HOW BKB BEGAN
Using the clenched fists in aggression or self-defence is one of those activities like running or hunting, so necessary to the existence of early men that its origin can only be said to be as old as mankind itself. With no weapon to hand the fist is one of the best we have.
The earliest records of boxing date from before the great days of the Greek and Roman Empires. Egyptian hieroglyphics from around 4000bc suggest that a sort of combat between soldiers was practised. Thongs were wrapped round the hands and forearms in a primitive forerunner of the boxing glove.
The word pugilism is a mixture of Greek and latin “ to fight with the fist “ and the term Boxing arises from the action of clenching of the fist, the folding of fingers and thumb into a box.
Boxing then went through different stages in development , the Greeks in 900BC for their lust for blood made their warriors sit on flat stones facing each other wearing leather thongs and when the signal was given they would begin punching each other, the fights ended when one contestant beat the other to death. These fights could last for a long length of time so metal studs were introduced which were fastened into the thongs and then spikes. A few blows would smash an opponents face and a few more would finish him off.
In 688BC boxing was introduced into the Olympics and fighters wore leather gauntlets from the knuckles to the elbows, they also wore headguards and trained using punch-bags. The champions were sponsored by their cities, celebrated by poets and commemerated on vases and in statues. Boxing continued in the Olympics without metal studs but during the Roman holidays and feasts gladiatorial contests were held to please the crowds. Pugilists would be brought in from Africa and the winners were awarded maidens as prizes. A sort of professional circuit emerged but they realised that fighting to the death or near death was not the best training for warriors and so the studded gloves were abolished. Without the prospect of the fighters getting killed the interest lessened and in 339AD the Emperor at the time terminated the Olympic games and boxing disappeared for almost 1300 years. It resurfaced in England in the 17th century, when it was closely linked with fencing. Masters who taught the backsword were often instructors in boxing as they were both sciences of self-defence. For publicity they would often have fights with and without the swords.
Gradually, fighting with the fists became more popular and the term Prize-fight was used. Strong men with an aptitude for the sport roamed the countryside usually in small groups, with a length of rope. They would attract a crowd and one of them would issue a challenge to the audience for anyone to fight for a Guinea. Spectators would form a circle with the rope ( hence the ring ) into which, to accept the challenge, an onlooker would throw his hat (hence tossing ones hat into the ring) meaning to accept the challenge.
Should there be no challenges, two of the party would box each other. In each case there would be a collection and the party would move to the next village.
Travelling fairs might have a boxing booth, in which professionals would challenge the public or box each other, with spectators paying to watch. A man who showed strength and aptitude would become a champion of his village or locality, and his neighbours would support him in challenges to other local champions. A “purse “ might be put up for the winner and there would be plenty of betting.
The boxing match then did not resemble a match of today. The fighters were stripped to the waist , but did not wear gloves. Kicking , biting and gouging were not allowed , and neither was hitting or grabbing below the waist. But most other thing were. Wrestling was an essential part. The opponent could be knocked or thrown to the ground, either by picking him up around the waist or by a popular move known as cross buttock. Having thrown an opponent to the floor it was allowed to fall on top of him as heavily as possible.
It was not allowed to strike a man or inflict damage once he was down apart from falling on him. A round ended when a man was down, and there was a 30 second break before the next. Rounds could therefore be of any length and carried on until one man was unable to continue. There were no refs as the spectators were the guardians of fair play.
As more began to follow the sport the ring formed by spectators, holding the rope was not satisfactory as its shape could not be maintained under the pressure of supporters surging back and forth during the excitement of a fight. So stakes were used, around which the rope was wound. Later an outer ring was required for the big fights, to accommodate the umpires and the gentry who had put up the money. The timekeeper used a whistle or gong to indicate when the 30 seconds had elapsed between rounds.
The two fighters occupied diagonal corners and each was allowed supporters usually two. These men were usually fighters themselves who sometimes fought themselves in a supporting bout should the fight end quickly and it is where the term “Seconds “comes from. One second used his knees as a seat for the boxer between rounds and the other was to try an revive a fighter, he was known as the bottle man and even today one of the seconds gives a boxer water during the break.
A line was scratched across the centre of the ring dividing it into two halves. At the start of the contest the boxers toed the line, an expression still used today. At the beginning of each round the boxers had to toe the line. The timekeepers would give the boxers 8 seconds for the boxer to come up to the mark – if he was unable to do so he would lose the bout, i.e. He failed to come up to scratch, and was counted out of time, hence a count out or known now as a knockout. The term “ stake money “ came about as the boxers purses were tied to the stakes of the ring so they could see no one was making off with the cash………………..The first champion of the bareknuckle era is generally acknowledged as James Figg…..
The earliest records of boxing date from before the great days of the Greek and Roman Empires. Egyptian hieroglyphics from around 4000bc suggest that a sort of combat between soldiers was practised. Thongs were wrapped round the hands and forearms in a primitive forerunner of the boxing glove.
The word pugilism is a mixture of Greek and latin “ to fight with the fist “ and the term Boxing arises from the action of clenching of the fist, the folding of fingers and thumb into a box.
Boxing then went through different stages in development , the Greeks in 900BC for their lust for blood made their warriors sit on flat stones facing each other wearing leather thongs and when the signal was given they would begin punching each other, the fights ended when one contestant beat the other to death. These fights could last for a long length of time so metal studs were introduced which were fastened into the thongs and then spikes. A few blows would smash an opponents face and a few more would finish him off.
In 688BC boxing was introduced into the Olympics and fighters wore leather gauntlets from the knuckles to the elbows, they also wore headguards and trained using punch-bags. The champions were sponsored by their cities, celebrated by poets and commemerated on vases and in statues. Boxing continued in the Olympics without metal studs but during the Roman holidays and feasts gladiatorial contests were held to please the crowds. Pugilists would be brought in from Africa and the winners were awarded maidens as prizes. A sort of professional circuit emerged but they realised that fighting to the death or near death was not the best training for warriors and so the studded gloves were abolished. Without the prospect of the fighters getting killed the interest lessened and in 339AD the Emperor at the time terminated the Olympic games and boxing disappeared for almost 1300 years. It resurfaced in England in the 17th century, when it was closely linked with fencing. Masters who taught the backsword were often instructors in boxing as they were both sciences of self-defence. For publicity they would often have fights with and without the swords.
Gradually, fighting with the fists became more popular and the term Prize-fight was used. Strong men with an aptitude for the sport roamed the countryside usually in small groups, with a length of rope. They would attract a crowd and one of them would issue a challenge to the audience for anyone to fight for a Guinea. Spectators would form a circle with the rope ( hence the ring ) into which, to accept the challenge, an onlooker would throw his hat (hence tossing ones hat into the ring) meaning to accept the challenge.
Should there be no challenges, two of the party would box each other. In each case there would be a collection and the party would move to the next village.
Travelling fairs might have a boxing booth, in which professionals would challenge the public or box each other, with spectators paying to watch. A man who showed strength and aptitude would become a champion of his village or locality, and his neighbours would support him in challenges to other local champions. A “purse “ might be put up for the winner and there would be plenty of betting.
The boxing match then did not resemble a match of today. The fighters were stripped to the waist , but did not wear gloves. Kicking , biting and gouging were not allowed , and neither was hitting or grabbing below the waist. But most other thing were. Wrestling was an essential part. The opponent could be knocked or thrown to the ground, either by picking him up around the waist or by a popular move known as cross buttock. Having thrown an opponent to the floor it was allowed to fall on top of him as heavily as possible.
It was not allowed to strike a man or inflict damage once he was down apart from falling on him. A round ended when a man was down, and there was a 30 second break before the next. Rounds could therefore be of any length and carried on until one man was unable to continue. There were no refs as the spectators were the guardians of fair play.
As more began to follow the sport the ring formed by spectators, holding the rope was not satisfactory as its shape could not be maintained under the pressure of supporters surging back and forth during the excitement of a fight. So stakes were used, around which the rope was wound. Later an outer ring was required for the big fights, to accommodate the umpires and the gentry who had put up the money. The timekeeper used a whistle or gong to indicate when the 30 seconds had elapsed between rounds.
The two fighters occupied diagonal corners and each was allowed supporters usually two. These men were usually fighters themselves who sometimes fought themselves in a supporting bout should the fight end quickly and it is where the term “Seconds “comes from. One second used his knees as a seat for the boxer between rounds and the other was to try an revive a fighter, he was known as the bottle man and even today one of the seconds gives a boxer water during the break.
A line was scratched across the centre of the ring dividing it into two halves. At the start of the contest the boxers toed the line, an expression still used today. At the beginning of each round the boxers had to toe the line. The timekeepers would give the boxers 8 seconds for the boxer to come up to the mark – if he was unable to do so he would lose the bout, i.e. He failed to come up to scratch, and was counted out of time, hence a count out or known now as a knockout. The term “ stake money “ came about as the boxers purses were tied to the stakes of the ring so they could see no one was making off with the cash………………..The first champion of the bareknuckle era is generally acknowledged as James Figg…..
THE ROLL OF THE BOXING BOOTHS
BAREKNUCKLE BOXING'S LEGACY
On April 17,1860 American Heavyweight Champion John C. Heenan met British Champion Tom Sayers in a title fight outside London. It was the first time that an international match was held between American and British champions. As such, it was the beginning of an era; but it was also the end of one. The Heenan-Sayers fight was stopped by an unruly mob and the police—an anti-climactic finish to the great days of bare-knuckle fighting.
It was not surprising, though, that the first international championship should have been interfered with by a mob and the police. The history of bare-knuckle fighting was a constant skirmish with forces on both sides of the law.
Bare-knuckle boxing, as a modern sport, began when James Figg opened an amphitheater in the Tottenham Court Road, London, in 1719. Fighting—with backswords, cudgels or fists—was the entertainment at Figg's place. Figg himself was a complete fighting man who engaged all comers. Boxing became the most popular activity, and he assembled professional bruisers to fight him and each other. So far as the records show, he was never defeated; though, to be practical about it, this may have been because he was the boss.
Figg, wittingly or unwittingly, launched the first of boxing's golden eras. Figg was a celebrated character in London. Poets praised him; James Bramston, for instance, in his satire The Man of Taste, included him among the pleasurable diversions of the day: "In Figg, the prize fighter, by day delight/And sup with Colley Cibber every night."
This public fighting for money went on prosperously after Figg's death in 1734. His successor at the amphitheater was George Taylor, one of the fighting troupe, but Taylor's position as head man did not prevent another boxer named Jack Broughton from giving him a whipping. Not long after, Broughton opened his own amphitheater and took the best business away from the old shop.
Broughton well deserves his title, Father of the English School of Pugilism. He drew up the first definite code of rules for the growing sport, and they were the final authority for almost 100 years. It was he who introduced boxing gloves, or mufflers, as they were called, in the interest of the noblemen and gentlemen who were his patrons and pupils. The new invention caught on at once for sparring, but the serious business of fighting in the ring continued to be a bareknuckle matter until the day, far in the future, of John L. Sullivan.
A bare-knuckle round according to Broughton's rules lasted until a man went down, and he could be thrown as well as knocked down, provided he was held above the middle. Half a minute was allowed between rounds, which could last anywhere from a few seconds to as much as half an hour.
Broughton's tenure as champion was a good time for boxing. In 1750, however, he made the mistake of fighting a grudge fight with a younger man named Jack Slack. The men met at Broughton's Amphitheatre, with the odds 10 to 1 on the champion. One of Broughton's patrons was the Duke of Cumberland, who was so enthusiastic he bet �10,000 on Broughton. The fight lasted only 14 minutes. A blow between the eyes blinded Broughton, and Slack had only to continue hitting him until he was unable to rise again.
The Duke of Cumberland was quite upset by the loss of his �10,000. At first he told everyone that he had been "sold," though later on he forgave Broughton and pensioned him. But it is said that to the end of his days "he could never speak of this contest with any degree of temper." He went to Parliament, where he was very influential, and had legislation passed that closed Broughton's Amphitheatre. The first big slump in boxing history followed.
As for Broughton, he never again raised his fists for money, except to instruct the young and hopeful with the mufflers. He is buried in Westminster Abbey, the only boxer to be so honored.
The ring reeled after his defeat, and went on reeling and staggering for three decades. For a time there could be no fights in London, even illegally. In the provinces there were magistrates who would wink a friendly eye if a match was arranged, or who could be outwitted. Under these circumstances, Slack held the championship during 10 long and uneventful years. The quality of his challengers was deplorable, and he fought only three times. He made most of his living running a butcher shop.
But after 10 years, the Duke of Cumberland, who must have missed his favorite sport in spite of the money it had cost him, decided to back Champion Slack against an opponent named Bill Stevens the Nailer. He put up only 100 guineas, but it shows that his heart was still in the game. Furthermore, he arranged for the bout to be held in London, with no interference by the law. Slack lost the championship, and the Duke lost his 100 guineas and any further interest in boxing as well.
Stripped of his title, Jack Slack sought to recoup in a different way. He found a beginner named George Meggs, trained him and backed him against the Nailer for the championship. He also took the precaution of paying the Nailer to lose. The Nailer did just that, but not very convincingly. As he explained it later to a friend, "Why, Lord bless you, I got 50 guineas more than I'd otherwise have done by letting Georgie beat me; and, damme, ain't I the same man still?"
But he never got another chance to prove how good a man he was. He and Slack both fell into disrepute. It was a woeful time for boxing. By 1770 there was no championship except a shadowy title that passed from one fighter to another, sometimes honestly, sometimes otherwise.
In 1771 a stage or platform was set up on Epsom Downs during the racing season. Bill Darts, a claimant of the badly battered championship, was to defend his precious honors against an Irishman named Peter Corcoran. The backer of Corcoran was Captain Dennis O'Kelly, the owner of the famous race horse Eclipse, progenitor of many of the Thoroughbreds running on American tracks today.
The captain, wanting Corcoran to win, made sure of it by presenting 100 guineas to the champion in advance. Bill Darts may have been a passably good fighter when he tried, but he was not a good actor. A contemporary report said: "After a little sparring Corcoran gave Darts a blow on the side of the head which drove him against the rail of the stage, when he immediately gave in."
There was quite a scandal, and in the old record books the so-called fight is marked with a damning "X," and the simple words "Captain O'Kelly's Money."
That was the way it went until 1780, when there was a big and sudden change. New fighters of top quality appeared, and there was a new generation of noblemen and gentlemen who were just as interested in boxing as their fathers and grandfathers had been in Broughton's reign.
Tom Johnson was the first champion under the new order. One of the last of the disreputable titleholders, Harry Sellers (who had beaten Captain O'Kelly's egregious Peter Corcoran), is said to have died of grief because no patron would put up stakes for him against Johnson. He simply didn't rate with Johnson or Ben Brain, or with Dan Mendoza, the brilliant boxer who was the first Jewish ring champion, or with Gentleman jack johnson.
The following half century gave the prize ring as palmy days as it has ever known. The society and sporting men who put up the prize money were a sort of boxing commission, watching over the welfare of the game with stern and disillusioned eyes. These Regency rakes—"Corinthians," as they were called—were loose enough in their own lives as a rule, but they wanted honest fighting for their money, and for the most part they got it. And for 20 years Gentleman John Jackson played a memorable role in establishing and maintaining this robust state of health.
It was Jackson who was instrumental in the forming of the Pugilistic Club in 1814, which watched over the signing of articles, the choice of judges and referees, the settling of disputes and payment of stakes. The ropes and posts owned by the Pugilistic Club were the official ropes and posts of the London Prize Ring; fighters who were found unworthy of confidence were simply forbidden to appear within those sacred barriers.
Mr. Jackson, as he was always called, supervised the formation of the ring at important fights. He collected money for the loser if the latter had made a good showing and he was the final arbiter, for he spoke for the Pugilistic Club. He knew the right people; it was Lord Byron who saluted him as "my friend and corporeal pastor and master, John Jackson, Esq., who I trust still retains the strength and symmetry of his model of a form, together with his good humor, and athletic as well as mental accomplishments."
The Belcher brothers, Jem and Tom, were among the eminent boxers whose careers spanned the ascendancy of Mr. Jackson and the Pugilistic Club. Others on the list were Hen Pearce, the heroic Game Chicken; John Gully, who became a member of Parliament and an owner of race horses and coal mines; Tom Cribb, who was perhaps the most famous of all English champions; Tom Spring, Tom Hickman the Gas Man and Bill Neat, who was immortalized by William Hazlitt in his essay The Fight.
The palmy days showed the first sign of wilting in 1822, when there was a quarrel over stakes that had been put up for a fight and Mr. Jackson declared that he would never again be a stakeholder. When be bowed out, the influence of the Pugilistic Club also declined, and unpleasant incidents became common.
In the year of Jackson's death at 77 (1845), a riot occurred at a fight between Champion William (Bendigo) Thompson and Challenger Ben Caunt. Hoodlums broke through the ropes, some of them carrying bludgeons. The referee, Squire George Osbaldeston, barely got away with his life. He swore never to referee a fight again, and others followed suit.
It was not surprising, though, that the first international championship should have been interfered with by a mob and the police. The history of bare-knuckle fighting was a constant skirmish with forces on both sides of the law.
Bare-knuckle boxing, as a modern sport, began when James Figg opened an amphitheater in the Tottenham Court Road, London, in 1719. Fighting—with backswords, cudgels or fists—was the entertainment at Figg's place. Figg himself was a complete fighting man who engaged all comers. Boxing became the most popular activity, and he assembled professional bruisers to fight him and each other. So far as the records show, he was never defeated; though, to be practical about it, this may have been because he was the boss.
Figg, wittingly or unwittingly, launched the first of boxing's golden eras. Figg was a celebrated character in London. Poets praised him; James Bramston, for instance, in his satire The Man of Taste, included him among the pleasurable diversions of the day: "In Figg, the prize fighter, by day delight/And sup with Colley Cibber every night."
This public fighting for money went on prosperously after Figg's death in 1734. His successor at the amphitheater was George Taylor, one of the fighting troupe, but Taylor's position as head man did not prevent another boxer named Jack Broughton from giving him a whipping. Not long after, Broughton opened his own amphitheater and took the best business away from the old shop.
Broughton well deserves his title, Father of the English School of Pugilism. He drew up the first definite code of rules for the growing sport, and they were the final authority for almost 100 years. It was he who introduced boxing gloves, or mufflers, as they were called, in the interest of the noblemen and gentlemen who were his patrons and pupils. The new invention caught on at once for sparring, but the serious business of fighting in the ring continued to be a bareknuckle matter until the day, far in the future, of John L. Sullivan.
A bare-knuckle round according to Broughton's rules lasted until a man went down, and he could be thrown as well as knocked down, provided he was held above the middle. Half a minute was allowed between rounds, which could last anywhere from a few seconds to as much as half an hour.
Broughton's tenure as champion was a good time for boxing. In 1750, however, he made the mistake of fighting a grudge fight with a younger man named Jack Slack. The men met at Broughton's Amphitheatre, with the odds 10 to 1 on the champion. One of Broughton's patrons was the Duke of Cumberland, who was so enthusiastic he bet �10,000 on Broughton. The fight lasted only 14 minutes. A blow between the eyes blinded Broughton, and Slack had only to continue hitting him until he was unable to rise again.
The Duke of Cumberland was quite upset by the loss of his �10,000. At first he told everyone that he had been "sold," though later on he forgave Broughton and pensioned him. But it is said that to the end of his days "he could never speak of this contest with any degree of temper." He went to Parliament, where he was very influential, and had legislation passed that closed Broughton's Amphitheatre. The first big slump in boxing history followed.
As for Broughton, he never again raised his fists for money, except to instruct the young and hopeful with the mufflers. He is buried in Westminster Abbey, the only boxer to be so honored.
The ring reeled after his defeat, and went on reeling and staggering for three decades. For a time there could be no fights in London, even illegally. In the provinces there were magistrates who would wink a friendly eye if a match was arranged, or who could be outwitted. Under these circumstances, Slack held the championship during 10 long and uneventful years. The quality of his challengers was deplorable, and he fought only three times. He made most of his living running a butcher shop.
But after 10 years, the Duke of Cumberland, who must have missed his favorite sport in spite of the money it had cost him, decided to back Champion Slack against an opponent named Bill Stevens the Nailer. He put up only 100 guineas, but it shows that his heart was still in the game. Furthermore, he arranged for the bout to be held in London, with no interference by the law. Slack lost the championship, and the Duke lost his 100 guineas and any further interest in boxing as well.
Stripped of his title, Jack Slack sought to recoup in a different way. He found a beginner named George Meggs, trained him and backed him against the Nailer for the championship. He also took the precaution of paying the Nailer to lose. The Nailer did just that, but not very convincingly. As he explained it later to a friend, "Why, Lord bless you, I got 50 guineas more than I'd otherwise have done by letting Georgie beat me; and, damme, ain't I the same man still?"
But he never got another chance to prove how good a man he was. He and Slack both fell into disrepute. It was a woeful time for boxing. By 1770 there was no championship except a shadowy title that passed from one fighter to another, sometimes honestly, sometimes otherwise.
In 1771 a stage or platform was set up on Epsom Downs during the racing season. Bill Darts, a claimant of the badly battered championship, was to defend his precious honors against an Irishman named Peter Corcoran. The backer of Corcoran was Captain Dennis O'Kelly, the owner of the famous race horse Eclipse, progenitor of many of the Thoroughbreds running on American tracks today.
The captain, wanting Corcoran to win, made sure of it by presenting 100 guineas to the champion in advance. Bill Darts may have been a passably good fighter when he tried, but he was not a good actor. A contemporary report said: "After a little sparring Corcoran gave Darts a blow on the side of the head which drove him against the rail of the stage, when he immediately gave in."
There was quite a scandal, and in the old record books the so-called fight is marked with a damning "X," and the simple words "Captain O'Kelly's Money."
That was the way it went until 1780, when there was a big and sudden change. New fighters of top quality appeared, and there was a new generation of noblemen and gentlemen who were just as interested in boxing as their fathers and grandfathers had been in Broughton's reign.
Tom Johnson was the first champion under the new order. One of the last of the disreputable titleholders, Harry Sellers (who had beaten Captain O'Kelly's egregious Peter Corcoran), is said to have died of grief because no patron would put up stakes for him against Johnson. He simply didn't rate with Johnson or Ben Brain, or with Dan Mendoza, the brilliant boxer who was the first Jewish ring champion, or with Gentleman jack johnson.
