Erle Montaigue is regarded internationally as one of the leading instructors of the internal arts of Taijiquan, Baguazhang, and qigong. Erle began his martial arts instruction at the age of 11, training in karate and judo at the local police Boys’ Clubs in his native Australia. His forte in these early years, however, was wrestling, which later led to a stint as a professional wrestler!
He has been practicing the internal arts since 1968 and can trace his lineage directly back to Yang Lu-ch’an, the founder of the Yang style.
His teachers include Master Wong Eog (1968), Master Chu King Hung (1973) London, Grand-master Chang Yiu-Chun one of only two disciples of Yang Shou-hou. Erle became the first student of Master Chu in London in 1973. Chu was one of three disciples of Yang Sau-chung, (1909-1985) the eldest son of the great master Yang Cheng-Fu. And Ho Ho-choy, Bagua Master, disciple of Chiang Jung-chiao Erle was formally introduced to Yang Sau-chung in 1981 when he visited him at his home in Hong-Kong to have his form corrected.
In 1985, Erle and eight of his students became the first Westerners to be asked to perform at the all China National Wushu Tournament in Yinchuan China. There, Erle was tested by four of the world’s greatest Chinese masters and was awarded the degree of “MASTER”, the only Westerner to be given this honor. Erle now regards Chang Yiu-Chun as his main teacher from whom he learnt the “Old Yang Style” & The Dim-Mak. Erle’s books, videos and articles have helped to change the way that people look at the internal martial arts.
His videos are viewed all around the world and his books are sold in China.
He is the Chairman of the WORLD TAIJI BOXING ASSOCIATION, Chairman of the WORLD THERAPEUTIC MOVEMENT ASSOCIATION, Vice Chairman of the FEDERATION OF AUSTRALASIAN WUSHU AND KUNG-FU ORGANIZATIONS, Editor of COMBAT AND HEALING MAGAZINE and has his own column in “Australasian Fighting Arts Magazine.” He is also the Australasian Correspondent for Fighting Arts International, the prestigious British International Martial Arts Magazine and writes his own column for this magazine.
In 1995 May, Erle Montaigue became the first westerner to go to China to learn from the Original Wudang Shan group, namely one Liang Shiah-kan, the keeper of the original Dim-Mak Qi Disruptive Forms.
He has taught in Sydney, London, and Hong Kong (in fact, he is one of a select few Westerners who have taught Taiji back to the Chinese in Hong Kong)
An eclectic and colorful character who has never allowed himself to be pigeonholed into any one art, pursuit, or career, Erle is also an avid musician. He has always “marched to the beat of a different drummer,” and his somewhat rebellious nature can be traced back at least as far as 1966, when he was expelled from school for painting the building yellow, among other “small” things.
In 1967 he took a telephone maintenance course, where he happened to meet his first teacher of Taijiquan, Mr. Wong Eog. By the late sixties, Erle was married with two children. He was performing in stage plays and in a band, and he already had a No. 1 hit record, “Can’t Wait for September,” to his name. When he was “expelled” from the telephone job for dyeing his hair green and singing on the job, he took up music as a profession and became a rock-’n'-roll star, producing several hit records and albums by the early seventies.
Today, Erle teaches primarily in the UK, and he serves as head of the World Taiji Boxing Association (WTBA), which has schools in more than 30 countries. All of these schools have learnt Taiji in some way from Erle Montaigue.
Erle is a Master in his own right and developed his own system called Fa-Jing Ch’uan where he brought together the most effective methods he’d trained in and developed new forms and fighting methods to unlock the secrets of the ancient arts from Wu Dang.
Erle’s teaching is respected the world over and is highly regarded as being ancient, authentic, sophisticated and deadly.
Erle is the inspiration behind Warrior Arts Northwood. See Erle’s site www.taijiworld.com and his Son Eli’s site at www.taiji-bagua.co.uk