Florentine Technique

Florentine is the art of wielding two weapons at once, one in each hand. It is a style developed by the Italians in the city of Florence, hence the name. Some people prefer to call this method "Two-Swords" or even simply "Two-Weapons".

Florentine exists in multiple ways with multiple weapons. The two most common methods are the Sword and Dagger method and the Dual-Sword method.

Sword and Dagger is the original style of Florentine fighting. Your dominant had holds a quick sword and your off hand holds a large specially designed dagger. These large daggers would often have hidden blade trappers making them much more effective than they seemed. The French called this dagger a main gauche, which literally means "left hand". This method is very difficult to master, but amazingly powerful.

Tips for Sword and Dagger

Make sure you are comfortable with your weapons. The dagger should be long enough to make blocking easy, but short enough to be easy to move. I find that a dagger about 18 inches works well. Your sword should be very light and easy to wield with one hand, get as much range possible but be sure it doesn't move slow. Speed is very important in this style.
Your parrying dagger should be made with defense in mind. It is rarely used for attacking, so it should have a very nice guard. Preferably one that covers the hand, because you'll get your knuckles cracked quite often.
Always remember that you have two weapons. A common mistake among Florentine fighters is that they forget their second weapon and just leave it to dangle by their side. You have two weapons for a reason, use them.
Practice blocking and attacking at the same time. Remember you have two weapons. You can block their attack and retaliate at once. This is a very effective strategy.
Try to trap your opponents blade with your parrying dagger. Depending on the guard you may be able to make a nice trapper. Your opponent is much easier to hit when their weapon is useless. It only takes a split second for them to lose their guard.
Remember that your parrying dagger is mostly for defense, but if your sword is trapped, it can quickly be made into an offensive weapon.
Stand with your sword side slightly in front of your dagger side. This gives you a little more range, but keeps your dagger in blocking distance.
Always keep both weapons in front of your for added speed.

Two Swords implies that you are wielding two swords of equal length. This not only gives you the advantage of multiple attacks at the same time, but it also allows for much better blocking than with only one weapon.

Tips for Two Swords

When making your weapons be sure that they are a pair. Same length, weight, and balance is very important.
Don't forget that you have two weapons. Don't let either weapon sit idle.
Both weapons can, and should, be used for attacking and blocking. Don't use one side for attacking and the other for blocking because you become very perdictable.
Your idle stance should be straight forward. Don't put either shoulder ahead of the other it gives away your dominant hand. Switch which side the first attack comes from.
You can attack and block at the same time. This is the major benefit of two swords. When your opponent attacks, you can block and attack them. This gives you a much larger advantage over single weapon users.
Keep both weapons in front of you and ready to react. Spinning and huge dramatic swings only work in the movies.

Outside Links
www.dagorhir.com/HowTo/florentinefighting.htm - Sir Kyrian's Florentine Fighting Tutorial. (Dagorhir)