The following half century gave the prize ring as palmy days as it has ever known. The society and sporting men who put up the prize money were a sort of boxing commission, watching over the welfare of the game with stern and disillusioned eyes. These Regency rakes—"Corinthians," as they were called—were loose enough in their own lives as a rule, but they wanted honest fighting for their money, and for the most part they got it. And for 20 years Gentleman John Jackson played a memorable role in establishing and maintaining this robust state of health.
It was Jackson who was instrumental in the forming of the Pugilistic Club in 1814, which watched over the signing of articles, the choice of judges and referees, the settling of disputes and payment of stakes. The ropes and posts owned by the Pugilistic Club were the official ropes and posts of the London Prize Ring; fighters who were found unworthy of confidence were simply forbidden to appear within those sacred barriers.
Mr. Jackson, as he was always called, supervised the formation of the ring at important fights. He collected money for the loser if the latter had made a good showing and he was the final arbiter, for he spoke for the Pugilistic Club. He knew the right people; it was Lord Byron who saluted him as "my friend and corporeal pastor and master, John Jackson, Esq., who I trust still retains the strength and symmetry of his model of a form, together with his good humor, and athletic as well as mental accomplishments."
The Belcher brothers, Jem and Tom, were among the eminent boxers whose careers spanned the ascendancy of Mr. Jackson and the Pugilistic Club. Others on the list were Hen Pearce, the heroic Game Chicken; John Gully, who became a member of Parliament and an owner of race horses and coal mines; Tom Cribb, who was perhaps the most famous of all English champions; Tom Spring, Tom Hickman the Gas Man and Bill Neat, who was immortalized by William Hazlitt in his essay The Fight.
The palmy days showed the first sign of wilting in 1822, when there was a quarrel over stakes that had been put up for a fight and Mr. Jackson declared that he would never again be a stakeholder. When be bowed out, the influence of the Pugilistic Club also declined, and unpleasant incidents became common.
In the year of Jackson's death at 77 (1845), a riot occurred at a fight between Champion William (Bendigo) Thompson and Challenger Ben Caunt. Hoodlums broke through the ropes, some of them carrying bludgeons. The referee, Squire George Osbaldeston, barely got away with his life. He swore never to referee a fight again, and others followed suit.
BRIEF ORIGINS OF PUGILISM
It would be sufficient to say that the sport of boxing has its origins in the forms of hand to hand combat derived from the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The earliest forms of pugilism arrived on the British Isles when the Romans conquered them in the first century. The first recorded history of boxing as a public spectacle began in 18th century England. The typical early boxing matches were fought bare knuckles and were no holds barred contests that included wrestling. A circle of spectators formed the “ring”. There was no referee, no rounds, and no time limit. It was a brutal affair with the object to fight until one man was finished, unable to continue he would give up. Bouts routinely lasted for hours and NO tactic was forbidden including, gouging, choking, throwing, and kicking. For many decades no consideration was given to the weight of opponents and there was no official recognition of champions or challengers.
Fisticuffs as a sport began primarily amongst the working class in the British Isles sometimes as a way to settle a dispute. But as the bare knuckle fights gained in popularity the upper classes and even royalty took notice. Wealthy patrons sponsored fighters with cash prizes, built small arenas, and opened schools were the "noble art of self defense" was taught. The ring soon became a square permanently enclosed with wooden rails or a heavy rope. Boxing's first recognized champion was James Figg who built his Amphitheatre and became the first recognized "boxing champion" in 1719. Figg is largely responsible for the popularity of the sport, as he traveled around England giving sparring exhibitions. Figg died in 1740 and George Taylor one of his pupils succeeded his championship. Jack Broughton, who is the father of “boxing rules”, succeeded Taylor. In 1734 he formed the first boxing code, which forbid eye gouging and hitting a fallen opponent when he was down, but left wide latitude for wrestling and rough and tumble fighting. "Broughton's Rules" governed boxing from 1734 until 1838, under the reformed named "London Prize Ring Rules", which stated that a round ended when one fighter went down or his knee touched the ground. Broughton also introduced the idea of blocking and some defense to the sport.
When Broughton passed out of the picture, boxing suffered because it had lost the man who was recognized as "The Father of the English School of Boxing." Shortly after the death of Broughton "crookedness" crept into the sport. It became known as the period of "the Double Crosses." The popularity of the sport waned until the appearance of Daniel Mendoza. Daniel Mendoza was the first Jewish fighter to gain a championship. He was very intelligent and made many contributions to the development of boxing as an art form. Prior to Mendoza success in pugilism relied primarily on brute strength and endurance, rather than scientific finesse. Mendoza devised a system of guarding, sidestepping, and effective use of a straight left jab. His new tactics were extremely successful and he captured the imagination of the British public with his skill. Relying on superior agility and speed he won the British Championship in 1791. His concentration on defense revolutionized boxing. The next major figure is Tom Cribb who was one of England’s most celebrated champions and won national prominence from his pugilistic feats. He was born on July 8, 1781. He won the British Championship in 1807 by defeating Jim Belcher in 41 rounds. When he defeated Belcher again in 31 rounds in 1809 he was awarded a championship belt. For many years after prize fighting flourished in England the white man reigned supreme, and it was seldom that a principal with black skin dare fortune in the ring. The first black pugilist of renown was Bill Richmond, the son of a Georgia born slave who drifted North as the property of John Charlton, and the first to cross the Atlantic and display in British Rings the boxing he had learned while fighting on plantations in the south. During 1777, while New York was held by British troops, Richmond by whipping in succession three British soldiers in a tavern attracted the attention of General Earl Percy, who afterwards became the Duke of Northumberland. The British General took Richmond to his homeland, and under his patronage the Negro, who was only a middleweight, defeated several top heavyweights. With a number of victories under his belt, and receiving fame as "the Black Terror", Richmond challenged top British fighter Tom Cribb but was knocked out by Cribb in 1805. The next top black fighter of mention is Tom Molineaux, a heavyweight weighing 185 pounds, enjoyed great success in the British prize ring and twice challenged Tom Cribb, losing in consecutive years in 1810 and 1811. In the first match Molineaux was carried out of the ring in the 33rd round and in the second in Cribb knocked him out in 11 rounds. He was the first American to challenge for the British title.
The first "American Champion" was Tom Hyer, whose father Jacob Hyer participated in the first public boxing match under the English prize ring rules in America. The first American championship match was between Tom Hyer and "Yankee" Sullivan for a $5,000 side bet and the championship of America. It took place on Feb 7, 1849, with Hyer the victor in 16 rounds. The first "World's Championship took place at Farnsborough, England on April 17, 1860 between the British Champion Tom Sayers and the American champion John C. Heenan. It was the first real "sporting event" to attract celebrity from all parts of England and France, there were members of British parliament present at the match, officers from the Navy and Army, and literary giants such as William Thackeray and Charles Dickens. Special correspondents from America such as the “Police Gazette”, “Leslie’s weekly” and other American newspapers covered it. The battle was a grueling encounter that lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes. After 37 rounds Sayers began to tire and Heenan rushed Sayers to the ropes. Heenan forced Sayers neck over the top strand of rope and pressed down on his throat with his arms. The partisan of Sayers supporters went wild and stormed the ring and cut the rope. The referee fled the ring and the bout was eventually declared a draw to the dismay of the American Heenan who thought he was winning. Sayers soon retired and Heenan was recognized as "World Boxing Champion." Britain's 1861 "anti-prize fight" act made it a felony to so much as transport persons to the scene of a prohected prizefight. Since this meant that anyone from railroad engineers to men who booked boats on the Thames river could face long jail terms, it ended boxing in the United Kingdom for some time. Most leading British fighters including Jem Mace, emigrated to the United States or Australia, where Larry Foley became Mace's most successful student. It was Foley who established boxing, first bare-knuckle then Queensbury rules in Australia. Foley's own star pupil was the "Black Prince" Peter Jackson. In the U.S. British fighters such as Mike McCoole, Tom Allen and Joe Goss helped to establish boxing firmly in America
. In England, prize ring devotee John Sholto Douglas, the ninth Marquees of Queensbury, agreed to sponsor a set of rules, written by Arthur Graham Chambers, to cover gloved contests. These new rules were first put into practice in 1867 in the first "Queensbury Amateur Tournament" and since no prize money was involved it was not subject to the "anti-prize fight" statute. Soon after "tournaments" offering cash prizes for contestants sprang up in the 1870's. By the time John L. Sullivan rose to prominence boxing was the most popular sport in the free world. Sullivan, "The Boston Strong Boy" won the World Heavyweight Championship, at least in American eyes, on a 9th round knockout of Paddy Ryan on Feb 7, 1882 in Mississippi City, MS. On May 14, 1883 he faced the British champion Charley Mitchell in New York, at Madison Square Garden and stopped him in the third. The police stopped the fight to keep the battered Mitchell from absorbing more punishment. Even though the victory was convincing and earned Sullivan universal recognition as "World Champion" it had surprised Sullivan's followers when Mitchell was able to knock down the powerful American in the first round. Sullivan reigned as bare knuckle heavyweight champion for ten long years and became America's first true sports hero. Sullivan often remarked, "I can lick any son of a bitch in the house." America was proud of him and a famous saying of the day was, "I shook the hand, that shook the hand of the mighty John L." He reportedly earned over $900,000 in his career as a prizefighter, sparring exhibitions and on stage. James J. Corbett, know as "Gentleman Jim", upset Sullivan for the World Heavyweight Championship on Sept 7, 1892 in New Orleans, La. The bout was fought under the "Marquis of Queensbury Rules" which stated that bouts must be fought with gloves, a round was to last 3 minutes in length, and it forbid the use of wrestling. Corbett showed that innovative footwork and boxing skills could overcome the raw power and strength of Sullivan when he knocked out the defending champion in the 21st round. Thus began the modern era of boxing. Sources:
BAREKNUCKLE BOXING IN GEORGIAN ENGLAND
Boxing as a sport, after the demise of the Greek Olympics, survived only as contests between opponents at faires and like events. It was little more than "street" fighting, anything is fair, and the last one standing won. Betting was heavy on these events. Often the bout began with cudgels and the first round of betting was on "first blood" at which point the match changed to fisticuffs, with further betting on the final outcome.
Pugilism in Georgian England In the reign of George I, fighting with fists had begun to take the place of the combats with sword or cudgel. It was more than a spectator sport, there was much betting, and many of the gently born as well as the commoner participated. James Figg became the first official British champion, reigning from 1719 thru 1730. James Figg opened his "School of Arms and Self Defense", which attracted numerous young men to instruction in swordplay, cudgeling, and boxing, the "manly arts of self-defense."
The Science of Boxing It remained for Jack Broughton, the champion from 1734 to 1750, to reduce boxing to an accurate "science". He did this by formulating rules and inventing mufflers, or padded gloves to use when practicing or sparring. After delivering a fatal blow in a bout in 1743, Jack Broughton made the first set of rules to be used at bouts in his club. Not counting cock fighting, these rules were the first to apply to sporting events in modern history. Fights still ended only in knockout or resignation, but these rules made the fights both more fair and safer. These rules:
Patronage, and suppression Boxing remained a popular sport and pastime, sometimes with high placed patrons until 1750. That year one of those patrons, the Duke of Cumberland, lost £50,000 betting for Broughton against Jack Slack. A lucky hit temporarily blinded Broughton, and the Duke suspected a foul. He had the amphitheatres shut down and for the next 30+ years fighting was suppressed. This did little to reduce the number of bouts, but it did affect their venue and quality. The champions were not top flight and since the fights were held in less reputable locations, corruption in the form of bribes and thrown matches entered the sport. The sport began to improve in 1788 when the three eldest sons of George III began to give the sport their attention and patronage.
There were strong proponents and opponents or boxing, the former claiming that the discipline demanded strenth, discipline, courage, bodily perfection, and besides it was nearly unique to Britain and therefor superior. The opponents did not bother of course to refute point by point, only needing to cite the character of the crowds, and the state of the combatents at the end of the bout. The sport did gradually gain acceptance as the sport changed.
Changing fortunes of the sport A significant change included the days the fights took place and where they were held. The usual day prior to 1805 was on Monday, and the places were less reputable locations close in to London. This allowed large crowds, 3,000 to over 10,000, much betting, and often distrubances during or after the fight. This character changed in 1805. The fights involving John Gully and Henry Pearce that year near London were held on a Tuesday which made some difference in the crowd and avoided criticism about how the week was begun in relation to the working class. In October of 1805 John Gully fought again in a bout close to Brighton. This changed the character of the crowd completely as well as the price that could be charged for admission. The gentry and classes that could take 2-4 days from daily work were the ones able to attend. From this time most of the top and prize bouts were staged farther from London.
Clubs, and Academies for the noble art of physical self defence. Many popular champions capitlaized on their fame and opened boxing clubs. Gentleman Jack was one such boxer. He became the champion in 1795 and retired that year to open a club in London. He was not the first or even the only such club owner in London at the time but he became very popular with a certain set of the aristocratic gentlemen. He was friendly with Henry Angelo, who had an old and respected family fencing school. When Jackson set up his shool next door, at Number 13 Bond street, Henry told his students that they should alternate with lessons fron Gentleman Jack guaranteeing the success of Jackson's parlor and boxing for the first two decades of the 19th century. Another popular champion was John Gully. He was a failed business man in debtors prison, and bought his way out with an exhibition fight with his friend, Henry Pearce, the current champion. He later participated in a title bout with the man, losing after an amazing total of 64 rounds. He won the championship in 1807 after Pearce retired. He fought two more title bouts, winning, but retired in 1808, using his winnings to open a racing stable that eventually produced a Derby winner.
Cultural effects The wide participation and the conflicts and war on the continent increased the reputation of the sport. English boxing was unique, so it of course it made the British superior to the barborous practices of those on the Continent. Boxing became an accepted manner of settling affairs of honor instead of dueling with sword or pistol. The sport was believe to promote the virtues that were required of a soldier. Bouts: Blacks in British boxing Race became an issue for the first time in an 1805 bout. Tom Cribb fought William Richmond on October 8 of 1805. Richmond was a black cabinet maker from America who became a recognized semi-professional boxer. The fight was widely publicized as Cribb and Richmond (The Black) and drew a large crowd. William Richmond lost his fight to Cribb, and "the crowd was pleased that a black man had been put in his place." After Cribb became the boxing champion he was again challenged by another African-American boxer, Tom Molineaux of Georgetown, Virginia on December 18th 1810. Molineaux was trained by William Richmond for the London sports arena and won a series of boxing bouts finally meeting the champion, Tom Cribb. Molineaux was able to knock down Cribb in the 28th Round but did not win the fight due to an infraction of the rules. The public opinion of this bout was less rancorous, and the pair performed follow-up matches and exhibitions. Tom Cribb had a long career for a bare-knuckle fighter, lasting 17 years, the last 12, from 1810 thru 1822, as the champion.
Pugilism in Georgian England In the reign of George I, fighting with fists had begun to take the place of the combats with sword or cudgel. It was more than a spectator sport, there was much betting, and many of the gently born as well as the commoner participated. James Figg became the first official British champion, reigning from 1719 thru 1730. James Figg opened his "School of Arms and Self Defense", which attracted numerous young men to instruction in swordplay, cudgeling, and boxing, the "manly arts of self-defense."
The Science of Boxing It remained for Jack Broughton, the champion from 1734 to 1750, to reduce boxing to an accurate "science". He did this by formulating rules and inventing mufflers, or padded gloves to use when practicing or sparring. After delivering a fatal blow in a bout in 1743, Jack Broughton made the first set of rules to be used at bouts in his club. Not counting cock fighting, these rules were the first to apply to sporting events in modern history. Fights still ended only in knockout or resignation, but these rules made the fights both more fair and safer. These rules:
- outlawed hitting below the belt
- prohibited hitting an opponent that was down, on the knees, was considered down.
- Wrestling holds were allowed only above the waist.
- drew a 3-foot square in the center of the ring and when a fighter was knocked down, his handlers had 30 seconds to pick him up and position him on one side of the square ready to reenter the fray. If they failed, or the fighter signaled resignation, the fight was over.
- to prevent disputes, every fighter should have a gentleman to act as umpire, and if the two cannot agree, they should choose a third as referee.
Patronage, and suppression Boxing remained a popular sport and pastime, sometimes with high placed patrons until 1750. That year one of those patrons, the Duke of Cumberland, lost £50,000 betting for Broughton against Jack Slack. A lucky hit temporarily blinded Broughton, and the Duke suspected a foul. He had the amphitheatres shut down and for the next 30+ years fighting was suppressed. This did little to reduce the number of bouts, but it did affect their venue and quality. The champions were not top flight and since the fights were held in less reputable locations, corruption in the form of bribes and thrown matches entered the sport. The sport began to improve in 1788 when the three eldest sons of George III began to give the sport their attention and patronage.
There were strong proponents and opponents or boxing, the former claiming that the discipline demanded strenth, discipline, courage, bodily perfection, and besides it was nearly unique to Britain and therefor superior. The opponents did not bother of course to refute point by point, only needing to cite the character of the crowds, and the state of the combatents at the end of the bout. The sport did gradually gain acceptance as the sport changed.
Changing fortunes of the sport A significant change included the days the fights took place and where they were held. The usual day prior to 1805 was on Monday, and the places were less reputable locations close in to London. This allowed large crowds, 3,000 to over 10,000, much betting, and often distrubances during or after the fight. This character changed in 1805. The fights involving John Gully and Henry Pearce that year near London were held on a Tuesday which made some difference in the crowd and avoided criticism about how the week was begun in relation to the working class. In October of 1805 John Gully fought again in a bout close to Brighton. This changed the character of the crowd completely as well as the price that could be charged for admission. The gentry and classes that could take 2-4 days from daily work were the ones able to attend. From this time most of the top and prize bouts were staged farther from London.
Clubs, and Academies for the noble art of physical self defence. Many popular champions capitlaized on their fame and opened boxing clubs. Gentleman Jack was one such boxer. He became the champion in 1795 and retired that year to open a club in London. He was not the first or even the only such club owner in London at the time but he became very popular with a certain set of the aristocratic gentlemen. He was friendly with Henry Angelo, who had an old and respected family fencing school. When Jackson set up his shool next door, at Number 13 Bond street, Henry told his students that they should alternate with lessons fron Gentleman Jack guaranteeing the success of Jackson's parlor and boxing for the first two decades of the 19th century. Another popular champion was John Gully. He was a failed business man in debtors prison, and bought his way out with an exhibition fight with his friend, Henry Pearce, the current champion. He later participated in a title bout with the man, losing after an amazing total of 64 rounds. He won the championship in 1807 after Pearce retired. He fought two more title bouts, winning, but retired in 1808, using his winnings to open a racing stable that eventually produced a Derby winner.
Cultural effects The wide participation and the conflicts and war on the continent increased the reputation of the sport. English boxing was unique, so it of course it made the British superior to the barborous practices of those on the Continent. Boxing became an accepted manner of settling affairs of honor instead of dueling with sword or pistol. The sport was believe to promote the virtues that were required of a soldier. Bouts: Blacks in British boxing Race became an issue for the first time in an 1805 bout. Tom Cribb fought William Richmond on October 8 of 1805. Richmond was a black cabinet maker from America who became a recognized semi-professional boxer. The fight was widely publicized as Cribb and Richmond (The Black) and drew a large crowd. William Richmond lost his fight to Cribb, and "the crowd was pleased that a black man had been put in his place." After Cribb became the boxing champion he was again challenged by another African-American boxer, Tom Molineaux of Georgetown, Virginia on December 18th 1810. Molineaux was trained by William Richmond for the London sports arena and won a series of boxing bouts finally meeting the champion, Tom Cribb. Molineaux was able to knock down Cribb in the 28th Round but did not win the fight due to an infraction of the rules. The public opinion of this bout was less rancorous, and the pair performed follow-up matches and exhibitions. Tom Cribb had a long career for a bare-knuckle fighter, lasting 17 years, the last 12, from 1810 thru 1822, as the champion.
BAREKNUCKLE BOXING IS JUST FOR MEN.......THINK AGAIN
It wasn't only men who fought for money In Georgian London, the ladies liked a shot at the title too. Of course, women have fought in staged competitions since ancient times, but lady bare-knuckle fighters became very popular in London in the early 18thC. I imagine this was in no small part due to the rise of boxing as a spectator sport, and the high probability of seeing two athletic women stripped to the waist. The most famous of all the early lady fighters is Elizabeth Stokes. Born Elizabeth Wilkinson, date unknown, by 1722, she was advertising in the newspapers of her upcoming fights and that same year she met Hannah Hyfield, 'the Newgate Market basket-woman' for a prize of 3 guineas. They fought with half a crown in each of their fists, and the first to drop a coin lost. Elizabeth won, despite 'the good thumping' Hannah had promised her in the paper. From then on, she began fighting in James Figg's venue, the 'Boarded-House' in Marylebone, or his Amphitheatre 'where cocks and bulls and Irish women fight' as a contemporary poem went (although as far as I know, Stokes was born and bred a Londoner). By 1728, she had married Figg's rival, James Stokes, who fought as the Citizen of London, and had been beaten by Figg on at least one occasion. From then on, she fought at Stokes's own Amphitheatre, near Sadler's Wells. The following advertisement appeared in the Weekly Journal on the 1st of October 1726: At Mr. STOKES’s Amphitheatre,
in Islington Road, near Sadler’s Wells, on Monday next, being the 3d of October, will be perform’d a trial of skill by the following Championesses. Whereas I Mary Welch, from the Kingdom of Ireland, being taught, and knowing the noble science of defence, and thought to be the only female of this kind in Europe, understanding there is one in this Kingdom, who has exercised on the publick stage several times, which is Mrs. Stokes, who is stiled the famous Championess of England; I do hereby invite her to meet me, and exercise the usual weapons practis’d on the stage, at her own amphitheatre, doubting not, but to let her and the worthy spectators see, that my judgment and courage is beyond hers. I Elizabeth Stokes, of the famous City of London, being well known by the name of the Invincible City Championess for my abilities and judgment in the abovesaid science; having never engaged with any of my own sex but I always came off with victory and applause, shall make no apology for accepting the challenge of this Irish Heroine, not doubting but to maintain the reputation I have hitherto establish’d, and shew my country, that the contest of it’s honour, is not ill entrusted in the present battle with their Championess, Elizabeth Stokes.
Note, The doors will be open’d at two, and the Championesses mount at four.
N.B. They fight in close jackets, short petticoats, coming just below the knee, Holland drawers, white stockings, and pumps.
