Frederick Rohdes was a maître d'armes (master of arms) who taught the art of fencing and swordsmanship in New York City at his own academy for decades. He was one of the last fencing masters who continued to teach fencing in the old tradition.

At the Rohdes Academy of Fencing classical fencing methods were taught in the dueling tradition of personal combat. Maître Rohdes never looked upon fencing as a sport but rather as a martial art, and the structure and method of his instruction reflected this spirit. His academy was modeled after the fencing academies of the past. As a result the Rohdes Academy was a school that was highly formal and disciplined in all of its aspects.