olympic wrestling, and French savate. Some weapon systems have also survived as folk sports and as self defence methods, including stick-fighting systems such as the Jogo do Pau of Portugal,Juego del Palo style(s) of the Canary Islands.
Other martial arts were made into sports that we no longer recognize as combative,
such as some kinds of gymnastics, where the pommel horse is called a horse
because it simulates a horse; the art comes from the necessity of a cavalryman
to be able to change positions and fight effectively from the back of a horse.
More ancient origins exist for the shot put and the javelin throw, both weapons
utilised extensively by the Romans.
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