It is interesting and significant that the clothing of the combatants is described (nobody cares what the men wore), and sounds very practical and modest. Low and extremely rough prize fights were fought for gin, new clothes, men and such all over the City. The women 'tied up their hair and stripped to the waist'. Many of these fights were between street prostitutes and added a little to their income, or perhaps a lot, depending on how many spectators and how successful they were. Elizabeth Stokes maintained the 'half-crown rule' in her fights, which is quite clever, as it stops scratching and gouging, and puts a time limit on the fight. The rougher matches were without rules and it was thought particularly effective to punch and scratch an opponent on the face and breasts. Once again, this rough boxing was popular with the Irish, both as fighters and as spectators and as it was fought on such a low level, few records remain.
In contrast, Elizabeth Stokes's career was well-publicized. In 1728, the Daily Post carried the following:
At Mr Stokes's Amphitheatre in Islington Road, this present Monday, being the 7th of October, will be a complete Boxing Match, by the two following Championesses: Whereas I, Ann Field, of Stoke Newington, ass driver, well-known for my abilities in my own defence, whenever it happened in my way, having been affronted by Mrs Stokes, styled the European Championess, do fairly invite her to a trial of her best skill in Boxing, for 10 pounds; fair rise and fall...I, Elizabeth Stokes, of the City of London, have not fought this way since I fought the famous Boxing Woman of Billingsgate 29 minutes and gained a complete victory....but as the famous ass-woman of Stowe Newington dares me to fight her for the 10 pounds, I do assure her I shall not tail meeting her for the said sum, and doubt not that the blows I shall present her with will be more difficult to digest than any she ever gave her asses.
N.B Attendance will be given at one, and the encounter is to begin at four precisely. There will be the diversion of cudgel playing as usual.
The cudgel display was not only a diversion: Elizabeth Stokes was also known to fight with weapons, including the short sword and the cudgel, and apparently she was very skilled. It should be noted that although Stokes and her husband took on other couples in mixed fights, men and woman never fought each other. Stokes is perhaps the most famous female fighter of the Georgian period, but there were others, including the famous 'Bruising Peg' who was of Amazonian proportions and quite terrifying (also very rough), and in 1795 two famous male boxers Mendoza and 'Gentleman Jackson' acted as seconds in a fight between Mrs Mary Ann Fielding and a 'Jewess of Wentworth Street'. The fight lasted 80 minutes and there were over 70 knockdowns between them for a prize of 11 guineas.
Bare-knuckle fighting for women continued into the 19thC, drawing an ever-rougher crowd. Fights were often staged at dawn before everyone went to work, or as they were coming home. An exception was 'The Boxing Baroness' Lady Barrymore, who used boxing to keep fit and amuse her sport-mad husband in the early 1820s. The Victorian period drove bare-knuckle fighting underground, and in 1867, the Marquess of Queensberry made boxing a sport for gentlemen.
AMERICAN BAREKNUCKLE BOXING
While fighting of various kinds was common on the American frontier, boxing was uncommon. The first two American boxers, both blacks, made their names in England.
The first was Bill Richmond of Staten Island, who became a servant of Lord Percy, the general who commanded the British forces occupying New York during the Revolution. In a number of matches against British soldiers, Richmond was unbeaten and Percy took him to England in 1777.
Known as the "Black Terror," Richmond knocked out his first English opponent in just 25 seconds. Not much is known of his career from then until 1805, when the 41-year-old Richmond was knocked out by British champion Tom Cribb. Richmond continued fighting occasionally until he was 52 and he never lost again.
Tom Molineaux (or Molyneaux) was a slave on a Virginia plantation who may have won his freedom because of his fighting skill. He went to England in 1809 and won two bouts before losing to Cribb in 1810. In a savage rematch a year later, Molineaux suffered a broken jaw in the 10th round and was knocked out in the 11th.
Richmond and Molineaux were little noted in their native country, however. The first known bout in the U. S. in which Jack Broughton's rules were more or less followed was a match between Jacob Hyer and Tom Beasley in 1816. Hyer won and claimed the American championship.
Nothing came of that, and Hyer never fought again. But his son, Tom, beat "Country McCloskey" (George McChester) in a widely-publicized fight on September 9, 1841, and was accepted as the American heavyweight champion.
Boxing had been banned in most English cities and towns by the middle of the 19th century, so a number of English fighters came to America, seeking competition. The best of them was Yankee Sullivan, who opened a saloon in New York in 1841 and defeated most of the best American fighters over the next several years.
Tom Hyer, billed as "the Great American Hope," came to the rescue. His $20,000 match against Sullivan in Rock Point, Maryland, on February 7, 1849, drew widespread interest. When Hyer won in 16 rounds, the news was wired to New York newspapers. It was the first sports story sent over the telegraph.
As boxing gained popularity, it also attracted opposition. A number of states banned prize fighting and others enforced existing bans that had been ignored. For decades, major fights took place in semi-secrecy, often near state lines so that participants and spectators could escape across the border if law officers showed up.
America's first genuine championship fight took place May 30, 1880, at Collier Station, West Virginia, near the Pennsylvania and Ohio borders. Joe Goss, widely considered the English champion, faced challenger Paddy Ryan, a native of Ireland. They fought for nearly an hour and a half before Ryan knocked out Goss in the 87th round.
Ryan was challenged almost almost immediately by John L. Sullivan of Boston, but he managed to avoid Sullivan until February 7, 1882. Their fight was originally scheduled for New Orleans, but was moved at the last minute to Mississippi City, Mississippi, because Louisiana authorities threatened action.
Sullivan won on a 9th-round knockout that took less than 11 minutes. He spent the next five years making money off the championship without putting it at risk, touring the country and fighting exhibitions, for the most part. His 6-round victory over Dominick McCaffrey in 1885 went almost unnoticed, but it gave Sullivan his second title, as world heavyweight champion under the Marquis of Queensberry rules.
Meanwhile, Jake Kilrain was being pushed as a contender by Richard Kyle Fox, publisher of the National Police Gazette. Early in 1887, Fox declared that Kilrain was the real champion and presented him with a diamond-studded championship belt. Sullivan's supporters immediately raised the money to buy an even more impressive belt for their champion.
Sullivan's first real title defense took place in Chantilly, France, on March 10, 1888. The challenger was England's Charley Mitchell, who weighed only about 160 pounds to Sullivan's 210. But the champion barely escaped with a draw, raising doubts about his ability and his physical condition.
In 1889, Sullivan finally accepted Kilrain's challenge. For the first time, newspapers carried extensive pre-fight coverage, reporting on the fighters' training and speculating on where the bout would take place. The center of activity was New Orleans, but the governor of Louisiana had forbidden the fight.
On July 7, an estimated 3,000 spectators boarded special trains for the secret location, which turned out to be Richburg, Mississippi. The fight began at 10:30 the following morning, and it looked as if Sullivan was going to lose, especially after he threw up during the 44th round.
But the champion got his second wind after that and Kilrain's manager finally threw in the towel after the 75th round. Sullivan's victory made him a true national hero.
Again, he focused on making as much money as possible outside of the ring. He spent all of 1890 touring in a stage production, Honest Hearts and Willing Hands, then went to Australia to fight a series of exhibitions.
When he returned to America late in 1891, he offered to fight any challenger under the Marquis of Queensberry rules for a purse of $25,000 and side bets of $10,000. James J. "Gentleman Jim" Corbett accepted the offer.
The first was Bill Richmond of Staten Island, who became a servant of Lord Percy, the general who commanded the British forces occupying New York during the Revolution. In a number of matches against British soldiers, Richmond was unbeaten and Percy took him to England in 1777.
Known as the "Black Terror," Richmond knocked out his first English opponent in just 25 seconds. Not much is known of his career from then until 1805, when the 41-year-old Richmond was knocked out by British champion Tom Cribb. Richmond continued fighting occasionally until he was 52 and he never lost again.
Tom Molineaux (or Molyneaux) was a slave on a Virginia plantation who may have won his freedom because of his fighting skill. He went to England in 1809 and won two bouts before losing to Cribb in 1810. In a savage rematch a year later, Molineaux suffered a broken jaw in the 10th round and was knocked out in the 11th.
Richmond and Molineaux were little noted in their native country, however. The first known bout in the U. S. in which Jack Broughton's rules were more or less followed was a match between Jacob Hyer and Tom Beasley in 1816. Hyer won and claimed the American championship.
Nothing came of that, and Hyer never fought again. But his son, Tom, beat "Country McCloskey" (George McChester) in a widely-publicized fight on September 9, 1841, and was accepted as the American heavyweight champion.
Boxing had been banned in most English cities and towns by the middle of the 19th century, so a number of English fighters came to America, seeking competition. The best of them was Yankee Sullivan, who opened a saloon in New York in 1841 and defeated most of the best American fighters over the next several years.
Tom Hyer, billed as "the Great American Hope," came to the rescue. His $20,000 match against Sullivan in Rock Point, Maryland, on February 7, 1849, drew widespread interest. When Hyer won in 16 rounds, the news was wired to New York newspapers. It was the first sports story sent over the telegraph.
As boxing gained popularity, it also attracted opposition. A number of states banned prize fighting and others enforced existing bans that had been ignored. For decades, major fights took place in semi-secrecy, often near state lines so that participants and spectators could escape across the border if law officers showed up.
America's first genuine championship fight took place May 30, 1880, at Collier Station, West Virginia, near the Pennsylvania and Ohio borders. Joe Goss, widely considered the English champion, faced challenger Paddy Ryan, a native of Ireland. They fought for nearly an hour and a half before Ryan knocked out Goss in the 87th round.
Ryan was challenged almost almost immediately by John L. Sullivan of Boston, but he managed to avoid Sullivan until February 7, 1882. Their fight was originally scheduled for New Orleans, but was moved at the last minute to Mississippi City, Mississippi, because Louisiana authorities threatened action.
Sullivan won on a 9th-round knockout that took less than 11 minutes. He spent the next five years making money off the championship without putting it at risk, touring the country and fighting exhibitions, for the most part. His 6-round victory over Dominick McCaffrey in 1885 went almost unnoticed, but it gave Sullivan his second title, as world heavyweight champion under the Marquis of Queensberry rules.
Meanwhile, Jake Kilrain was being pushed as a contender by Richard Kyle Fox, publisher of the National Police Gazette. Early in 1887, Fox declared that Kilrain was the real champion and presented him with a diamond-studded championship belt. Sullivan's supporters immediately raised the money to buy an even more impressive belt for their champion.
Sullivan's first real title defense took place in Chantilly, France, on March 10, 1888. The challenger was England's Charley Mitchell, who weighed only about 160 pounds to Sullivan's 210. But the champion barely escaped with a draw, raising doubts about his ability and his physical condition.
In 1889, Sullivan finally accepted Kilrain's challenge. For the first time, newspapers carried extensive pre-fight coverage, reporting on the fighters' training and speculating on where the bout would take place. The center of activity was New Orleans, but the governor of Louisiana had forbidden the fight.
On July 7, an estimated 3,000 spectators boarded special trains for the secret location, which turned out to be Richburg, Mississippi. The fight began at 10:30 the following morning, and it looked as if Sullivan was going to lose, especially after he threw up during the 44th round.
But the champion got his second wind after that and Kilrain's manager finally threw in the towel after the 75th round. Sullivan's victory made him a true national hero.
Again, he focused on making as much money as possible outside of the ring. He spent all of 1890 touring in a stage production, Honest Hearts and Willing Hands, then went to Australia to fight a series of exhibitions.
When he returned to America late in 1891, he offered to fight any challenger under the Marquis of Queensberry rules for a purse of $25,000 and side bets of $10,000. James J. "Gentleman Jim" Corbett accepted the offer.
INTERESTING FACTS
Bare-knuckle boxing (also known as bare-knuckle, prizefighting, or fisticuffs) is the original form of boxing, closely related to ancient combat sports. It involves two individuals fighting without any boxing gloves or other form of padding on their hands. The difference between a streetfight and a bare-knuckle boxing match is an accepted set of rules, such as not striking a downed opponent.
The first bare-knuckle champion of England was James Figg, who claimed the title in 1719 and held it until his retirement in 1730.[1] Other noted champions were Jack Broughton, Daniel Mendoza, Jem Belcher, Hen Pearce, John Gully, Tom Cribb, Tom Spring, Jem Ward, James Burke, William 'Bendigo' Thompson, Ben Caunt, Tom Sayers and Jem Mace.[1]
The record for the longest bareknuckle fight is listed as 6 hours and 15 minutes for a match between James Kelly and Jonathan Smith, fought near Fiery Creek, Victoria, Australia, on December 3, 1855, when Smith gave in after rounds. [2]
The bare-knuckle fighter Jem Mace is listed as having the longest professional career of any fighter in history.[3] He fought for more than 35 years into his 60s,[4] and recorded his last exhibition bout in 1909 at the age of 79.
"Irish Stand Down" is a term for a type of traditional bare knuckle fighting where the aspect of maneuvering around the ring is removed, leaving only the less nuanced aspects of punching and "taking" punches. This form of combat was popular in Irish American ghettos in the United States in the late 19th century but was eclipsed in the Irish American community first by bare knuckle boxing and then later by regulation boxing.
Jack Dempsey's 8-to 10-in punches traveled at an estimated 135 mph.
For a brief period, there was a sport in Kiev, U.S.S.R., called face slapping. The initial contest set an unequaled endurance record. In 1931, Wasyl Bezbordny and Michalko Goniusz slapped (open hand) each other's bloody faces for 30 hours. The contest was halted by spectators because neither man would be the 1st to quit.
In a boxing match at Hot Spring, S. Dak., on December 26, 1902, Oscar Nelson and Christy Williams knocked each other down a record 47 times. Nelson hit the canvas 5 times, and Williams 42.
The longest match with gloves and 3-minute rounds took place in New Orleans on April 6, 1893. Andy Bowen battled with Jack Burke for 110 rounds. Finally the 2 badly mauled fighters refused to go on and the bout was called "no contest."
Al Couture knocked out Ralph Walton in 10 1/2 seconds. Walton was still adjusting his mouthpiece when Couture flew across the ring and caught him with the knockout punch. This took place in Lewiston, Me., on September 24, 1946.
The longest bareknuckle fight on record occurred in Melbourne, Australia, on October 19, 1856. James Kelly and Jack Smith fought for 6 hours 15 minutes.
During John McNeill's tenure as deputy boxing commissioner of New York, 1924-1936, he saw 30,000 fights and 75,000 rounds of boxing.
Onetime light heavyweight champion, Battling Levinsky fought 58 hours in one year. In a single week he fought 6 different men.
Between August 10, 1938, and November 29, 1948, Hal Bagwell of Gloucester, England, fought 183 consecutive bouts without a defeat and only 5 draws.
Joe Grim, 150-lb. fighter from Philadelphia, sustained 20 years of being hit by men like Jack Johnston and Bob Fitzsimmons without being knocked out once. Grim, who actually had no offense and whose only defense was his incredible ability to absorb punches, was billed as the man who couldn't be knocked out, and he became one of the biggest draws in boxing. Finally, in 1920, he was KO'd by Sailor Burke.
Jim Mace, the English champion, and Joe Coburn, onetime U.S. titleholder, fought a bareknuckles bout in New Orleans in 1870. The fight was billed as the fight of the century, but when the actual contest was held it went 3 hours 48 minutes and neither man struck a blow.
Mace holds the record for the longest career of any professional fighter in history. He was in the ring for 35 years.
Only one fighter has ever been knighted. Sir Dan Donnelly, champion of Ireland around 1815, received the singular honor.
Between 1905 and 1918, Abe "The News-boy" Hollandersky fought 1,309 boxing matches and 387 wrestling matches.
Jack Dempsey fought only 138 minutes as world champion. During that time he made $2,137,000--or $15,000 per minute.
During his 18-year career as a boxer, James J. "Gentleman Jim" Corbett never had a black eye or a bloody nose.
Terry McGovern, holder of the bantam and featherweight crown, and a man who defeated the light-weight champion, was a "has been" before his 22nd birthday.
The first bare-knuckle champion of England was James Figg, who claimed the title in 1719 and held it until his retirement in 1730.[1] Other noted champions were Jack Broughton, Daniel Mendoza, Jem Belcher, Hen Pearce, John Gully, Tom Cribb, Tom Spring, Jem Ward, James Burke, William 'Bendigo' Thompson, Ben Caunt, Tom Sayers and Jem Mace.[1]
The record for the longest bareknuckle fight is listed as 6 hours and 15 minutes for a match between James Kelly and Jonathan Smith, fought near Fiery Creek, Victoria, Australia, on December 3, 1855, when Smith gave in after rounds. [2]
The bare-knuckle fighter Jem Mace is listed as having the longest professional career of any fighter in history.[3] He fought for more than 35 years into his 60s,[4] and recorded his last exhibition bout in 1909 at the age of 79.
"Irish Stand Down" is a term for a type of traditional bare knuckle fighting where the aspect of maneuvering around the ring is removed, leaving only the less nuanced aspects of punching and "taking" punches. This form of combat was popular in Irish American ghettos in the United States in the late 19th century but was eclipsed in the Irish American community first by bare knuckle boxing and then later by regulation boxing.
Jack Dempsey's 8-to 10-in punches traveled at an estimated 135 mph.
For a brief period, there was a sport in Kiev, U.S.S.R., called face slapping. The initial contest set an unequaled endurance record. In 1931, Wasyl Bezbordny and Michalko Goniusz slapped (open hand) each other's bloody faces for 30 hours. The contest was halted by spectators because neither man would be the 1st to quit.
In a boxing match at Hot Spring, S. Dak., on December 26, 1902, Oscar Nelson and Christy Williams knocked each other down a record 47 times. Nelson hit the canvas 5 times, and Williams 42.
The longest match with gloves and 3-minute rounds took place in New Orleans on April 6, 1893. Andy Bowen battled with Jack Burke for 110 rounds. Finally the 2 badly mauled fighters refused to go on and the bout was called "no contest."
Al Couture knocked out Ralph Walton in 10 1/2 seconds. Walton was still adjusting his mouthpiece when Couture flew across the ring and caught him with the knockout punch. This took place in Lewiston, Me., on September 24, 1946.
The longest bareknuckle fight on record occurred in Melbourne, Australia, on October 19, 1856. James Kelly and Jack Smith fought for 6 hours 15 minutes.
During John McNeill's tenure as deputy boxing commissioner of New York, 1924-1936, he saw 30,000 fights and 75,000 rounds of boxing.
Onetime light heavyweight champion, Battling Levinsky fought 58 hours in one year. In a single week he fought 6 different men.
Between August 10, 1938, and November 29, 1948, Hal Bagwell of Gloucester, England, fought 183 consecutive bouts without a defeat and only 5 draws.
Joe Grim, 150-lb. fighter from Philadelphia, sustained 20 years of being hit by men like Jack Johnston and Bob Fitzsimmons without being knocked out once. Grim, who actually had no offense and whose only defense was his incredible ability to absorb punches, was billed as the man who couldn't be knocked out, and he became one of the biggest draws in boxing. Finally, in 1920, he was KO'd by Sailor Burke.
Jim Mace, the English champion, and Joe Coburn, onetime U.S. titleholder, fought a bareknuckles bout in New Orleans in 1870. The fight was billed as the fight of the century, but when the actual contest was held it went 3 hours 48 minutes and neither man struck a blow.
Mace holds the record for the longest career of any professional fighter in history. He was in the ring for 35 years.
Only one fighter has ever been knighted. Sir Dan Donnelly, champion of Ireland around 1815, received the singular honor.
Between 1905 and 1918, Abe "The News-boy" Hollandersky fought 1,309 boxing matches and 387 wrestling matches.
Jack Dempsey fought only 138 minutes as world champion. During that time he made $2,137,000--or $15,000 per minute.
During his 18-year career as a boxer, James J. "Gentleman Jim" Corbett never had a black eye or a bloody nose.
Terry McGovern, holder of the bantam and featherweight crown, and a man who defeated the light-weight champion, was a "has been" before his 22nd birthday.
Ancient Greek Boxing
Ancient Greek boxing (Greek: Πυγμαχία
- Pygmachia, "fist fighting") dates back to at least the eighth century
BC (Homer's
Iliad),
and was practiced in a variety of social contexts in different Greek
city-states. Most extant sources about ancient Greek boxing are fragmentary or legendary, making it
difficult to reconstruct the rules, customs and history surrounding this
activity in great detail. Still, it is clear that gloved boxing bouts were a
significant part of ancient Greek athletic culture throughout the early
classical perio
There is archeological and artistic evidence of ancient Greek boxing
as early as the Minoan and Mycenaean periods. There are numerous legends about
the origins of boxing in Greece. One legend holds that the heroic ruler Theseus
invented a form of boxing in which two men sat face to face and beat each other
with their fists until one of them was killed. In time, the boxers began to
fight while standing and wearing gloves (with spikes) and wrappings on their
arms below the elbows, but otherwise they fought naked.
According to the Iliad, Mycenaean warriors included boxing among their
competitions honoring the fallen, though it is possible that the Homeric epics
reflect later Greek culture. Boxing was among the contests held in memorial of
Achilles'
slain friend Patroclus, toward the end of the Trojan war. It was in
commemoration of Patroclus that the Greeks later introduced boxing (pygme /
pygmachia) to the Olympic Games in 688 BC. Participants trained on
punching bags (called a korykos). Fighters wore leather straps (called himantes)
over their hands (leaving the fingers free), wrists, and sometimes breast, to
protect themselves from injury. There was no protection for the face or
head.
The scholar and historian Philostratus maintained that boxing was originally
developed in The city state spartas also located in Greece. Some believed zues
fought in war thatin order to harden warriors’ faces for battle. The early
Spartans believed helmets were unnecessary and boxing prepared them for the
inevitable blows to the head they would receive in battle. However,
Spartans never participated in the competitive aspect of boxing, believing the
means of defeat to be dishonorable
Until around 500 BC himantes were used as protection for the knuckles and
hand. They were thongs of ox hide approximately 3 to 3.7 meters long that were
wrapped around the hands and knuckles numerous times.
In around 400 BC sphairai were introduced. The sphairai were very
similar to himantes. The only notable difference was that they contained a
padded interior when wrapped around the hands and the exterior of the thong was
notably more rigid and hard.
Soon after the implementation of the sphairai, the oxys were introduced to boxing. They consisted of
several thick leather bands encircling the hand, wrist, and forearm. A band of
fleece was placed on the forearm to wipe away sweat. Leather braces extended up
the forearm to give greater support when punching and the knuckles were
reinforced with leather as well.
Korykos were the equivalent to modern punching bags. They were used for
practice in the Palaestra and were filled with sand, flour, or millet.
Rules
The right boxer signals giving up by raising
his finger high (ca. 500 BC)
The currently accepted rules of ancient Greek boxing are based on historical
references and images. Because of the few intact sources and references to the
sport, the rules can only be inferred.
- Pygmachia, "fist fighting") dates back to at least the eighth century
BC (Homer's
Iliad),
and was practiced in a variety of social contexts in different Greek
city-states. Most extant sources about ancient Greek boxing are fragmentary or legendary, making it
difficult to reconstruct the rules, customs and history surrounding this
activity in great detail. Still, it is clear that gloved boxing bouts were a
significant part of ancient Greek athletic culture throughout the early
classical perio
There is archeological and artistic evidence of ancient Greek boxing
as early as the Minoan and Mycenaean periods. There are numerous legends about
the origins of boxing in Greece. One legend holds that the heroic ruler Theseus
invented a form of boxing in which two men sat face to face and beat each other
with their fists until one of them was killed. In time, the boxers began to
fight while standing and wearing gloves (with spikes) and wrappings on their
arms below the elbows, but otherwise they fought naked.
According to the Iliad, Mycenaean warriors included boxing among their
competitions honoring the fallen, though it is possible that the Homeric epics
reflect later Greek culture. Boxing was among the contests held in memorial of
Achilles'
slain friend Patroclus, toward the end of the Trojan war. It was in
commemoration of Patroclus that the Greeks later introduced boxing (pygme /
pygmachia) to the Olympic Games in 688 BC. Participants trained on
punching bags (called a korykos). Fighters wore leather straps (called himantes)
over their hands (leaving the fingers free), wrists, and sometimes breast, to
protect themselves from injury. There was no protection for the face or
head.
The scholar and historian Philostratus maintained that boxing was originally
developed in The city state spartas also located in Greece. Some believed zues
fought in war thatin order to harden warriors’ faces for battle. The early
Spartans believed helmets were unnecessary and boxing prepared them for the
inevitable blows to the head they would receive in battle. However,
Spartans never participated in the competitive aspect of boxing, believing the
means of defeat to be dishonorable
Until around 500 BC himantes were used as protection for the knuckles and
hand. They were thongs of ox hide approximately 3 to 3.7 meters long that were
wrapped around the hands and knuckles numerous times.
In around 400 BC sphairai were introduced. The sphairai were very
similar to himantes. The only notable difference was that they contained a
padded interior when wrapped around the hands and the exterior of the thong was
notably more rigid and hard.
Soon after the implementation of the sphairai, the oxys were introduced to boxing. They consisted of
several thick leather bands encircling the hand, wrist, and forearm. A band of
fleece was placed on the forearm to wipe away sweat. Leather braces extended up
the forearm to give greater support when punching and the knuckles were
reinforced with leather as well.
Korykos were the equivalent to modern punching bags. They were used for
practice in the Palaestra and were filled with sand, flour, or millet.
Rules
The right boxer signals giving up by raising
his finger high (ca. 500 BC)
The currently accepted rules of ancient Greek boxing are based on historical
references and images. Because of the few intact sources and references to the
sport, the rules can only be inferred.
- No holds or wrestling
- Any type of blow with the hand was allowed but no gouging with the
fingers - No ring was used
- There were no rounds or time limits
- Victory was decided when one fighter gave up or was incapacitated
- No weight-classes, opponents were selected by chance
- Judges enforced the rules by beating offenders with a switch
- Fighters could opt to exchange blows undefended if the fight lasted too
long
Pankration
Pankration ( /pæn.ˈkreɪti.ɒn/
or /pæŋˈkreɪʃən/)
was a martial art introduced into the Greek Olympic Games in 648 BC and founded as a blend of boxing and wrestling but with almost no rules save disallowing
biting and gouging the opponent's eyes out. The term comes from the Greek παγκράτιον [paŋkrátion], literally meaning "all powers"
from πᾶν (pan-) "all" + κράτος (kratos) "strength, power".
Modern mixed martial arts competitions have come to feature
many of the same methods that were used in pankration competitions in the
ancient Greek world.
In Greek mythology, it was said that the heroes Heracles and Theseus invented pankration as a result of using both
wrestling and boxing in their confrontations with opponents. Theseus was said to
have utilized his extraordinary pankration skills to defeat the dreaded Minotaur
in the Labyrinth. Heracles was said to have subdued the Nemean
lion using pankration, and was often depicted in ancient artwork
doing that. In this context, it should be noted that pankration was also
referred to as pammachon or pammachion (πάμμαχον or παμμάχιον), meaning
"total combat", from πᾶν-, pān-, "all-" or "total", and μάχη,
machē, "combat". The term pammachon was older, and would
later become used less than the term pankration.
The mainstream academic view has been that pankration was the product of the
development of archaic Greek society of the seventh century BC, whereby, as the
need for expression in violent sport increased, pankration filled a niche of
"total contest" that neither boxing or wrestling could. However,
some evidence suggests that pankration, in both its sporting form and its
combative form, may have been practiced in Greece already from the second
millennium BC.
Pankration, as practiced in historical antiquity, was an athletic event that
combined techniques of both boxing (pygmē/pygmachia - πυγμή/πυγμαχία) and wrestling (palē - πάλη), as well as additional
elements, such as the use of strikes with the lower extremities, to create a
broad fighting sport very similar to early 1990's mixed martial arts competitions. There is evidence
that, although knockouts were common, most pankration competitions were probably
decided on the ground where both striking and submission techniques would freely
come into play. Pankratiasts were highly skilled grapplers and were extremely
effective in applying a variety of takedowns, chokes and punishing joint locks. In extreme cases a pankration
competition could even result in the death of one of the opponents, which was
considered a win.
However, pankration was more than just an event in the athletic competitions
of the ancient Greek world; it was also part of the arsenal of Greek soldiers –
including the famous Spartan hoplites and Alexander the Great's Macedonian phalanx.
The feats of the ancient pankratiasts became legendary in the annals of Greek
athletics. Stories abound of past champions who were considered invincible
beings. Arrhichion, Dioxippus, Polydamas of Skotoussa and Theagenes are among the
most highly-recognized names. Their accomplishments defying the odds were some
of the most inspiring of ancient Greek athletics and they served as inspiration
to the Hellenic world for centuries, as Pausanias,] the
ancient traveller and writer indicates when he re-tells these stories in his
narrative of his travels around Greece.
Dioxippus was an Athenian who had won the Olympic Games in 336 BC, and was
serving in Alexander the Great's army in its expedition into Asia. As an admired
champion, he naturally became part of the circle of Alexander the Great. In that context, he accepted a
challenge from one of Alexander's most skilled soldiers named Coragus to fight in front of Alexander and the troops
in armed combat. While Coragus fought with weapons and full armour, Dioxippus
showed up armed only with a club and defeated Coragus without killing him,
making use of his pankration skills. Later, however, Dioxippus was framed for
theft, which led him to commit suicide.
In an odd turn of events, a pankration fighter named Arrhichion (Ἀρριχίων) of Phigalia won the pankration competition at the
Olympic Games despite being dead. His opponent had locked him in a chokehold and
Arrhichion, desperate to loosen it, broke his opponent's toe (some records say
his ankle). The opponent nearly passed out from pain and submitted. As the
referee raised Arrhichion's hand, it was discovered that he had died from the
chokehold. His body was crowned with the olive wreath and taken back to
Phigaleia as a hero.
By the Imperial Period, the Romans had adopted the Greek
combat sport (spelled in Latin as pancratium) into their Games. In 393
A.D., the pankration, along with gladiatorial combat and all pagan festivals,
was abolished by edict
of the Christian Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I. Pankration itself was an event in the
Olympic Games for some 1,000 years. It is a matter of controversy whether and to
what extent pankration persisted in Greek and the broader Byzantine society
after the ancient Games were discontinued.
There were neither weight divisions nor time limits in pankration
competitions. However, there were two or three age groups in the competitions of
antiquity. In the Olympic Games specifically there were only two such age
groups: men (andres - ἄνδρες) and boys (paides - παῖδες). The pankration event
for boys was established at the Olympic Games in 200 B.C.. In pankration
competitions, referees were armed with stout rods or switches to enforce the
rules. In fact, there were only two rules regarding combat: no eye gouging or
biting.
The contest itself usually continued uninterrupted until one of the combatants
submitted, which was often signalled by the submitting contestant raising his
index finger. The judges appear, however, to have had the right to stop a
contest under certain conditions and award the victory to one of the two
athletes; they could also declare the contest a tie.
Pankration competitions were held in tournaments, most being outside of the
Olympics. Each tournament began with a ritual which would decide how the
tournament would take place. Grecophone satirist Lucian describes the process in a
detailed manner:
A sacred silver urn is brought, in which they have put bean-size lots. On two lots an
alpha is inscribed, on two a beta, and on another two a gamma, and so on. If
there are more athletes, two lots always have the same letter. Each athlete
comes forth, prays to Zeus, puts his hand into the urn and draws out a lot.
Following him, the other athletes do the same. Whip bearers are standing next to
the athletes, holding their hands and not allowing them to read the letter they
have drawn. When everyone has drawn a lot, the alytarch, or one of
the Hellanodikai walks around and looks at the lots of
the athletes as they stand in a circle. He then joins the athlete holding the
alpha to the other who has drawn the alpha for wrestling or pankration, the one
who has the beta to the other with the beta, and the other matching inscribed
lots in the same manner.
”
This process was apparently repeated every round until the finals.
If there was an odd number of competitors, there would be a bye (ἔφεδρος —
ephedros "reserve") in every round until the last one. The same athlete could be
an ephedros more than once, and this could of course be of great advantage to
him as the ephedros would be spared the wear and tear of the rounds imposed on
his opponent(s). To win a tournament without being an ephedros in any of the
rounds (ἀνέφεδρος — anephedros "non-reserve") was thus an honorable
distinction.
There is evidence that the major Games in Greek antiquity easily had four
tournament rounds, that is, a field of sixteen athletes. Xanthos mentions the largest number—nine tournament
rounds. If these tournament rounds were held in one competition, up to 512
contestants would participate in the tournament, which is difficult to believe
for a single contest. Therefore one can hypothesize that the nine rounds
included those in which the athlete participated during regional qualification
competitions that were held before the major games. Such preliminary contests
were held prior to the major games to determine who would participate in the
main event. This makes sense, as the 15-20 athletes competing in the major games
could not have been the only available contestants. There is clear evidence of
this in Plato, who refers to competitors in the Panhellenic Games, with opponents numbering in the
thousands. Moreover, in the first century A.D., the Greco-Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria —who was himself probably a
practitioner of pankration— makes a statement that could be an allusion to
preliminary contests in which an athlete would participate and then collect his
strength before coming forward fresh in the major competition
.
The athletes engaged in a pankration competition-i.e., the pankratiasts
(παγκρατιαστές) employed a variety of techniques in order to strike their
opponent as well as take him to the ground in order to use a submission
technique. When the pankratiasts fought standing, the combat was called anō
pankration (ἄνω παγκράτιον); and when
they took the fight to the ground, that stage of pankration competition was
called katō pankration (κάτω παγκράτιον). Some of the techniques that
would be applied in anō pankration and katō pankration, respectively, are known
to us through depictions on ancient pottery and sculptures, as well as in
descriptions in ancient literature. There were also strategies documented in
ancient literature that were meant to be used to obtain an advantage over the
competitor. For illustration purposes, below are examples of striking and
grappling techniques (including examples of counters), as well as strategies and
tactics, that have been identified from the ancient sources (visual arts or
literature).
The pankratiast faces his opponent with a nearly frontal stance—only slightly
turned sideways. This is an intermediate directional positioning, between the
wrestler's more frontal positioning and the boxer's more sideways stance and is
consistent with the need to preserve both the option of using striking and
protecting the center line of the body and the option of applying grappling
techniques. Thus, the left side of the body is slightly forward of the right
side of the body and the left hand is more forward than the right one. Both
hands are held high so that the tips of the fingers are at the level of the
hairline or just below the top of the head. The hands are partially open, the
fingers are relaxed, and the palms are facing naturally forward, down, and
slightly towards each other. The front arm is nearly fully extended but not
entirely so; the rear arm is more cambered than the front arm, but more extended
than a modern-day boxer's rear arm. The back of the athlete is somewhat rounded,
but not as much as a wrestler's would be. The body is only slightly leaning
forward.
The weight is virtually all on the back (right) foot with the front (left)
foot touching the ground with the ball of the foot. It is a stance in which the
athlete is ready at the same time to give a kick with the front leg as well as
defend against the opponent's low level kicks by lifting the front knee and
blocking. The back leg is bent for stability and power and is facing slightly to
the side, to go with the slightly sideways body position. The head and torso are
behind the protecting two upper limbs and front leg. In Sparta,
biting and eye gouging are allowed, but in national Events (Olympics) it is
strictly forbidden.
Strikes delivered with the legs were an integral part of pankration and one
of its most characteristic features. Kicking well was a great advantage to the
pankratiast. Epiktētos is making a derogatory reference to a
compliment one may give another: "μεγάλα λακτίζεις" ("you kick great").
Moreover, in an accolade to the fighting prowess of the pankratiast Glykon from
Pergamo, the athlete is described as "wide foot". The characterization comes
actually before the reference to his "unbeatable hands", implying at least as
crucial a role for strikes with the feet as with the hands in pankration. That
proficiency in kicking could carry the pankratiast to victory is indicated in a
sarcastic passage of Galen, where he awards the winning prize in pankration to a
donkey because of its excellence in kicking.
The straight kick with the bottom of the foot to the stomach
(γαστρίζειν/λάκτισμα εἰς γαστέραν — gastrizein or laktisma eis
gasteran, "kicking in the stomach") was apparently a common technique, given
the number of depictions of such kicks on vases. This type of kick is mentioned
by Lucian.
Counter:
The athlete sidesteps to the outside of the oncoming kick but
grasps the inside of the kicking leg from behind the knee with his front hand
(overhand grip) and pulls up, which tends to unbalance the opponent so that he
falls backward as the athlete advances. The back hand can be used for striking
the opponent while he is preoccupied maintaining his balance. This counter is
shown on a Panathenaic amphora now in Leiden. In another counter, the athlete sidesteps the
oncoming kick, but now to the inside of the opponent's leg. He catches and lifts
the heel/foot of the planted leg with his rear hand and with the front arm goes
under the knee of the kicking leg, hooks it with the nook of his elbow, and
lifts while advancing to throw the opponent backward. The athlete executing the
counter has to lean forward to avoid hand strikes by the opponent.
Single shoulder lock (overextension)
The athlete is behind the opponent and has him leaning down, with the right
knee of the opponent on the ground. The athlete has the opponent's right arm
straightened out and extended maximally backward at the shoulder joint. With the
opponent's right arm across his own torso, the athlete uses his left hand to
keep the pressure on the opponent's right arm by grabbing and pressing down on
it just above the wrist. The right hand of the athlete is pressing down at the
(side of) the head of the opponent, thus not permitting him to rotate to his
right to relieve the pressure on his shoulder. As the opponent could escape by
lowering himself closer to the ground and rolling, the athlete steps with his
left leg over the left leg of the opponent and wraps his foot around the ankle
of the opponent stepping on his instep, while pushing his body weight on the
back of the opponent.
Single arm bar (elbow lock)
In this technique, the position of the bodies is very similar to the one
described just above. The athlete executing the technique is standing over his
opponent's back, while the latter is down on his right knee. The left leg of the
athlete is straddling the left thigh of the opponent—the left knee of the
opponent is not on the floor—and is trapping the left foot of the opponent by
stepping on it. The athlete uses his left hand to push down on the side/back of
the head of the opponent while with his right hand he pulls the opponent's right
arm back, against his midsection. This creates an arm bar on the right arm with
the pressure now being mostly on the elbow. The fallen opponent cannot relieve
it, because his head is being shoved the opposite way by the left hand of the
athlete executing the technique.
Arm bar - shoulder lock combination
In this technique, the athlete is again behind his opponent, has the left arm
of his opponent trapped, and is pulling back on his right arm. The trapped left
arm is bent, with the fingers and palm trapped inside the armpit of the athlete.
To trap the left arm, the athlete has pushed (from outside) his own left arm
underneath the left elbow of the opponent. The athlete's left hand ends up
pressing down on the scapula region of his opponent's back. This position does
not permit the opponent to pull out his hand from the athlete's armpit and puts
pressure on the left shoulder. The right arm of the athlete is pulling back at
the opponent's right wrist (or forearm). In this way, the athlete keeps the
right arm of his opponent straightened and tightly pulled against his right
hip/lower abdomen area, which results in an arm bar putting pressure on the
right elbow. The athlete is in full contact on top of the opponent, with his
right leg in front of the right leg of the opponent to block him from escaping
by rolling forward.
Tracheal grip choke
In executing this choking technique (ἄγχειν — anchein), the athlete grabs the
tracheal area (windpipe and "Adam's apple") between his thumb and his four fingers
and squeezes. This type of choke can be applied with the athlete being in front
or behind his opponent. Regarding the hand grip to be used with this choke, the
web area between the thumb and the index finger is to be quite high up the neck
and the thumb is bent inward and downward, "reaching" behind the Adam's apple of
the opponent. It is unclear if such a grip would have been considered gouging
and thus illegal in the Panhellenic Games.
Tracheal dig using the thumb
The athlete grabs the throat of the opponent with the four fingers on the
outside of the throat and the tip of the thumb pressing in and down the hollow
of the throat, putting pressure on the trachea.
Choke from behind with the forearm
The athlete has put himself behind his opponent, who is either in the
standing, prone, or prostrate position. The choke is applied by placing the
forearm against the trachea (i.e. the forearm is parallel to the
clavicles of the opponent) and pulling back, with the other hand of the athlete
possibly assisting the pull by gripping the hand of the choking arm. The
pressure on the trachea is painful and causes a reduction of air flow to the
lungs. An alternative, and less painful way of applying this choke, is to bend
the choking arm in a "V" shape and put pressure with the biceps and the forearm
on the two sides of the neck, respectively; this is a circulatory choke, which
puts pressure on the arteries taking blood to the brain and thus deprives the
brain of oxygen. The chokes from behind were usually accompanied with a
grapevine body lock (ἄγχειν μετὰ κλιμακισμοῦ — anchein meta klimakismou "choking
with the ladder trick"), as the resulting stretch of the body of the opponent
accentuated the effect of the choke. There are few representations of this type
of choke in surviving art objects, but there are a number of references to it in
the ancient literature. Modern mixed martial artists would note the similarity
of this technique to a rear naked choke.
Counter:
A counter to the choke from behind involves the twisting of one of
the fingers of the choking arm. This counter is mentioned by Philostratus. In
case the choke was set together with a grapevine body lock, another counter was
the one applied against that lock; by causing enough pain to the ankle of the
opponent, the latter could give up his choke.
Throws and takedowns
Heave from a reverse waist lock
From a reverse waist lock set from the front, and staying with hips close to
the opponent, the athlete lifts and rotates his opponent using the strength of
his hips and legs (ἀναβαστάσαι εἰς ὕψος — anabastasai eis hypsos, "high
lifting"). Depending on the torque the athlete imparts, the opponent becomes
more or less vertically inverted, facing the body of the athlete. If however the
reverse waist lock is set from the back of the opponent, then the latter would
face away from the athlete in the inverted position.
To finish the attack, the athlete has the option of either dropping his
opponent head-first to the ground, or driving him into the ground while
retaining the hold. To execute the latter option, the athlete bends one of his
legs and goes down on that knee while the other leg remains only partially bent;
this is presumably to allow for greater mobility in case the "pile driver" does
not work. Another approach emphasizes less putting the opponent in an inverted
vertical position and more the throw; it is shown in a sculpture in the metōpē (μετώπη) of the Hephaisteion in Athens, where Theseus is depicted
heaving Kerkyōn.
Heave from a waist lock following a sprawl
The opponents are facing in opposite directions with the athlete at a higher
level, over the back of his opponent. The athlete can get in this position after
making a shallow sprawl to counter a tackle attempt. From here the athlete sets
a waist lock by encircling, from the back, the torso of the opponent with his
arms and securing a "handshake" grip close to the abdomen of the opponent. He
then heaves the opponent back and up, using the muscles of his legs and his
back, so that the opponent's feet rise in the air and he ends up inverted,
perpendicular to the ground, and facing away from the athlete. The throw
finishes with a "pile driver" or, alternatively, with a simple release of the
opponent so that he falls to the ground.
Heave from a waist lock from behind
The athlete passes to the back of his opponent, secures a regular waist lock,
lifts and throws/ drops the opponent backwards and sideways. As a result of
these moves, the opponent would tend to land on his side or face down. The
athlete can follow the opponent to the ground and place himself on his back,
where he could strike him or choke him from behind while holding him in the
"grapevine" body lock (see above), stretching him face down on the ground. This
technique is described by the Roman poet Statius in his account of a match between the hero
Tydeus of Thebes and an opponent in the Thebaid. Tydeus is described to have followed this takedown
with a choke while applying the "grapevine" body lock on the prone opponent.
Strategy and tactics
Positioning in the skamma (σκάμμα "pit")
As the pankration competitions were held outside and in the afternoon,
appropriately positioning one's face vis-a-vis the low sun was a major
tactical objective. The pankratiast, as well as the boxer, did not want to have
to face the ever-present Greek sun, as this would partly blind him to the blows
of the opponent and make accurate delivery of strikes to specific targets
difficult. Theocritus, in his narration of the (boxing) match between Polydeukēs
and Amykos,
noted that the two opponents struggled a lot, vying to see who would get the
sun's rays on his back. In the end, with skill and cunning, Polydeukēs managed
so that Amykos' face was struck with sunlight while his own was in the
shade.
While this positioning was of paramount importance in boxing, which involved
only upright striking (with the eyes facing straight), it was also important in
pankration, especially in the beginning of the competition and as long as the
athletes remained standing.
Remaining standing versus going to the ground
The decision to remain standing or go to the ground obviously depended on the
relative strengths of the athlete, and differed between anō and
katō pankration. However, there are indications that staying on one's
feet was generally considered a positive thing, while touching the knee(s) to
the ground or being put to the ground was overall considered disadvantageous. In
fact, in antiquity as today, falling to one's knee(s) was a metaphor for coming
to a disadvantage and putting oneself at risk of losing the fight, as argued
persuasively by Michael B. Poliakoff.,
Offensive versus reactive fighting
Regarding the choice of attacking into the attack of the opponent versus
defending and retreating, there are indications, e.g. from boxing, that it was
preferable to attack. Dio Chrysostom notes that retreat under fear tends to
result in even greater injuries, while attacking before the opponent strikes is
less injurious and could very well end in victory.
Identifying and exploiting the weak side of an opponent
As indicated by Plato in his Laws, an important element of strategy
was to understand if the opponent had a weak or untrained side and to force him
to operate on that side and generally take advantage of that weakness. For
example, if the athlete recognizes that the opponent is strictly right-handed,
he could circle away from the right hand of the opponent and towards the left
side of the opponent. Moreover, if the opponent is weak in his left-side throws,
the athlete could aim to position himself accordingly. Training in ambidexterity
was instrumental in both applying this strategy and not falling victim to
it.
Aspects of pankration preparation and practice
The basic instruction of pankration techniques was conducted by the
paedotribae (παιδοτρίβαι, "physical trainers"), who
were in charge of boys' physical education. High
level athletes were also trained by special trainers who were called gymnastae
(γυμνασταί),] some of
whom had been successful pankration competitors themselves. There are
indications that the methods and techniques used by different athletes varied,
i.e., there were different styles. While specific styles taught by different
teachers, in the mode of Asian martial arts, cannot be excluded, it is very
clear (including in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics) that the objective of a
teacher of combat sports was to help each of his athletes to develop his
personal style that would fit his strengths and weaknesses.
The preparation of pankratiasts included a very wide variety of methods, most of
which would be immediately recognizable by the trainers of modern high level
athletes, including competitors in modern mixed martial arts competitions. These methods
included among others the periodization of training; a wealth of regimes for the
development of strength, speed-strength, speed, stamina, and endurance;
specialized training for the different stages of competition (i.e., for anō
pankration and katō pankration), and methods for learning and engraining
techniques. Interestingly, among the multitude of the latter were also training
tools that appear to be very similar to Asian martial arts Forms or kata, and were known as cheironomia
(χειρονομία) and anapale (ἀναπάλη). Punching bags (kōrykos κώρυκος
"leather sack") of different sizes and dummies were used for striking practice
as well as for the hardening of the body and limbs. Nutrition, massage, and
other recovery techniques were used very actively by pankratiasts.
Today, pankration is developed by International Federation of Associated Wrestling
Styles (Fédération Internationale des Luttes Associées or
FILA) as a mild form of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). When including pankration into
its field of activities, FILA had the vision to encourage the perpetuation of
this ancient form of total combat.
At the time of the revival of Olympic Games (1896), pankration was not
reinstated as an Olympic event. Specifically, in 1895 the Cardinal of Lyon voiced his official decision on the
reinstatement of sports to Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the Modern
Olympic Games, by stating "Nous acceptons tout, sauf pankration" meaning "We
accept all [events to be reinstated], except pankration". The International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not
include pankration in its list of recognized sports. Moreover, the IOC does not
include in the list of the Association of the IOC Recognised International
Sports Federations any international pankration federation.
Some efforts were made prior to the 2004 Olympic Games that were held in
Athens to have a discussion with the IOC regarding the introduction of
pankration as a "demonstration sport" in the program, as hosting countries have
the prerogative to do so, leading usually to the entry of the demonstration
sport in the list of the "recognized sports" and thus its becoming a regular
event in the Olympic program. However, these efforts were unsuccessfu
or /pæŋˈkreɪʃən/)
was a martial art introduced into the Greek Olympic Games in 648 BC and founded as a blend of boxing and wrestling but with almost no rules save disallowing
biting and gouging the opponent's eyes out. The term comes from the Greek παγκράτιον [paŋkrátion], literally meaning "all powers"
from πᾶν (pan-) "all" + κράτος (kratos) "strength, power".
Modern mixed martial arts competitions have come to feature
many of the same methods that were used in pankration competitions in the
ancient Greek world.
In Greek mythology, it was said that the heroes Heracles and Theseus invented pankration as a result of using both
wrestling and boxing in their confrontations with opponents. Theseus was said to
have utilized his extraordinary pankration skills to defeat the dreaded Minotaur
in the Labyrinth. Heracles was said to have subdued the Nemean
lion using pankration, and was often depicted in ancient artwork
doing that. In this context, it should be noted that pankration was also
referred to as pammachon or pammachion (πάμμαχον or παμμάχιον), meaning
"total combat", from πᾶν-, pān-, "all-" or "total", and μάχη,
machē, "combat". The term pammachon was older, and would
later become used less than the term pankration.
The mainstream academic view has been that pankration was the product of the
development of archaic Greek society of the seventh century BC, whereby, as the
need for expression in violent sport increased, pankration filled a niche of
"total contest" that neither boxing or wrestling could. However,
some evidence suggests that pankration, in both its sporting form and its
combative form, may have been practiced in Greece already from the second
millennium BC.
Pankration, as practiced in historical antiquity, was an athletic event that
combined techniques of both boxing (pygmē/pygmachia - πυγμή/πυγμαχία) and wrestling (palē - πάλη), as well as additional
elements, such as the use of strikes with the lower extremities, to create a
broad fighting sport very similar to early 1990's mixed martial arts competitions. There is evidence
that, although knockouts were common, most pankration competitions were probably
decided on the ground where both striking and submission techniques would freely
come into play. Pankratiasts were highly skilled grapplers and were extremely
effective in applying a variety of takedowns, chokes and punishing joint locks. In extreme cases a pankration
competition could even result in the death of one of the opponents, which was
considered a win.
However, pankration was more than just an event in the athletic competitions
of the ancient Greek world; it was also part of the arsenal of Greek soldiers –
including the famous Spartan hoplites and Alexander the Great's Macedonian phalanx.
The feats of the ancient pankratiasts became legendary in the annals of Greek
athletics. Stories abound of past champions who were considered invincible
beings. Arrhichion, Dioxippus, Polydamas of Skotoussa and Theagenes are among the
most highly-recognized names. Their accomplishments defying the odds were some
of the most inspiring of ancient Greek athletics and they served as inspiration
to the Hellenic world for centuries, as Pausanias,] the
ancient traveller and writer indicates when he re-tells these stories in his
narrative of his travels around Greece.
Dioxippus was an Athenian who had won the Olympic Games in 336 BC, and was
serving in Alexander the Great's army in its expedition into Asia. As an admired
champion, he naturally became part of the circle of Alexander the Great. In that context, he accepted a
challenge from one of Alexander's most skilled soldiers named Coragus to fight in front of Alexander and the troops
in armed combat. While Coragus fought with weapons and full armour, Dioxippus
showed up armed only with a club and defeated Coragus without killing him,
making use of his pankration skills. Later, however, Dioxippus was framed for
theft, which led him to commit suicide.
In an odd turn of events, a pankration fighter named Arrhichion (Ἀρριχίων) of Phigalia won the pankration competition at the
Olympic Games despite being dead. His opponent had locked him in a chokehold and
Arrhichion, desperate to loosen it, broke his opponent's toe (some records say
his ankle). The opponent nearly passed out from pain and submitted. As the
referee raised Arrhichion's hand, it was discovered that he had died from the
chokehold. His body was crowned with the olive wreath and taken back to
Phigaleia as a hero.
By the Imperial Period, the Romans had adopted the Greek
combat sport (spelled in Latin as pancratium) into their Games. In 393
A.D., the pankration, along with gladiatorial combat and all pagan festivals,
was abolished by edict
of the Christian Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I. Pankration itself was an event in the
Olympic Games for some 1,000 years. It is a matter of controversy whether and to
what extent pankration persisted in Greek and the broader Byzantine society
after the ancient Games were discontinued.
There were neither weight divisions nor time limits in pankration
competitions. However, there were two or three age groups in the competitions of
antiquity. In the Olympic Games specifically there were only two such age
groups: men (andres - ἄνδρες) and boys (paides - παῖδες). The pankration event
for boys was established at the Olympic Games in 200 B.C.. In pankration
competitions, referees were armed with stout rods or switches to enforce the
rules. In fact, there were only two rules regarding combat: no eye gouging or
biting.
The contest itself usually continued uninterrupted until one of the combatants
submitted, which was often signalled by the submitting contestant raising his
index finger. The judges appear, however, to have had the right to stop a
contest under certain conditions and award the victory to one of the two
athletes; they could also declare the contest a tie.
Pankration competitions were held in tournaments, most being outside of the
Olympics. Each tournament began with a ritual which would decide how the
tournament would take place. Grecophone satirist Lucian describes the process in a
detailed manner:
A sacred silver urn is brought, in which they have put bean-size lots. On two lots an
alpha is inscribed, on two a beta, and on another two a gamma, and so on. If
there are more athletes, two lots always have the same letter. Each athlete
comes forth, prays to Zeus, puts his hand into the urn and draws out a lot.
Following him, the other athletes do the same. Whip bearers are standing next to
the athletes, holding their hands and not allowing them to read the letter they
have drawn. When everyone has drawn a lot, the alytarch, or one of
the Hellanodikai walks around and looks at the lots of
the athletes as they stand in a circle. He then joins the athlete holding the
alpha to the other who has drawn the alpha for wrestling or pankration, the one
who has the beta to the other with the beta, and the other matching inscribed
lots in the same manner.
”
This process was apparently repeated every round until the finals.
If there was an odd number of competitors, there would be a bye (ἔφεδρος —
ephedros "reserve") in every round until the last one. The same athlete could be
an ephedros more than once, and this could of course be of great advantage to
him as the ephedros would be spared the wear and tear of the rounds imposed on
his opponent(s). To win a tournament without being an ephedros in any of the
rounds (ἀνέφεδρος — anephedros "non-reserve") was thus an honorable
distinction.
There is evidence that the major Games in Greek antiquity easily had four
tournament rounds, that is, a field of sixteen athletes. Xanthos mentions the largest number—nine tournament
rounds. If these tournament rounds were held in one competition, up to 512
contestants would participate in the tournament, which is difficult to believe
for a single contest. Therefore one can hypothesize that the nine rounds
included those in which the athlete participated during regional qualification
competitions that were held before the major games. Such preliminary contests
were held prior to the major games to determine who would participate in the
main event. This makes sense, as the 15-20 athletes competing in the major games
could not have been the only available contestants. There is clear evidence of
this in Plato, who refers to competitors in the Panhellenic Games, with opponents numbering in the
thousands. Moreover, in the first century A.D., the Greco-Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria —who was himself probably a
practitioner of pankration— makes a statement that could be an allusion to
preliminary contests in which an athlete would participate and then collect his
strength before coming forward fresh in the major competition
.
The athletes engaged in a pankration competition-i.e., the pankratiasts
(παγκρατιαστές) employed a variety of techniques in order to strike their
opponent as well as take him to the ground in order to use a submission
technique. When the pankratiasts fought standing, the combat was called anō
pankration (ἄνω παγκράτιον); and when
they took the fight to the ground, that stage of pankration competition was
called katō pankration (κάτω παγκράτιον). Some of the techniques that
would be applied in anō pankration and katō pankration, respectively, are known
to us through depictions on ancient pottery and sculptures, as well as in
descriptions in ancient literature. There were also strategies documented in
ancient literature that were meant to be used to obtain an advantage over the
competitor. For illustration purposes, below are examples of striking and
grappling techniques (including examples of counters), as well as strategies and
tactics, that have been identified from the ancient sources (visual arts or
literature).
The pankratiast faces his opponent with a nearly frontal stance—only slightly
turned sideways. This is an intermediate directional positioning, between the
wrestler's more frontal positioning and the boxer's more sideways stance and is
consistent with the need to preserve both the option of using striking and
protecting the center line of the body and the option of applying grappling
techniques. Thus, the left side of the body is slightly forward of the right
side of the body and the left hand is more forward than the right one. Both
hands are held high so that the tips of the fingers are at the level of the
hairline or just below the top of the head. The hands are partially open, the
fingers are relaxed, and the palms are facing naturally forward, down, and
slightly towards each other. The front arm is nearly fully extended but not
entirely so; the rear arm is more cambered than the front arm, but more extended
than a modern-day boxer's rear arm. The back of the athlete is somewhat rounded,
but not as much as a wrestler's would be. The body is only slightly leaning
forward.
The weight is virtually all on the back (right) foot with the front (left)
foot touching the ground with the ball of the foot. It is a stance in which the
athlete is ready at the same time to give a kick with the front leg as well as
defend against the opponent's low level kicks by lifting the front knee and
blocking. The back leg is bent for stability and power and is facing slightly to
the side, to go with the slightly sideways body position. The head and torso are
behind the protecting two upper limbs and front leg. In Sparta,
biting and eye gouging are allowed, but in national Events (Olympics) it is
strictly forbidden.
Strikes delivered with the legs were an integral part of pankration and one
of its most characteristic features. Kicking well was a great advantage to the
pankratiast. Epiktētos is making a derogatory reference to a
compliment one may give another: "μεγάλα λακτίζεις" ("you kick great").
Moreover, in an accolade to the fighting prowess of the pankratiast Glykon from
Pergamo, the athlete is described as "wide foot". The characterization comes
actually before the reference to his "unbeatable hands", implying at least as
crucial a role for strikes with the feet as with the hands in pankration. That
proficiency in kicking could carry the pankratiast to victory is indicated in a
sarcastic passage of Galen, where he awards the winning prize in pankration to a
donkey because of its excellence in kicking.
The straight kick with the bottom of the foot to the stomach
(γαστρίζειν/λάκτισμα εἰς γαστέραν — gastrizein or laktisma eis
gasteran, "kicking in the stomach") was apparently a common technique, given
the number of depictions of such kicks on vases. This type of kick is mentioned
by Lucian.
Counter:
The athlete sidesteps to the outside of the oncoming kick but
grasps the inside of the kicking leg from behind the knee with his front hand
(overhand grip) and pulls up, which tends to unbalance the opponent so that he
falls backward as the athlete advances. The back hand can be used for striking
the opponent while he is preoccupied maintaining his balance. This counter is
shown on a Panathenaic amphora now in Leiden. In another counter, the athlete sidesteps the
oncoming kick, but now to the inside of the opponent's leg. He catches and lifts
the heel/foot of the planted leg with his rear hand and with the front arm goes
under the knee of the kicking leg, hooks it with the nook of his elbow, and
lifts while advancing to throw the opponent backward. The athlete executing the
counter has to lean forward to avoid hand strikes by the opponent.
Single shoulder lock (overextension)
The athlete is behind the opponent and has him leaning down, with the right
knee of the opponent on the ground. The athlete has the opponent's right arm
straightened out and extended maximally backward at the shoulder joint. With the
opponent's right arm across his own torso, the athlete uses his left hand to
keep the pressure on the opponent's right arm by grabbing and pressing down on
it just above the wrist. The right hand of the athlete is pressing down at the
(side of) the head of the opponent, thus not permitting him to rotate to his
right to relieve the pressure on his shoulder. As the opponent could escape by
lowering himself closer to the ground and rolling, the athlete steps with his
left leg over the left leg of the opponent and wraps his foot around the ankle
of the opponent stepping on his instep, while pushing his body weight on the
back of the opponent.
Single arm bar (elbow lock)
In this technique, the position of the bodies is very similar to the one
described just above. The athlete executing the technique is standing over his
opponent's back, while the latter is down on his right knee. The left leg of the
athlete is straddling the left thigh of the opponent—the left knee of the
opponent is not on the floor—and is trapping the left foot of the opponent by
stepping on it. The athlete uses his left hand to push down on the side/back of
the head of the opponent while with his right hand he pulls the opponent's right
arm back, against his midsection. This creates an arm bar on the right arm with
the pressure now being mostly on the elbow. The fallen opponent cannot relieve
it, because his head is being shoved the opposite way by the left hand of the
athlete executing the technique.
Arm bar - shoulder lock combination
In this technique, the athlete is again behind his opponent, has the left arm
of his opponent trapped, and is pulling back on his right arm. The trapped left
arm is bent, with the fingers and palm trapped inside the armpit of the athlete.
To trap the left arm, the athlete has pushed (from outside) his own left arm
underneath the left elbow of the opponent. The athlete's left hand ends up
pressing down on the scapula region of his opponent's back. This position does
not permit the opponent to pull out his hand from the athlete's armpit and puts
pressure on the left shoulder. The right arm of the athlete is pulling back at
the opponent's right wrist (or forearm). In this way, the athlete keeps the
right arm of his opponent straightened and tightly pulled against his right
hip/lower abdomen area, which results in an arm bar putting pressure on the
right elbow. The athlete is in full contact on top of the opponent, with his
right leg in front of the right leg of the opponent to block him from escaping
by rolling forward.
Tracheal grip choke
In executing this choking technique (ἄγχειν — anchein), the athlete grabs the
tracheal area (windpipe and "Adam's apple") between his thumb and his four fingers
and squeezes. This type of choke can be applied with the athlete being in front
or behind his opponent. Regarding the hand grip to be used with this choke, the
web area between the thumb and the index finger is to be quite high up the neck
and the thumb is bent inward and downward, "reaching" behind the Adam's apple of
the opponent. It is unclear if such a grip would have been considered gouging
and thus illegal in the Panhellenic Games.
Tracheal dig using the thumb
The athlete grabs the throat of the opponent with the four fingers on the
outside of the throat and the tip of the thumb pressing in and down the hollow
of the throat, putting pressure on the trachea.
Choke from behind with the forearm
The athlete has put himself behind his opponent, who is either in the
standing, prone, or prostrate position. The choke is applied by placing the
forearm against the trachea (i.e. the forearm is parallel to the
clavicles of the opponent) and pulling back, with the other hand of the athlete
possibly assisting the pull by gripping the hand of the choking arm. The
pressure on the trachea is painful and causes a reduction of air flow to the
lungs. An alternative, and less painful way of applying this choke, is to bend
the choking arm in a "V" shape and put pressure with the biceps and the forearm
on the two sides of the neck, respectively; this is a circulatory choke, which
puts pressure on the arteries taking blood to the brain and thus deprives the
brain of oxygen. The chokes from behind were usually accompanied with a
grapevine body lock (ἄγχειν μετὰ κλιμακισμοῦ — anchein meta klimakismou "choking
with the ladder trick"), as the resulting stretch of the body of the opponent
accentuated the effect of the choke. There are few representations of this type
of choke in surviving art objects, but there are a number of references to it in
the ancient literature. Modern mixed martial artists would note the similarity
of this technique to a rear naked choke.
Counter:
A counter to the choke from behind involves the twisting of one of
the fingers of the choking arm. This counter is mentioned by Philostratus. In
case the choke was set together with a grapevine body lock, another counter was
the one applied against that lock; by causing enough pain to the ankle of the
opponent, the latter could give up his choke.
Throws and takedowns
Heave from a reverse waist lock
From a reverse waist lock set from the front, and staying with hips close to
the opponent, the athlete lifts and rotates his opponent using the strength of
his hips and legs (ἀναβαστάσαι εἰς ὕψος — anabastasai eis hypsos, "high
lifting"). Depending on the torque the athlete imparts, the opponent becomes
more or less vertically inverted, facing the body of the athlete. If however the
reverse waist lock is set from the back of the opponent, then the latter would
face away from the athlete in the inverted position.
To finish the attack, the athlete has the option of either dropping his
opponent head-first to the ground, or driving him into the ground while
retaining the hold. To execute the latter option, the athlete bends one of his
legs and goes down on that knee while the other leg remains only partially bent;
this is presumably to allow for greater mobility in case the "pile driver" does
not work. Another approach emphasizes less putting the opponent in an inverted
vertical position and more the throw; it is shown in a sculpture in the metōpē (μετώπη) of the Hephaisteion in Athens, where Theseus is depicted
heaving Kerkyōn.
Heave from a waist lock following a sprawl
The opponents are facing in opposite directions with the athlete at a higher
level, over the back of his opponent. The athlete can get in this position after
making a shallow sprawl to counter a tackle attempt. From here the athlete sets
a waist lock by encircling, from the back, the torso of the opponent with his
arms and securing a "handshake" grip close to the abdomen of the opponent. He
then heaves the opponent back and up, using the muscles of his legs and his
back, so that the opponent's feet rise in the air and he ends up inverted,
perpendicular to the ground, and facing away from the athlete. The throw
finishes with a "pile driver" or, alternatively, with a simple release of the
opponent so that he falls to the ground.
Heave from a waist lock from behind
The athlete passes to the back of his opponent, secures a regular waist lock,
lifts and throws/ drops the opponent backwards and sideways. As a result of
these moves, the opponent would tend to land on his side or face down. The
athlete can follow the opponent to the ground and place himself on his back,
where he could strike him or choke him from behind while holding him in the
"grapevine" body lock (see above), stretching him face down on the ground. This
technique is described by the Roman poet Statius in his account of a match between the hero
Tydeus of Thebes and an opponent in the Thebaid. Tydeus is described to have followed this takedown
with a choke while applying the "grapevine" body lock on the prone opponent.
Strategy and tactics
Positioning in the skamma (σκάμμα "pit")
As the pankration competitions were held outside and in the afternoon,
appropriately positioning one's face vis-a-vis the low sun was a major
tactical objective. The pankratiast, as well as the boxer, did not want to have
to face the ever-present Greek sun, as this would partly blind him to the blows
of the opponent and make accurate delivery of strikes to specific targets
difficult. Theocritus, in his narration of the (boxing) match between Polydeukēs
and Amykos,
noted that the two opponents struggled a lot, vying to see who would get the
sun's rays on his back. In the end, with skill and cunning, Polydeukēs managed
so that Amykos' face was struck with sunlight while his own was in the
shade.
While this positioning was of paramount importance in boxing, which involved
only upright striking (with the eyes facing straight), it was also important in
pankration, especially in the beginning of the competition and as long as the
athletes remained standing.
Remaining standing versus going to the ground
The decision to remain standing or go to the ground obviously depended on the
relative strengths of the athlete, and differed between anō and
katō pankration. However, there are indications that staying on one's
feet was generally considered a positive thing, while touching the knee(s) to
the ground or being put to the ground was overall considered disadvantageous. In
fact, in antiquity as today, falling to one's knee(s) was a metaphor for coming
to a disadvantage and putting oneself at risk of losing the fight, as argued
persuasively by Michael B. Poliakoff.,
Offensive versus reactive fighting
Regarding the choice of attacking into the attack of the opponent versus
defending and retreating, there are indications, e.g. from boxing, that it was
preferable to attack. Dio Chrysostom notes that retreat under fear tends to
result in even greater injuries, while attacking before the opponent strikes is
less injurious and could very well end in victory.
Identifying and exploiting the weak side of an opponent
As indicated by Plato in his Laws, an important element of strategy
was to understand if the opponent had a weak or untrained side and to force him
to operate on that side and generally take advantage of that weakness. For
example, if the athlete recognizes that the opponent is strictly right-handed,
he could circle away from the right hand of the opponent and towards the left
side of the opponent. Moreover, if the opponent is weak in his left-side throws,
the athlete could aim to position himself accordingly. Training in ambidexterity
was instrumental in both applying this strategy and not falling victim to
it.
Aspects of pankration preparation and practice
The basic instruction of pankration techniques was conducted by the
paedotribae (παιδοτρίβαι, "physical trainers"), who
were in charge of boys' physical education. High
level athletes were also trained by special trainers who were called gymnastae
(γυμνασταί),] some of
whom had been successful pankration competitors themselves. There are
indications that the methods and techniques used by different athletes varied,
i.e., there were different styles. While specific styles taught by different
teachers, in the mode of Asian martial arts, cannot be excluded, it is very
clear (including in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics) that the objective of a
teacher of combat sports was to help each of his athletes to develop his
personal style that would fit his strengths and weaknesses.
The preparation of pankratiasts included a very wide variety of methods, most of
which would be immediately recognizable by the trainers of modern high level
athletes, including competitors in modern mixed martial arts competitions. These methods
included among others the periodization of training; a wealth of regimes for the
development of strength, speed-strength, speed, stamina, and endurance;
specialized training for the different stages of competition (i.e., for anō
pankration and katō pankration), and methods for learning and engraining
techniques. Interestingly, among the multitude of the latter were also training
tools that appear to be very similar to Asian martial arts Forms or kata, and were known as cheironomia
(χειρονομία) and anapale (ἀναπάλη). Punching bags (kōrykos κώρυκος
"leather sack") of different sizes and dummies were used for striking practice
as well as for the hardening of the body and limbs. Nutrition, massage, and
other recovery techniques were used very actively by pankratiasts.
Today, pankration is developed by International Federation of Associated Wrestling
Styles (Fédération Internationale des Luttes Associées or
FILA) as a mild form of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). When including pankration into
its field of activities, FILA had the vision to encourage the perpetuation of
this ancient form of total combat.
At the time of the revival of Olympic Games (1896), pankration was not
reinstated as an Olympic event. Specifically, in 1895 the Cardinal of Lyon voiced his official decision on the
reinstatement of sports to Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the Modern
Olympic Games, by stating "Nous acceptons tout, sauf pankration" meaning "We
accept all [events to be reinstated], except pankration". The International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not
include pankration in its list of recognized sports. Moreover, the IOC does not
include in the list of the Association of the IOC Recognised International
Sports Federations any international pankration federation.
Some efforts were made prior to the 2004 Olympic Games that were held in
Athens to have a discussion with the IOC regarding the introduction of
pankration as a "demonstration sport" in the program, as hosting countries have
the prerogative to do so, leading usually to the entry of the demonstration
sport in the list of the "recognized sports" and thus its becoming a regular
event in the Olympic program. However, these efforts were unsuccessfu
The training barns used by The Great John L. Sullivan to prepare for the last
Bare Knuckle Boxing Championship of the World against Jake
Kilrain!
Below is a link to the Bare knuckle Boxing hall of fame Website...
http://www.bareknuckleboxinghalloffame.com/
http://www.bareknuckleboxinghalloffame.com/
2 videos below showing some of the restoration of the barns
Pierce Egan the first Boxing Historian.
AN ACADEMIC AND LIGHT-HEARTED DISCUSSION OF PIERCE EGANS PUGILISTIC LITERATURE AND
PRIZEFIGHT COMMENTARIES.
http://www.pierce-egan.co.uk/#
PRIZEFIGHT COMMENTARIES.
http://www.pierce-egan.co.uk/#
A tribute to fighting at the Curragh
The picture to the left was taken on the 19th April 1953 to commemorate the famous 1815 bare-knuckle fight between Dan Donnelly and the
English champion of the time, George Cooper. The original fight had taken place just before Christmas in 1815 at a hollow just on the edge of the Curragh.The paegeant was a huge success with in excess of 20,000 people attending in which most dressed up in old fashioned clothing to replicate the original gathering.
For some other photos and more information check this link.
http://mariseoshouse.blogspot.co.uk/2005/09/donnellys-hollow-pageants.html
English champion of the time, George Cooper. The original fight had taken place just before Christmas in 1815 at a hollow just on the edge of the Curragh.The paegeant was a huge success with in excess of 20,000 people attending in which most dressed up in old fashioned clothing to replicate the original gathering.
For some other photos and more information check this link.
http://mariseoshouse.blogspot.co.uk/2005/09/donnellys-hollow-pageants.html
William Hazlitt's first hand account of a Bareknuckle bout which took place on December the 11th 1821 between Bill Neate and Tom Hickman. It first appeared in New Monthly Magazine just 2 months later and was suitably named " THE FIGHT"
William Hazlitts is pictured left
Where there's a will, there's a way. - I said so to myself, as I walked
down Chancery-lane, about half-past six o'clock on Monday the 10th of December,
to inquire at Jack Randall's where the fight the next day was to be; and I
found "the proverb" nothing "musty" in the present instance. I was determined
to see this fight, come what would, and see it I did, in great style. It was my
first fight, yet it more than answered my expectations. Ladies! it is to you I
dedicate this description; nor let it seem out of character for the fair to
notice the exploits of the brave. Courage and modesty are the old English
virtues; and may they never look cold and askance on one another! Think, ye
fairest of the fair, loveliest of the lovely kind, ye practisers of soft
enchantment, how many more ye kill with poisoned baits than ever fell in the
ring; and listed with subdued air and without shuddering, to a tale tragic only
in appearance, and sacred to the FANCY!
I was going down Chancery-lane, thinking to ask at Jack Randall's where the fight was to be, when looking through the glass-door of the "Hole in the Wall," I heard a gentleman asking the same question at Mrs. Randall, as the author2 of "Waverley" would express it. Now Mrs. Randall stood answering the gentlemen's question, with the authenticity of the
lady of the Champion of the Light Weights. Thinks I, I'll wait till this person comes out, and learn from him how it is. For to say a truth, I was not fond of going into this house to call for heroes and philosophers, ever since the owner
of it (for Jack is no gentleman) threatened once upon a time to kick me out of doors for wanting a mutton-chop at his hospitable board, when the conqueror in thirteen battles was more full of blue ruin than of good manners. I was the
more mortified at this repulse, inasmuch as I had heard Mr. James Simpkin, hosier in the Strand, one day when the character of the "Hold in the Wall" was brought in question, observe - "The house is a very good house, and the company
quite genteel: I have been there myself!" Remembering this unkind treatment of mine host, to which mine hostess was also a party, and not wishing to put her in unquiet thoughts at a time jubilant like the present, I waited at the door,
when, who should issue forth but my friend Jo. Toms, and turning suddenly up Chancery-lane with that quick jerk and impatient stride which distinguishes a lover of the FANCY, I said, "I'll be hanged if that fellow is not going to the
fight, and is on his way to get me to go with him." So it proved in effect, and we agreed to adjourn to my lodgings to discuss measures with that cordiality which makes old friends like new, and new friends like old, on great occasions.
We are cold to others only when we are dull in ourselves, and have neither thoughts nor feelings to impart to them. Give a man a topic in his head, a throb of pleasure in his heart, and he will be glad to share it with the first person he meets. Toms and I, though we seldom meet, were an alter idem on this memorable occasion, and had not an idea that we did not candidly impart; and "so carelessly did we fleet the time," that I wish no better, when there is another fight, than to have him for a companion on my journey down, and to return with my friend Jack Pigott, talking of what was to happen or of
what did happen, with a noble subject always at hand, and liberty to digress to others whenever they offered. Indeed, on my repeating the lines from Spenser in an involuntary fit of enthusiasm,
What more felicity can fall to creature,
Than to enjoy delight with
liberty?
my last-named ingenious friend stopped me by saying that this, translated into the vulgate, meant "Going to see a fight."
Jo. Toms and I could not settle about the method of going down. He said there was a caravan, he understood, to start from Tom Belcher's at two, which would go there right out and back again the next day. Now I never travel all night, and said I should get a cast to Newbury by one of the mails. Jo. swore the thing was impossible, and I could only answer that I had made up my mind to it. In short, he seemed to me to waver, said he only came to see if I was going, had letters to write, a cause coming on the day after, and faintly said at parting (for I was bent on setting out that moment) - "Well, we meet at
Philippi!" I made the best of my way to Piccadilly. The mail coach stand was bare. "They are all gone," said I - "this is always the way with me - in the instant I lose the future - if I had not stayed to pour out that last cup of tea, I should have been just in time" - and cursing my folly and ill- luck together, without inquiring at the coach-office whether the mails were gone or not, I walked on in despite, and to punish my own dilatoriness and want of determination. At any rate, I would not turn back: I might get to Hounslow, or perhaps farther, to be on my road the next morning. I passed Hyde Park Corner (my Rubicon), and trusted to fortune. Suddenly I heard the clattering of a Brentford stage, and the fight rushed full upon my fancy. I argued (not unwisely) that even a Brentford coachman was better company than my own thoughts (such as they were just then), and at his invitation mounted the box with him. I immediately stated my case to him - namely, my quarrel with myself for missing the Bath or Bristol mail, and my determination to get on in consequence as well as I could, without any disparagement or insulting comparison between longer or shorter stages. It is a maxim with me that stage-coaches, and consequently stage-coachmen, are respectable in proportion to the distance they have to travel: so I said nothing on that subject to my Brentford friend. Any incipient tendency to an abstract proposition, or (as he might have construed it) to a personal reflection of this kind, was however nipped in the bud; for I had no sooner declared indignantly that I had missed the mails, than he flatly denied that they were gone along, and lo! at the instant three of them drove by in rapid, provoking, orderly succession, as if they would devour the ground before them. Here again I seemed in the contradictory situation of the man in Dryden who exclaims,
I follow Fate, which does too hard pursue!
If I had stopped to inquire at the "White Horse Cellar," which would not have taken me a minute, I should now have been
driving down the road in all the dignified unconcern and ideal perfection of mechanical conveyance. The Bath mail I had set my mind upon, and I had missed it, as I missed everything else, by my own absurdity, in putting the will for the deed, and aiming at ends without employing means. "Sir," said he of the Brentford, "The Bath mail will be up presently, my brother-in-law drives it, and I will engage to stop him if there is a place empty." I almost doubted my good genius; but, sure enough, up it drove like lightning, and stopped directly at the call of the Brentford Jehu. I would not have believed this possible, but the brother-in-law of a mail-coach driver is himself no mean man. I was transferred without loss of time from the top of one coach to that of the other, desired the guard to pay my fare to the Brentford coachman for me as I
had no change, was accommodated with a great coat, put up my umbrella to keep off a drizzling mist, and we began to cut through the air like an arrow. The mile-stones disappeared one after another, the rain kept off; Tom Turtle, the trainer, sat before me on the coach-box, with whom I exchanged civilities as a gentleman going to the fight; the passion that had transported me an hour before was subdued to pensive regret and conjectural musing on the next day's battle; I was promised a place inside at Reading, and upon the whole, I thought myself a lucky fellow. Such is the force of imagination! On the outside of any other coach on the 10th of December, with a Scotch mist drizzling through the cloudy moonlight air, I should have been cold, comfortless, impatient, and, no doubt, wet through; but seated on the Royal mail, I felt warm and comfortable, the air did me good, the ride did me good, I was pleased with the progress we had made, and confident that all would go well through the journey. When I got inside at Reading, I found Turtle and a stout valetudinarian, whose costume bespoke him one of the FANCY, and who had risen from a three months' sick bed to get into the mail to see the fight. They were intimate, and we fell into a lively discourse. My friend the trainer was confined in his topics to fighting
dogs and men, to bears and badgers; beyond this he was "quite chap-fallen," had not a word to throw at a dog, or indeed very wisely fell asleep, when any other game was started. The whole art of training (I, however, learnt from him), consists in two things, exercise and abstinence, abstinence and exercise, repeated alternately without end. A yolk of an egg with a spoonful of rum in it is the first thing in a morning, and then a walk of six miles till breakfast. This meal consists of a plentiful supply of tea and toast and beef steaks. Then another six or seven miles till dinner-time, and another supply of solid beef or mutton with a pint of porter, and perhaps, at the utmost, a couple of glasses of sherry. Martin trains on water, but this increases his infirmity on another very dangerous side. The Gas-man takes now and then a chirping glass
(under the rose) to console him, during a six weeks' probation, for the absence of Mrs. Hickman - an agreeable woman, with (I understand) a pretty fortune of two hundred pounds. How matter presses on me! What stubborn things are facts!
How inexhaustible is nature and art! "It is well," as I once heard Mr. Richmond observe, "to see a variety." He was speaking of cock-fighting as an edifying spectacle. I cannot deny but that one learns more of what is (I do not say of
what ought to be) in this desultory mode of practical study, than from reading the same book twice over, even though it should be a moral treatise. Where was I? I was sitting at dinner with the candidate for the honours of the ring,
"where good digestion waits on appetite, and health on both." Then follows an hour of social chat and native glee; and afterwards, to another breathing over heathy hill or dale. Back to supper, and then to bed, and up by six again - Our
hero
Follows the ever-running sun
With profitable ardour -
to the day that brings him victory or defeat in the green fairy circle. Is not this life more sweet than mine? I was going
to say; but I will not libel any life by comparing it to mine, which is (at the date of these presents) bitter as coloquintida and the dregs of aconitum!The invalid in the Bath mail soared a pitch above the trainer, and did not sleep so sound, because he had "more figures and more fantasies." We talked the hours away merrily. He had faith in surgery, for he had had three ribs set right, that had been broken in a turn-up at Belcher's, but thought physicians old women, for they had no antidote in their catalogue for brandy. An indigestion is an excellent commonplace for two people that never met before.
By way of ingratiating myself, I told him the story of my doctor, who, on my earnestly representing to him that I thought his regimen had done me harm, assured me that the whole pharmacopeia contained nothing comparable to the
prescription he had given me; and, as a proof of his undoubted efficacy, said, that, "he had had one gentleman with my complaint under his hands for the last fifteen years." This anecdote made my companion shake the rough sides of his
three great coats with boisterous laughter; and Turtle, starting out of his sleep, swore he knew how the fight would go, for he had had a dream about it. Sure enough, the rascal told us how the first rounds went off, but "his dream," like others, "denoted a foregone conclusion." He knew his men. The moon now rose in silver state, and I ventured, with some hesitation, to point out this object of placid beauty, with the blue serene beyond, to the man of science, to
which his ear he "seriously inclined," the more as it gave promise d'un beau
jour for the morrow, and showed the ring undrenched by envious showers, arrayed in sunny smiles. Just then, all going on well, I thought on my friend Toms, whom I had left behind, and said innocently, "There was ablockhead of a fellow I left in town, who said there was no possibility of getting down by the mail, and talked of going by a caravan from Belcher's at two in the morning, after he had written some letters." "Why," said he of the lapells, "I should not wonder if that was the very person we saw running about like mad from one coach-door to another, and asking if anyone had seen a friend
of his, a gentleman going to the fight, whom he had missed stupidly enough by staying to write a note." "Pray, Sir," said my fellow-traveller, "he had a plaid-cloak on?" - "Why, no," said I, "not at the time I left him, but he very well might afterwards, for he offered to lend me one." The plain-cloak and the letter decided the thing. Joe,3 sure enough, was in the Bristol mail, which preceded us by about fifty yards. This was droll enough. We had now but a few miles to our place of destination, and the first thing I did on alighting at Newbury, both coaches stopping at the same time, was to call out, "Pray, is there a gentleman in that mail of the name of Toms?" "No," said Joe, borrowing something of the vein of Gilpin, "for I have just got out." "Well!" says he, "this is lucky; but you don't know how vexed I was to miss you; for," added he,
lowering his voice, "did you know when I left you I went to Belcher's to ask about the caravan, and Mrs. Belcher said very obligingly, she couldn't tell about that, but there were two gentlemen who had taken places by the mail and were gone on in a landau, and she could frank us. It's a pity I didn't meet with you; we could then have got down for nothing. But mum's the word." It's the devil for anyone to tell me a secret, for it's sure to come out in print. I do not care so much to gratify a friend, but the public ear to too great a temptation to me.Our present business was to get beds and a supper at an inn; but this was no easy task. The public-houses were full, and where you saw a light at a private house, and people poking their heads out of the casement to see what was going on, they instantly put them in and shut the window, the moment you seemed advancing with a suspicious overture for accommodation. Our guard and coachman thundered away at the outer gate of the "Crown" for some time without effect - such was the greater noise within; - and when the doors were unbarred, and we got admittance, we found a party assembled in the kitchen round a good hospitable fire, some sleeping, others drinking, others talking on politics and on the fight. A tall English yeoman (something like Matthews in the face, and
quite as great a wag) -
A lusty man to ben an abbot able, -was making such a prodigious noise about rent and taxes, and the price of corn no and formerly, that he had prevented us from being heard at the gate. The first thing I heard him say was to a shuffling fellow who wanted to be off a bet for a shilling glass of brandy and water - "Confound it, man, don't be insipid!" Thinks I, that is a good phrase. It was a good omen. He kept it up so all night, nor flinched with the approach of morning. He was a fine fellow, with sense, wit, and spirit, a hearty body and a joyous mind, free-spoken, frank, convivial - one of that true English
breed that went with Harry the Fifth to the siege of Harfleur - "standing like greyhounds in the slips," etc. We ordered tea and eggs (beds were soon found to be out of the question) and this fellow's conversation was sauce
piquante. It did one's heart good to see him brandish his oaken towel and to hear him talk. He made mince-meat of a drunken, stupid, red-faced, quarrelsome, frowsy farmer, whose nose "he moralised into a thousand similes," making it out a firebrand like Bardolph's. "I'll tell you what my friend," says he, "the landlady has only to keep you here to save fire and candle. If one was to touch your nose, it would go off like a piece of charcoal." At this the other only grinned like an idiot, the sole variety in his purple face being his little peering grey eyes and yellow teeth; called for another glass, swore he would not stand it; and after many attempts to provoke his humorous antagonist to singe combat, which the other turned off (after working him up to a ludicrous pitch of choler) with great adroitness, he fell quietly asleep with a
glass of liquor in his hand, which he could not lift to his head. His laughing persecutor made a speech over him, and turning to the opposite side of the room, where they were all sleeping in the midst of this "loud and furious sun,"
said, "There's a scene, by G-d, for Hogarth to paint. I think he and Shakespeare were our two best men at copying life." This confirmed me in my good opinion of him. Hogarth, Shakespeare, and Nature, were just enough for him
(indeed for any man) to know. I said, "You read Cobbett, don't you? At least," says I, "you talk just as well as he writes." He seemed to doubt this. But I said, "We have an hour to spare; if you'll get pen, ink, and paper, and keep on
talking, I'll write down what you say; and if it doesn't make a capital 'Political Register,' I'll forfeit my head. You have kept me alive to-night, however. I don't know what I should have done without you. He did not dislike this view of the thing, nor my asking if he was not about the size of Jem Belcher; and told me soon afterwards, in the confidence of friendship, that "the circumstance which had given him nearly the greatest concern in his life, was Cribb's beating Jem after he had lost his eye by racket-playing." - The morning dawns; that dim but yet clear light appears, which weighs like solid
bars of metal on the sleepless eyelids; the guests drop down from their chambers one by one - but it was too late to think of going to bed now (the clock was on the stroke of seven), we had nothing for it but to find a barber's (the pole that glittered in the morning sun lighted us to his shop), and then a nine miles' march to Hungerford. The day was fine, the sky was blue, the mists were retiring from the marshy ground, the path was tolerably dry, the sitting-up all night had not done us much harm - at least the cause was good; we talked of this and that with amicable difference, roving and sipping of many subjects, but still invariably we returned to the fight. At length, a mile to the left of Hungerford, on a gentle eminence, we saw the ring surrounded by covered carts, gigs, and carriages, of which hundreds had passed us on the
road; Toms gave a youthful shout, and we hastened down a narrow lane to thescene of action.
Reader, have you ever seen a fight? If not, you have a pleasure to come, at least if it is a fight like that between the Gas-man and Bill Neate. The crowd was very great when we arrived on the spot; open carriages were coming up, with
streamers flying and music playing, and the country-people were pouring in over hedge and ditch in all directions, to see their hero beat or be beaten. The odds were still on Gas, but only about five to four. Gully had been down to try
Neate, and had backed him considerably, which was a damper to the sanguine confidence of the adverse party. About two hundred thousand pounds were pending. The Gas says, he has lost £3,000 which were promised him by different
gentlemen if he had won. He had presumed too much on himself, which had made others presume on him. This spirited and formidable young fellow seems to have taken for his motto the old maxim, that "there are three things necessary to
success in life - Impudence! Impudence! Impudence!" It is so in matters of opinion, but not in the FANCY, which is the most practical of all things, though even here confidence is half the battle, but only half. Our friend had
vapoured and swaggered too much, as if he wanted to grin and bully his adversary out of the fight. "Alas! the Bristol man was not so tamed!" - "This is the grave digger" (would Tom Hickman exclaim in the moments of intoxication
from gin and success, showing his tremendous right hand), "this will send many of them to their long homes; I haven't done with them yet!" Why should he - though he had licked four of the best men within the hour, yet why should he
threaten to inflict dishonourable chastisement on my old master Richmond, a veteran going off the stage, and who has borne his sable honours meekly? Magnanimity, my dear Tom, and bravery, should be inseparable. Or why should he
go up to his antagonist, the first time he ever saw him at the Fives Court, and measuring him from head to foot with a glance of contempt, as Achilles surveyed Hector, say to him, "What, are you Bill Neate? I'll knock more blood out of
that great carcase of thine, this day fortnight, than you ever knock'd out of a bullock's!" It was not manly, 'twas not fighter- like. If he was sure of the victory (as he was not), the less said about it the better. Modesty should accompany the FANCY as its shadow. The best men were always the best behaved. Jem Belcher, the Game Chicken (before whom the Gas-man could not have lived) were civil, silent men. So is Cribb, so is Tom Belcher, the most elegant of
sparrers, and not a man for every one to take by the nose. I enlarged on this topic in the mail (while Turtle was asleep), and said very wisely (as I thought) that impertinence was a part of no profession. A boxer was bound to beat his man, but not to thrust his fist, either actually or by implication, in every one's face. Even a highwayman, in the way of trade, may blow out your brains, but if he uses foul language at the same time, I should say he was no gentleman. A boxer, I would infer, need not be a blackguard or a coxcomb, more than another. Perhaps I press this point too much on a fallen man -
Mr. Thomas Hickman has by this time learnt that first of all lessons, "That man was made to mourn." He has lost nothing by the late fight but his presumption; and that every man may do as well without! By an overly-display of this quality,
however, the public has been prejudiced against him, and the knowing-ones were taken in. Few but those who had bet on him wished Gas to win. With my own prepossessions on the subject, the result of the 11th of December appeared to me as fine a piece of poetical justice as I had ever witnessed. The difference of weight between the two combatants (14 stone to 12) was nothing to the sporting men. Great, heavy, clumsy, long-armed Bill Neate kicked the beam in the scale of the Gas-man's vanity. The amateurs were frightened at his big words, and thought that they would make up for the difference of six feet and five feet nine. Truly, the FANCY are not men of imagination. They judge of what has been, and cannot conceive of anything that is to be. The Gas-man had won hitherto; therefore he must beat a man half as big again as himself - and that to a certainty. Besides, there are as many feuds, factions, prejudices, pedantic notions in the FANCY as in the state or in the schools. Mr. Gully is almost the only cool, sensible man among them, who exercises an unbiassed
discretion, and is not a slave to his passions in these matters. But enough of reflections, and to our tale. The day, as I have said, was fine for a December morning. The grass was wet, and the ground miry, and ploughed up with multitudinous feet, except that, within the ring itself, there was a spot of virgin-green closed in and unprofaned by vulgar tread, that shone with dazzling brightness in the mid-day sun. For it was noon now, and we had an hour to wait. This is the trying time. It is then the heart sickens, as you think what the two champions are about, and how short a time will determine their fate. After the first blow is struck, there is no opportunity for nervous apprehensions; you are swallowed up in the immediate interest of the scene - but
Between the acting of a dreadful thing
And the first motion, all the
interim is
Like a phantasma, or a hideous dream
I found it so as I felt the sun's rays clinging to my back, and saw the white wintry clouds sink below the verge of the horizon. "So," I thought, "my fairest hopes have faded from my side! - so will the Gas-man's glory, or that of his adversary, vanish in an hour." The swells were parading in their white box-coats, the outer ring was cleared with
some bruises on the heads and shins of the rustic assembly (for the cockneys had been distanced by the sixty- six miles); the time drew near, I had got a good stand; a bustle, a buzz, ran through the crowd, and from the opposite side entered Neate, between his second and bottle-holder. He rolled along, swathed in his loose great coat, his knock-knees bending under his huge bulk; and, with a modest cheerful air, threw his hat into the ring. He then just looked round, and began quietly to undress; when from the other side there was a similar rush and an opening made, and the Gas-man came forward with a conscious air of anticipated triumph, too much like the cock-of-the-walk. He strutted about more than became a hero, sucked oranges with a supercilious air, and threw away the skin with a toss of his head, and went up and looked at Neate, which was an act of supererogation. The only sensible thing he did was, as he strode away from the modern Ajax, to fling out his arms, as if he wanted to try whether they would do their work that day. By this time they had stripped, and presented a strong contrast in appearance. If Neate was like Ajax, "with Atlantean shoulders, fit to bear" the pugilistic reputation of all Bristol, Hickman might be compared to Diomed, light, vigorous, elastic, and his back glistened in the sun, as he moved about, like a panther's hide. There was now a dead pause - attention was awe-struck. Who at that moment, big with a great event, did not draw his breath short - did not feel his heart throb? All was ready. They tossed up for the sun, and the Gas-man won. They were lead up to the scratch - shook hands, and went at it.
In the first round everyone thought it was all over. After making play a short time, the Gas-man flew at his adversary like a tiger, struck five blow in as many seconds, three first, and then following him as he staggered back, two more, right and left, and down he fell, a might ruin. There was a shout, and I said, "There is no standing this." Neate seemed like a lifeless lump of flesh and bone, round which the Gas-man's blows played with the rapidity of electricity or lighting, and you imagined he would only be lifted up to be knocked down again. It was as if Hickman held a sword or a fire in the right
hand of his, and directed it against an unarmed body. They met again, and Neate seemed, not cowed, but particularly cautious. I saw his teeth clenched together and his brows knit close against the sun. He held out both his arms at
full-length straight before him, like two sledge-hammers, and raised his left an inch or two higher. The Gas-man could not get over this guard - they struck mutually and fell, but without advantage on either side. It was the same in the
next round; but the balance of power was thus restored - the fate of the battle was suspended. No one could tell how it would end. This was the only moment in which opinion was divided; for, in the next, the Gas-man aiming a mortal blow
at his adversary's neck, with his right hand, and failing from the length he had to reach, the other returned it with his left at full swing, planted a tremendous blow on his cheek-bone and eyebrow, and made a red ruin of that side
of his face. The Gas-man went down, and there was another shout - a roar of triumph as the waves of fortune rolled tumultuously from side to side. This was a settler. Hickman got up, and "grinned horrible a ghastly smile," yet he was
evidently dashed in his opinion of himself; it was the first time he had ever been so punished; all one side of his face was perfect scarlet, and his right eye was closed in dingy blackness, as he advanced to the fight, less confident, but still determined. After one or two rounds, not receiving another such remembrancer, he rallied and went at it with his former impetuosity. But in vain. His strength had been weakened, - his blows could not tell at such a distance, - he was obliged to fling himself at his adversary, and could not strike from his feet; and almost as regularly as he flew at him with his right
hand, Neate warded the blow, or drew back out of its reach, and felled him with the return of his left. There was little cautious sparring - no half-hits - no tapping and trifling, none of the petit-maîtreship of the art - they were almost all knock-down blows: - the fight was a good stand-up fight. The wonder was the half-minute time. If there had been a minute or more allowed between each round, it would have been intelligible how they should by degrees
recover strength and resolution; but to see two men smashed to the ground, smeared with gore, stunned, senseless, the breath beaten out of their bodies; and then, before you recover from the shock, to see them rise up with new strength and courage, stand steady to inflict or receive mortal offence, and rush upon each other, "like two clouds over the Caspian" - this is the most astonishing thing of all: - this is the high and heroic state of man! From this time forward the event became more certain every round; and about the twelfth it seemed as if it must have been over. Hickman generally stood with his back to me; but in the scuffle, he had changed positions, and Neate just then made a tremendous lunge at him, and hit him full in the face. It was doubtful whether he would fall backwards or forwards; he hung suspended for about a second or two, and then fell back, throwing his hands in the air, and with his face lifted up to the sky. I never saw anything more terrific than his aspect just before he fell. All traces of life, of natural expression, were gone from him.
His face was like a human skull, a death's head, spouting blood. The eyes were filled with blood, the nose streamed with blood, the mouth gaped blood. He was not like an actual man, but like a preternatural, spectral appearance, or like
one of the figures in Dante's "Inferno." Yet he fought on after this for several rounds, still striking the first desperate blow, and Neate standing on the defensive, and using the same cautious guard to the last, as if he had still all his work to do; and it was not till the Gas-man was so stunned in the seventeenth or eighteenth round, that his senses forsook him, and he could not ome to time, that the battle was declared over. Ye who despise the FANCY, do something to show as much pluck, or as much self-possession as this, before you assume a superiority which you have never given a single proof of by any one action in the whole course of your lives! - When the Gas-man came to himself, the first words he uttered were,
"Where am I? What is the matter!" "Nothing is the matter, Tom - you have lost the battle, but you are the bravest man alive." And Jackson whispered to him, "I am collecting a purse for you, Tom." - Vain sounds, and unheard at that moment! Neate instantly went up and shook him cordially by the hand, and seeing some old acquaintance, began to flourish with his fists, calling out, "Ah, you always said I couldn't fight - What do you think now?" But all in good humour, and without any appearance of arrogance; only it was evident Bill Neate was pleased that he had won the fight. When it
was all over, I asked Cribb if he did not think it was a good one? He has, "Pretty well!" The carrier-pigeons now mounted into the air, and one of them flew with the news of her husband's victory to the bosom of Mrs. Neate. Alas, for Mrs. Hickman!
Mais au revoir, as Sir Fopling Flutter says. I went down with Toms; I
returned with Jack Pigott, whom I met on the ground. Toms is a rattle-brain; Pigott is a sentimentalist. Now, under favour, I am a sentimentalist too - therefore I say nothing, but that the interest of the excursion did not flag as
I came back. Pigott and I marched along the causeway leading from Hungerford to Newbury, now observing the effect of a brilliant sun on the tawny meads or moss-coloured cottages, now exulting in the fight, now digressing to some topic
of general and elegant literature. My friend was dressed in character for the occasion, or like one of the FANCY; that is, with a double portion of great coats, clogs, and overhauls: and just as we had agreed with a couple of
country-lads to carry his superfluous wearing- apparel to the next town, we were overtaken by a return post-chaise, into which I got, Pigott preferring to eat on the bar. There were two strangers already in the chaise, and on their observing they supposed I had been to the fight, I said I had, and concluded they had done the same. They appeared, however, a little shy and sore on the subject; and it was not fill after several hints dropped, and questions put, that it turned out that they had missed it. One of these friends had undertaken to drive the other there in his gig: they had set out, to make sure work, the day before at three in the afternoon. The owner of the one- horse vehicle scorned to ask his way, and drove right on to Bagshot, instead of turning off at Hounslow: there they stopped all night, and set off the next day across the
country to Reading, from whence they took coach, and got down within a mile or two of Hungerford, just half an hour after the fight was over. This might be safely set down as one of the miseries of human life. We parted with these two
gentlemen who had been to see the fight, but had returned as they went, at Wolhampton, where we were promised beds (an irresistible temptation, for Pigott had passed the preceding night at Hungerford, as we had done at Newbury; and we
turned into an old bow-windowed parlour with a carpet and a snug fire; and after devouring a quantity of tea, toast, and eggs, sat down to consider, during an hour of philosophic leisure, what we should have for supper. In the midst of an Epicurean deliberation between a roasted fowl and mutton chops with mashed potatoes, we were interrupted by an inroad of Goths and Vandals - O
procul este profani - not real flash-men, but interlopers, noisy pretenders, butchers from Tothillfields, brokers from Whitechapel, who called immediately for pipes and tobacco, hoping it would not be disagreeable to the gentlemen, and began to insist that it was a cross. Pigott withdrew from the smoke and noise into another room, and left me to dispute the point with them for a couple of hours sans intermission by the dial. The next morning we rose refreshed; and on observing that Jack had a pocket volume in his hand, in which he read in the intervals of our discourse, I inquired what it was, and learned to my particular satisfaction that it was a volume of the New Eloise." Ladies, after this, will you contend that a love for the FANCY is incompatible with the cultivation of sentiment? - We jogged on as before, my friend setting me up in a genteel drab great coat and green silk handkerchief (which I must say became me exceedingly), and after stretching our legs for a few miles, and seeing Jack Randall, Ned Turner, and Scroggins, pass on the top of one of the Bath coaches, we engaged with the driver of the second to take us to London for the usual fee. I got inside, and found three other passengers. One of them was an old gentleman with an aquiline nose, powdered hair, and a pigtail, and who looked
as if he had played many a rubber at the Bath rooms. I said to myself, he is very like Mr. Windham; I wish he would enter into conversation, that I might hear what fine observations would come from those finely-turned features. However, nothing passed, till, stopping to dine at Reading, some inquiry was made by the company about the fight, and I gave (as the reader may believe) an eloquent and animated description of it. When we got into the coach again, the old gentleman, after a graceful exordium, said, he had, when a boy, been to a fight between the famous Broughton and George Stevenson, who was called the Fighting Coachman, in the year 1770, with the late Mr. Windham. This beginning flattered the spirit of prophecy within me and rivetted my attention. He went on - "George Stevenson was coachman to a friend of my father's. He was an old man when I saw him some years afterwards. He took hold of his own arm and said, There was muscle here once, but now it is no more than this young gentleman's.' He added, 'Well, no matter; I have been here long, I am willing to go hence, and I hope I have done no more harm than another man.' Once," said my unknown companion, "I asked him if he had ever beat Broughton? He said Yes; that he had fought with him three times, and the last time he fairly beat him, though the world did not allow it. 'I'll tell you how it was, master. When the seconds lifted us up in the last round, we were so exhausted that neither of us could stand, and we fell upon one another, and as Master Broughton fell
uppermost, the mob gave it in his favour, and he was said to have won the battle. But,' says he, 'the fact was, that as his second (John Cuthbert) lifted him up, he said to him, "I'll fight no more, I've had enough;" 'which,' says Stevenson, 'you know gave me the victory. And to prove to you that this was the case, when John Cuthbert was on his death-bed, and they asked him if there was anything on his mind which he wished to confess, he answered, "Yes, that there was one thing he wished to set right, for that certainly Master Stevenson won that last fight with Master Broughton; for he whispered him as he lifted him up in the last round of all, that he had had enough."'" "This," said the Bath gentleman, "was a bit of human nature;" and I have written this account of the fight on purpose that it might not be lost to the world. He also stated as a proof of the candour of mind in this class of men, that Stevenson acknowledged that Broughton could have beat him in his best day; but that he (Broughton) was getting old in their last encounter. When we stopped in Piccadilly, I wanted to ask the gentleman some questions about the late Mr. Windham, but had not courage. I got out, resigned my coat and green silk handkerchief to Pigott (loth to part with these ornaments of life), and walked home in high spirits.
P.S. Toms called upon me the next day, to ask me if I did not think the fight was a complete thing? I said I thought it was. I hope he will relish my account of it.
Where there's a will, there's a way. - I said so to myself, as I walked
down Chancery-lane, about half-past six o'clock on Monday the 10th of December,
to inquire at Jack Randall's where the fight the next day was to be; and I
found "the proverb" nothing "musty" in the present instance. I was determined
to see this fight, come what would, and see it I did, in great style. It was my
first fight, yet it more than answered my expectations. Ladies! it is to you I
dedicate this description; nor let it seem out of character for the fair to
notice the exploits of the brave. Courage and modesty are the old English
virtues; and may they never look cold and askance on one another! Think, ye
fairest of the fair, loveliest of the lovely kind, ye practisers of soft
enchantment, how many more ye kill with poisoned baits than ever fell in the
ring; and listed with subdued air and without shuddering, to a tale tragic only
in appearance, and sacred to the FANCY!
I was going down Chancery-lane, thinking to ask at Jack Randall's where the fight was to be, when looking through the glass-door of the "Hole in the Wall," I heard a gentleman asking the same question at Mrs. Randall, as the author2 of "Waverley" would express it. Now Mrs. Randall stood answering the gentlemen's question, with the authenticity of the
lady of the Champion of the Light Weights. Thinks I, I'll wait till this person comes out, and learn from him how it is. For to say a truth, I was not fond of going into this house to call for heroes and philosophers, ever since the owner
of it (for Jack is no gentleman) threatened once upon a time to kick me out of doors for wanting a mutton-chop at his hospitable board, when the conqueror in thirteen battles was more full of blue ruin than of good manners. I was the
more mortified at this repulse, inasmuch as I had heard Mr. James Simpkin, hosier in the Strand, one day when the character of the "Hold in the Wall" was brought in question, observe - "The house is a very good house, and the company
quite genteel: I have been there myself!" Remembering this unkind treatment of mine host, to which mine hostess was also a party, and not wishing to put her in unquiet thoughts at a time jubilant like the present, I waited at the door,
when, who should issue forth but my friend Jo. Toms, and turning suddenly up Chancery-lane with that quick jerk and impatient stride which distinguishes a lover of the FANCY, I said, "I'll be hanged if that fellow is not going to the
fight, and is on his way to get me to go with him." So it proved in effect, and we agreed to adjourn to my lodgings to discuss measures with that cordiality which makes old friends like new, and new friends like old, on great occasions.
We are cold to others only when we are dull in ourselves, and have neither thoughts nor feelings to impart to them. Give a man a topic in his head, a throb of pleasure in his heart, and he will be glad to share it with the first person he meets. Toms and I, though we seldom meet, were an alter idem on this memorable occasion, and had not an idea that we did not candidly impart; and "so carelessly did we fleet the time," that I wish no better, when there is another fight, than to have him for a companion on my journey down, and to return with my friend Jack Pigott, talking of what was to happen or of
what did happen, with a noble subject always at hand, and liberty to digress to others whenever they offered. Indeed, on my repeating the lines from Spenser in an involuntary fit of enthusiasm,
What more felicity can fall to creature,
Than to enjoy delight with
liberty?
my last-named ingenious friend stopped me by saying that this, translated into the vulgate, meant "Going to see a fight."
Jo. Toms and I could not settle about the method of going down. He said there was a caravan, he understood, to start from Tom Belcher's at two, which would go there right out and back again the next day. Now I never travel all night, and said I should get a cast to Newbury by one of the mails. Jo. swore the thing was impossible, and I could only answer that I had made up my mind to it. In short, he seemed to me to waver, said he only came to see if I was going, had letters to write, a cause coming on the day after, and faintly said at parting (for I was bent on setting out that moment) - "Well, we meet at
Philippi!" I made the best of my way to Piccadilly. The mail coach stand was bare. "They are all gone," said I - "this is always the way with me - in the instant I lose the future - if I had not stayed to pour out that last cup of tea, I should have been just in time" - and cursing my folly and ill- luck together, without inquiring at the coach-office whether the mails were gone or not, I walked on in despite, and to punish my own dilatoriness and want of determination. At any rate, I would not turn back: I might get to Hounslow, or perhaps farther, to be on my road the next morning. I passed Hyde Park Corner (my Rubicon), and trusted to fortune. Suddenly I heard the clattering of a Brentford stage, and the fight rushed full upon my fancy. I argued (not unwisely) that even a Brentford coachman was better company than my own thoughts (such as they were just then), and at his invitation mounted the box with him. I immediately stated my case to him - namely, my quarrel with myself for missing the Bath or Bristol mail, and my determination to get on in consequence as well as I could, without any disparagement or insulting comparison between longer or shorter stages. It is a maxim with me that stage-coaches, and consequently stage-coachmen, are respectable in proportion to the distance they have to travel: so I said nothing on that subject to my Brentford friend. Any incipient tendency to an abstract proposition, or (as he might have construed it) to a personal reflection of this kind, was however nipped in the bud; for I had no sooner declared indignantly that I had missed the mails, than he flatly denied that they were gone along, and lo! at the instant three of them drove by in rapid, provoking, orderly succession, as if they would devour the ground before them. Here again I seemed in the contradictory situation of the man in Dryden who exclaims,
I follow Fate, which does too hard pursue!
If I had stopped to inquire at the "White Horse Cellar," which would not have taken me a minute, I should now have been
driving down the road in all the dignified unconcern and ideal perfection of mechanical conveyance. The Bath mail I had set my mind upon, and I had missed it, as I missed everything else, by my own absurdity, in putting the will for the deed, and aiming at ends without employing means. "Sir," said he of the Brentford, "The Bath mail will be up presently, my brother-in-law drives it, and I will engage to stop him if there is a place empty." I almost doubted my good genius; but, sure enough, up it drove like lightning, and stopped directly at the call of the Brentford Jehu. I would not have believed this possible, but the brother-in-law of a mail-coach driver is himself no mean man. I was transferred without loss of time from the top of one coach to that of the other, desired the guard to pay my fare to the Brentford coachman for me as I
had no change, was accommodated with a great coat, put up my umbrella to keep off a drizzling mist, and we began to cut through the air like an arrow. The mile-stones disappeared one after another, the rain kept off; Tom Turtle, the trainer, sat before me on the coach-box, with whom I exchanged civilities as a gentleman going to the fight; the passion that had transported me an hour before was subdued to pensive regret and conjectural musing on the next day's battle; I was promised a place inside at Reading, and upon the whole, I thought myself a lucky fellow. Such is the force of imagination! On the outside of any other coach on the 10th of December, with a Scotch mist drizzling through the cloudy moonlight air, I should have been cold, comfortless, impatient, and, no doubt, wet through; but seated on the Royal mail, I felt warm and comfortable, the air did me good, the ride did me good, I was pleased with the progress we had made, and confident that all would go well through the journey. When I got inside at Reading, I found Turtle and a stout valetudinarian, whose costume bespoke him one of the FANCY, and who had risen from a three months' sick bed to get into the mail to see the fight. They were intimate, and we fell into a lively discourse. My friend the trainer was confined in his topics to fighting
dogs and men, to bears and badgers; beyond this he was "quite chap-fallen," had not a word to throw at a dog, or indeed very wisely fell asleep, when any other game was started. The whole art of training (I, however, learnt from him), consists in two things, exercise and abstinence, abstinence and exercise, repeated alternately without end. A yolk of an egg with a spoonful of rum in it is the first thing in a morning, and then a walk of six miles till breakfast. This meal consists of a plentiful supply of tea and toast and beef steaks. Then another six or seven miles till dinner-time, and another supply of solid beef or mutton with a pint of porter, and perhaps, at the utmost, a couple of glasses of sherry. Martin trains on water, but this increases his infirmity on another very dangerous side. The Gas-man takes now and then a chirping glass
(under the rose) to console him, during a six weeks' probation, for the absence of Mrs. Hickman - an agreeable woman, with (I understand) a pretty fortune of two hundred pounds. How matter presses on me! What stubborn things are facts!
How inexhaustible is nature and art! "It is well," as I once heard Mr. Richmond observe, "to see a variety." He was speaking of cock-fighting as an edifying spectacle. I cannot deny but that one learns more of what is (I do not say of
what ought to be) in this desultory mode of practical study, than from reading the same book twice over, even though it should be a moral treatise. Where was I? I was sitting at dinner with the candidate for the honours of the ring,
"where good digestion waits on appetite, and health on both." Then follows an hour of social chat and native glee; and afterwards, to another breathing over heathy hill or dale. Back to supper, and then to bed, and up by six again - Our
hero
Follows the ever-running sun
With profitable ardour -
to the day that brings him victory or defeat in the green fairy circle. Is not this life more sweet than mine? I was going
to say; but I will not libel any life by comparing it to mine, which is (at the date of these presents) bitter as coloquintida and the dregs of aconitum!The invalid in the Bath mail soared a pitch above the trainer, and did not sleep so sound, because he had "more figures and more fantasies." We talked the hours away merrily. He had faith in surgery, for he had had three ribs set right, that had been broken in a turn-up at Belcher's, but thought physicians old women, for they had no antidote in their catalogue for brandy. An indigestion is an excellent commonplace for two people that never met before.
By way of ingratiating myself, I told him the story of my doctor, who, on my earnestly representing to him that I thought his regimen had done me harm, assured me that the whole pharmacopeia contained nothing comparable to the
prescription he had given me; and, as a proof of his undoubted efficacy, said, that, "he had had one gentleman with my complaint under his hands for the last fifteen years." This anecdote made my companion shake the rough sides of his
three great coats with boisterous laughter; and Turtle, starting out of his sleep, swore he knew how the fight would go, for he had had a dream about it. Sure enough, the rascal told us how the first rounds went off, but "his dream," like others, "denoted a foregone conclusion." He knew his men. The moon now rose in silver state, and I ventured, with some hesitation, to point out this object of placid beauty, with the blue serene beyond, to the man of science, to
which his ear he "seriously inclined," the more as it gave promise d'un beau
jour for the morrow, and showed the ring undrenched by envious showers, arrayed in sunny smiles. Just then, all going on well, I thought on my friend Toms, whom I had left behind, and said innocently, "There was ablockhead of a fellow I left in town, who said there was no possibility of getting down by the mail, and talked of going by a caravan from Belcher's at two in the morning, after he had written some letters." "Why," said he of the lapells, "I should not wonder if that was the very person we saw running about like mad from one coach-door to another, and asking if anyone had seen a friend
of his, a gentleman going to the fight, whom he had missed stupidly enough by staying to write a note." "Pray, Sir," said my fellow-traveller, "he had a plaid-cloak on?" - "Why, no," said I, "not at the time I left him, but he very well might afterwards, for he offered to lend me one." The plain-cloak and the letter decided the thing. Joe,3 sure enough, was in the Bristol mail, which preceded us by about fifty yards. This was droll enough. We had now but a few miles to our place of destination, and the first thing I did on alighting at Newbury, both coaches stopping at the same time, was to call out, "Pray, is there a gentleman in that mail of the name of Toms?" "No," said Joe, borrowing something of the vein of Gilpin, "for I have just got out." "Well!" says he, "this is lucky; but you don't know how vexed I was to miss you; for," added he,
lowering his voice, "did you know when I left you I went to Belcher's to ask about the caravan, and Mrs. Belcher said very obligingly, she couldn't tell about that, but there were two gentlemen who had taken places by the mail and were gone on in a landau, and she could frank us. It's a pity I didn't meet with you; we could then have got down for nothing. But mum's the word." It's the devil for anyone to tell me a secret, for it's sure to come out in print. I do not care so much to gratify a friend, but the public ear to too great a temptation to me.Our present business was to get beds and a supper at an inn; but this was no easy task. The public-houses were full, and where you saw a light at a private house, and people poking their heads out of the casement to see what was going on, they instantly put them in and shut the window, the moment you seemed advancing with a suspicious overture for accommodation. Our guard and coachman thundered away at the outer gate of the "Crown" for some time without effect - such was the greater noise within; - and when the doors were unbarred, and we got admittance, we found a party assembled in the kitchen round a good hospitable fire, some sleeping, others drinking, others talking on politics and on the fight. A tall English yeoman (something like Matthews in the face, and
quite as great a wag) -
A lusty man to ben an abbot able, -was making such a prodigious noise about rent and taxes, and the price of corn no and formerly, that he had prevented us from being heard at the gate. The first thing I heard him say was to a shuffling fellow who wanted to be off a bet for a shilling glass of brandy and water - "Confound it, man, don't be insipid!" Thinks I, that is a good phrase. It was a good omen. He kept it up so all night, nor flinched with the approach of morning. He was a fine fellow, with sense, wit, and spirit, a hearty body and a joyous mind, free-spoken, frank, convivial - one of that true English
breed that went with Harry the Fifth to the siege of Harfleur - "standing like greyhounds in the slips," etc. We ordered tea and eggs (beds were soon found to be out of the question) and this fellow's conversation was sauce
piquante. It did one's heart good to see him brandish his oaken towel and to hear him talk. He made mince-meat of a drunken, stupid, red-faced, quarrelsome, frowsy farmer, whose nose "he moralised into a thousand similes," making it out a firebrand like Bardolph's. "I'll tell you what my friend," says he, "the landlady has only to keep you here to save fire and candle. If one was to touch your nose, it would go off like a piece of charcoal." At this the other only grinned like an idiot, the sole variety in his purple face being his little peering grey eyes and yellow teeth; called for another glass, swore he would not stand it; and after many attempts to provoke his humorous antagonist to singe combat, which the other turned off (after working him up to a ludicrous pitch of choler) with great adroitness, he fell quietly asleep with a
glass of liquor in his hand, which he could not lift to his head. His laughing persecutor made a speech over him, and turning to the opposite side of the room, where they were all sleeping in the midst of this "loud and furious sun,"
said, "There's a scene, by G-d, for Hogarth to paint. I think he and Shakespeare were our two best men at copying life." This confirmed me in my good opinion of him. Hogarth, Shakespeare, and Nature, were just enough for him
(indeed for any man) to know. I said, "You read Cobbett, don't you? At least," says I, "you talk just as well as he writes." He seemed to doubt this. But I said, "We have an hour to spare; if you'll get pen, ink, and paper, and keep on
talking, I'll write down what you say; and if it doesn't make a capital 'Political Register,' I'll forfeit my head. You have kept me alive to-night, however. I don't know what I should have done without you. He did not dislike this view of the thing, nor my asking if he was not about the size of Jem Belcher; and told me soon afterwards, in the confidence of friendship, that "the circumstance which had given him nearly the greatest concern in his life, was Cribb's beating Jem after he had lost his eye by racket-playing." - The morning dawns; that dim but yet clear light appears, which weighs like solid
bars of metal on the sleepless eyelids; the guests drop down from their chambers one by one - but it was too late to think of going to bed now (the clock was on the stroke of seven), we had nothing for it but to find a barber's (the pole that glittered in the morning sun lighted us to his shop), and then a nine miles' march to Hungerford. The day was fine, the sky was blue, the mists were retiring from the marshy ground, the path was tolerably dry, the sitting-up all night had not done us much harm - at least the cause was good; we talked of this and that with amicable difference, roving and sipping of many subjects, but still invariably we returned to the fight. At length, a mile to the left of Hungerford, on a gentle eminence, we saw the ring surrounded by covered carts, gigs, and carriages, of which hundreds had passed us on the
road; Toms gave a youthful shout, and we hastened down a narrow lane to thescene of action.
Reader, have you ever seen a fight? If not, you have a pleasure to come, at least if it is a fight like that between the Gas-man and Bill Neate. The crowd was very great when we arrived on the spot; open carriages were coming up, with
streamers flying and music playing, and the country-people were pouring in over hedge and ditch in all directions, to see their hero beat or be beaten. The odds were still on Gas, but only about five to four. Gully had been down to try
Neate, and had backed him considerably, which was a damper to the sanguine confidence of the adverse party. About two hundred thousand pounds were pending. The Gas says, he has lost £3,000 which were promised him by different
gentlemen if he had won. He had presumed too much on himself, which had made others presume on him. This spirited and formidable young fellow seems to have taken for his motto the old maxim, that "there are three things necessary to
success in life - Impudence! Impudence! Impudence!" It is so in matters of opinion, but not in the FANCY, which is the most practical of all things, though even here confidence is half the battle, but only half. Our friend had
vapoured and swaggered too much, as if he wanted to grin and bully his adversary out of the fight. "Alas! the Bristol man was not so tamed!" - "This is the grave digger" (would Tom Hickman exclaim in the moments of intoxication
from gin and success, showing his tremendous right hand), "this will send many of them to their long homes; I haven't done with them yet!" Why should he - though he had licked four of the best men within the hour, yet why should he
threaten to inflict dishonourable chastisement on my old master Richmond, a veteran going off the stage, and who has borne his sable honours meekly? Magnanimity, my dear Tom, and bravery, should be inseparable. Or why should he
go up to his antagonist, the first time he ever saw him at the Fives Court, and measuring him from head to foot with a glance of contempt, as Achilles surveyed Hector, say to him, "What, are you Bill Neate? I'll knock more blood out of
that great carcase of thine, this day fortnight, than you ever knock'd out of a bullock's!" It was not manly, 'twas not fighter- like. If he was sure of the victory (as he was not), the less said about it the better. Modesty should accompany the FANCY as its shadow. The best men were always the best behaved. Jem Belcher, the Game Chicken (before whom the Gas-man could not have lived) were civil, silent men. So is Cribb, so is Tom Belcher, the most elegant of
sparrers, and not a man for every one to take by the nose. I enlarged on this topic in the mail (while Turtle was asleep), and said very wisely (as I thought) that impertinence was a part of no profession. A boxer was bound to beat his man, but not to thrust his fist, either actually or by implication, in every one's face. Even a highwayman, in the way of trade, may blow out your brains, but if he uses foul language at the same time, I should say he was no gentleman. A boxer, I would infer, need not be a blackguard or a coxcomb, more than another. Perhaps I press this point too much on a fallen man -
Mr. Thomas Hickman has by this time learnt that first of all lessons, "That man was made to mourn." He has lost nothing by the late fight but his presumption; and that every man may do as well without! By an overly-display of this quality,
however, the public has been prejudiced against him, and the knowing-ones were taken in. Few but those who had bet on him wished Gas to win. With my own prepossessions on the subject, the result of the 11th of December appeared to me as fine a piece of poetical justice as I had ever witnessed. The difference of weight between the two combatants (14 stone to 12) was nothing to the sporting men. Great, heavy, clumsy, long-armed Bill Neate kicked the beam in the scale of the Gas-man's vanity. The amateurs were frightened at his big words, and thought that they would make up for the difference of six feet and five feet nine. Truly, the FANCY are not men of imagination. They judge of what has been, and cannot conceive of anything that is to be. The Gas-man had won hitherto; therefore he must beat a man half as big again as himself - and that to a certainty. Besides, there are as many feuds, factions, prejudices, pedantic notions in the FANCY as in the state or in the schools. Mr. Gully is almost the only cool, sensible man among them, who exercises an unbiassed
discretion, and is not a slave to his passions in these matters. But enough of reflections, and to our tale. The day, as I have said, was fine for a December morning. The grass was wet, and the ground miry, and ploughed up with multitudinous feet, except that, within the ring itself, there was a spot of virgin-green closed in and unprofaned by vulgar tread, that shone with dazzling brightness in the mid-day sun. For it was noon now, and we had an hour to wait. This is the trying time. It is then the heart sickens, as you think what the two champions are about, and how short a time will determine their fate. After the first blow is struck, there is no opportunity for nervous apprehensions; you are swallowed up in the immediate interest of the scene - but
Between the acting of a dreadful thing
And the first motion, all the
interim is
Like a phantasma, or a hideous dream
I found it so as I felt the sun's rays clinging to my back, and saw the white wintry clouds sink below the verge of the horizon. "So," I thought, "my fairest hopes have faded from my side! - so will the Gas-man's glory, or that of his adversary, vanish in an hour." The swells were parading in their white box-coats, the outer ring was cleared with
some bruises on the heads and shins of the rustic assembly (for the cockneys had been distanced by the sixty- six miles); the time drew near, I had got a good stand; a bustle, a buzz, ran through the crowd, and from the opposite side entered Neate, between his second and bottle-holder. He rolled along, swathed in his loose great coat, his knock-knees bending under his huge bulk; and, with a modest cheerful air, threw his hat into the ring. He then just looked round, and began quietly to undress; when from the other side there was a similar rush and an opening made, and the Gas-man came forward with a conscious air of anticipated triumph, too much like the cock-of-the-walk. He strutted about more than became a hero, sucked oranges with a supercilious air, and threw away the skin with a toss of his head, and went up and looked at Neate, which was an act of supererogation. The only sensible thing he did was, as he strode away from the modern Ajax, to fling out his arms, as if he wanted to try whether they would do their work that day. By this time they had stripped, and presented a strong contrast in appearance. If Neate was like Ajax, "with Atlantean shoulders, fit to bear" the pugilistic reputation of all Bristol, Hickman might be compared to Diomed, light, vigorous, elastic, and his back glistened in the sun, as he moved about, like a panther's hide. There was now a dead pause - attention was awe-struck. Who at that moment, big with a great event, did not draw his breath short - did not feel his heart throb? All was ready. They tossed up for the sun, and the Gas-man won. They were lead up to the scratch - shook hands, and went at it.
In the first round everyone thought it was all over. After making play a short time, the Gas-man flew at his adversary like a tiger, struck five blow in as many seconds, three first, and then following him as he staggered back, two more, right and left, and down he fell, a might ruin. There was a shout, and I said, "There is no standing this." Neate seemed like a lifeless lump of flesh and bone, round which the Gas-man's blows played with the rapidity of electricity or lighting, and you imagined he would only be lifted up to be knocked down again. It was as if Hickman held a sword or a fire in the right
hand of his, and directed it against an unarmed body. They met again, and Neate seemed, not cowed, but particularly cautious. I saw his teeth clenched together and his brows knit close against the sun. He held out both his arms at
full-length straight before him, like two sledge-hammers, and raised his left an inch or two higher. The Gas-man could not get over this guard - they struck mutually and fell, but without advantage on either side. It was the same in the
next round; but the balance of power was thus restored - the fate of the battle was suspended. No one could tell how it would end. This was the only moment in which opinion was divided; for, in the next, the Gas-man aiming a mortal blow
at his adversary's neck, with his right hand, and failing from the length he had to reach, the other returned it with his left at full swing, planted a tremendous blow on his cheek-bone and eyebrow, and made a red ruin of that side
of his face. The Gas-man went down, and there was another shout - a roar of triumph as the waves of fortune rolled tumultuously from side to side. This was a settler. Hickman got up, and "grinned horrible a ghastly smile," yet he was
evidently dashed in his opinion of himself; it was the first time he had ever been so punished; all one side of his face was perfect scarlet, and his right eye was closed in dingy blackness, as he advanced to the fight, less confident, but still determined. After one or two rounds, not receiving another such remembrancer, he rallied and went at it with his former impetuosity. But in vain. His strength had been weakened, - his blows could not tell at such a distance, - he was obliged to fling himself at his adversary, and could not strike from his feet; and almost as regularly as he flew at him with his right
hand, Neate warded the blow, or drew back out of its reach, and felled him with the return of his left. There was little cautious sparring - no half-hits - no tapping and trifling, none of the petit-maîtreship of the art - they were almost all knock-down blows: - the fight was a good stand-up fight. The wonder was the half-minute time. If there had been a minute or more allowed between each round, it would have been intelligible how they should by degrees
recover strength and resolution; but to see two men smashed to the ground, smeared with gore, stunned, senseless, the breath beaten out of their bodies; and then, before you recover from the shock, to see them rise up with new strength and courage, stand steady to inflict or receive mortal offence, and rush upon each other, "like two clouds over the Caspian" - this is the most astonishing thing of all: - this is the high and heroic state of man! From this time forward the event became more certain every round; and about the twelfth it seemed as if it must have been over. Hickman generally stood with his back to me; but in the scuffle, he had changed positions, and Neate just then made a tremendous lunge at him, and hit him full in the face. It was doubtful whether he would fall backwards or forwards; he hung suspended for about a second or two, and then fell back, throwing his hands in the air, and with his face lifted up to the sky. I never saw anything more terrific than his aspect just before he fell. All traces of life, of natural expression, were gone from him.
His face was like a human skull, a death's head, spouting blood. The eyes were filled with blood, the nose streamed with blood, the mouth gaped blood. He was not like an actual man, but like a preternatural, spectral appearance, or like
one of the figures in Dante's "Inferno." Yet he fought on after this for several rounds, still striking the first desperate blow, and Neate standing on the defensive, and using the same cautious guard to the last, as if he had still all his work to do; and it was not till the Gas-man was so stunned in the seventeenth or eighteenth round, that his senses forsook him, and he could not ome to time, that the battle was declared over. Ye who despise the FANCY, do something to show as much pluck, or as much self-possession as this, before you assume a superiority which you have never given a single proof of by any one action in the whole course of your lives! - When the Gas-man came to himself, the first words he uttered were,
"Where am I? What is the matter!" "Nothing is the matter, Tom - you have lost the battle, but you are the bravest man alive." And Jackson whispered to him, "I am collecting a purse for you, Tom." - Vain sounds, and unheard at that moment! Neate instantly went up and shook him cordially by the hand, and seeing some old acquaintance, began to flourish with his fists, calling out, "Ah, you always said I couldn't fight - What do you think now?" But all in good humour, and without any appearance of arrogance; only it was evident Bill Neate was pleased that he had won the fight. When it
was all over, I asked Cribb if he did not think it was a good one? He has, "Pretty well!" The carrier-pigeons now mounted into the air, and one of them flew with the news of her husband's victory to the bosom of Mrs. Neate. Alas, for Mrs. Hickman!
Mais au revoir, as Sir Fopling Flutter says. I went down with Toms; I
returned with Jack Pigott, whom I met on the ground. Toms is a rattle-brain; Pigott is a sentimentalist. Now, under favour, I am a sentimentalist too - therefore I say nothing, but that the interest of the excursion did not flag as
I came back. Pigott and I marched along the causeway leading from Hungerford to Newbury, now observing the effect of a brilliant sun on the tawny meads or moss-coloured cottages, now exulting in the fight, now digressing to some topic
of general and elegant literature. My friend was dressed in character for the occasion, or like one of the FANCY; that is, with a double portion of great coats, clogs, and overhauls: and just as we had agreed with a couple of
country-lads to carry his superfluous wearing- apparel to the next town, we were overtaken by a return post-chaise, into which I got, Pigott preferring to eat on the bar. There were two strangers already in the chaise, and on their observing they supposed I had been to the fight, I said I had, and concluded they had done the same. They appeared, however, a little shy and sore on the subject; and it was not fill after several hints dropped, and questions put, that it turned out that they had missed it. One of these friends had undertaken to drive the other there in his gig: they had set out, to make sure work, the day before at three in the afternoon. The owner of the one- horse vehicle scorned to ask his way, and drove right on to Bagshot, instead of turning off at Hounslow: there they stopped all night, and set off the next day across the
country to Reading, from whence they took coach, and got down within a mile or two of Hungerford, just half an hour after the fight was over. This might be safely set down as one of the miseries of human life. We parted with these two
gentlemen who had been to see the fight, but had returned as they went, at Wolhampton, where we were promised beds (an irresistible temptation, for Pigott had passed the preceding night at Hungerford, as we had done at Newbury; and we
turned into an old bow-windowed parlour with a carpet and a snug fire; and after devouring a quantity of tea, toast, and eggs, sat down to consider, during an hour of philosophic leisure, what we should have for supper. In the midst of an Epicurean deliberation between a roasted fowl and mutton chops with mashed potatoes, we were interrupted by an inroad of Goths and Vandals - O
procul este profani - not real flash-men, but interlopers, noisy pretenders, butchers from Tothillfields, brokers from Whitechapel, who called immediately for pipes and tobacco, hoping it would not be disagreeable to the gentlemen, and began to insist that it was a cross. Pigott withdrew from the smoke and noise into another room, and left me to dispute the point with them for a couple of hours sans intermission by the dial. The next morning we rose refreshed; and on observing that Jack had a pocket volume in his hand, in which he read in the intervals of our discourse, I inquired what it was, and learned to my particular satisfaction that it was a volume of the New Eloise." Ladies, after this, will you contend that a love for the FANCY is incompatible with the cultivation of sentiment? - We jogged on as before, my friend setting me up in a genteel drab great coat and green silk handkerchief (which I must say became me exceedingly), and after stretching our legs for a few miles, and seeing Jack Randall, Ned Turner, and Scroggins, pass on the top of one of the Bath coaches, we engaged with the driver of the second to take us to London for the usual fee. I got inside, and found three other passengers. One of them was an old gentleman with an aquiline nose, powdered hair, and a pigtail, and who looked
as if he had played many a rubber at the Bath rooms. I said to myself, he is very like Mr. Windham; I wish he would enter into conversation, that I might hear what fine observations would come from those finely-turned features. However, nothing passed, till, stopping to dine at Reading, some inquiry was made by the company about the fight, and I gave (as the reader may believe) an eloquent and animated description of it. When we got into the coach again, the old gentleman, after a graceful exordium, said, he had, when a boy, been to a fight between the famous Broughton and George Stevenson, who was called the Fighting Coachman, in the year 1770, with the late Mr. Windham. This beginning flattered the spirit of prophecy within me and rivetted my attention. He went on - "George Stevenson was coachman to a friend of my father's. He was an old man when I saw him some years afterwards. He took hold of his own arm and said, There was muscle here once, but now it is no more than this young gentleman's.' He added, 'Well, no matter; I have been here long, I am willing to go hence, and I hope I have done no more harm than another man.' Once," said my unknown companion, "I asked him if he had ever beat Broughton? He said Yes; that he had fought with him three times, and the last time he fairly beat him, though the world did not allow it. 'I'll tell you how it was, master. When the seconds lifted us up in the last round, we were so exhausted that neither of us could stand, and we fell upon one another, and as Master Broughton fell
uppermost, the mob gave it in his favour, and he was said to have won the battle. But,' says he, 'the fact was, that as his second (John Cuthbert) lifted him up, he said to him, "I'll fight no more, I've had enough;" 'which,' says Stevenson, 'you know gave me the victory. And to prove to you that this was the case, when John Cuthbert was on his death-bed, and they asked him if there was anything on his mind which he wished to confess, he answered, "Yes, that there was one thing he wished to set right, for that certainly Master Stevenson won that last fight with Master Broughton; for he whispered him as he lifted him up in the last round of all, that he had had enough."'" "This," said the Bath gentleman, "was a bit of human nature;" and I have written this account of the fight on purpose that it might not be lost to the world. He also stated as a proof of the candour of mind in this class of men, that Stevenson acknowledged that Broughton could have beat him in his best day; but that he (Broughton) was getting old in their last encounter. When we stopped in Piccadilly, I wanted to ask the gentleman some questions about the late Mr. Windham, but had not courage. I got out, resigned my coat and green silk handkerchief to Pigott (loth to part with these ornaments of life), and walked home in high spirits.
P.S. Toms called upon me the next day, to ask me if I did not think the fight was a complete thing? I said I thought it was. I hope he will relish my account of it.