History of pugilism -
Pugilism began in England early in the 18th century and lasted until around the time of the last bare fist championship fight between the American champion John L. Sullivan who beat Jake Kilrain in 75 rounds near New Orleans in 1889.
James Figg , is acknowledged as the first champion of the English prize ring. In 1720 he opened a school of arms in London on the Oxford Road (now Oxford Street) known as Figg's Amphitheatre
Upon Figg 's death in 1734 George Taylor took over the management of the amphitheatre. Taylor called himself ‘champion’; an impertinence when everyone knew that Jack Broughton , had never been beaten by anybody and the list of his victims included George Taylor. Broughton began to find his supportive role more and more frustrating and was keen for his independence. By now he was a popular man with a growing circle of influential friends and his ideas for an amphitheatre devoted wholly to fisticuffs fell on receptive ears, particularly as he promised much better facilities for spectators than Taylor's emporium offered. Broughton's amphitheatre opened on Taylor's doorstep on 13th March 1743. Everyone, except for George Taylor, was happy with Broughton's new theatre, with its boxes and gallery for those seeking space and comfort and its pit for those who crowded round the raised stage. After a series of fights which clashed with and undercut (maximum price of 1s 6d) Taylor succumbed, closing his own theatre and took his fighters to join Broughton.
Jack Broughton decided he needed a set of rules to assist in the smooth running of the contests in his amphitheatre (in the same way as the Jockey Club saw itself regulating Newmarket racing only) and although 'Jack Broughton's Rules' (see Appendix 1) as they became known were not formulated as national rules for pugilism they were destined to govern prize-fighting for almost a century.
This new sport became popular and fights for money stakes (or prize-fights) drew big crowds, although they were against the law. Men were carefully trained to meet in the roped-off ‘ring’, usually marked out in a field. Fights went to a finish, that is, until one of the pair was unable to continue.
A round ended when one of the boxers fell to the ground, whether after many minutes, or after only a few seconds. When a round ended, the seconds took their men to their corners and attended them during an interval of half a minute. After this pause, the boxers again came ‘to the scratch’ and set to. If either failed to stand up after thirty seconds the fight was over, the loser being said to be ‘knocked out of time’ or ‘not up to scratch’. Some prize-fights lasted for hours; others ended in a few minutes.
The leading fighters were presented with ornate championship belts, silver cups and services of plate, by an admiring public. Eulogised and feted by the literati and worshipped by the mob during their lifetime, in death they were commemorated with splendid tombs.
At the height of the craze for pugilism, the popular Blackwood's Magazine had remarked, albeit tongue in cheek, that the man who has not read Boxiana is ignorant of the power of the English language'. Moreover, prize‑fighting as a popular spectacle was responsible for the introduction into our native tongue not just of slang words like 'claret', meaning blood, but of many metaphors still in common use. 'The phrase 'throw your hat into the ring', 'come up to scratch' and 'throw in the sponge', are all echoes of archaic prize‑ring practice.
In 1838 a new set of rules were introduced to replace Jack Broughton 's Rules and these were known as the Rules of the London Prize Ring or The New Rules .
The New Rules of 1838 were an attempt to bring a greater order and acceptability to the sport.
The way in which challenges for fights, details of forthcoming fights and reports of recent contests were broadcast by the sporting press with a newspaper entitled Bell's Life in London (the forerunner of today's Sporting Life ) appearing to be the number one sporting newspaper.
The newspaper Bell's Life in London not only reported the fights but also provided the publicity which fed and fostered interest in the ring throughout the country but it also during the peak years provided some of those organisational elements which helped pugilism to survive. The editor became the regular holder of the stake money for pugilism and other sports and at times held as much as £15,000 and he or one of his journalistic colleagues also became the most reliable stand-by as referee.
When gloves were adopted for contests (after earlier being used in training), hooking, swinging and upper-cutting were brought into play. Faster and more varied footwork came into use with the springy surface of the modern ring.
Later in the 19th century the prize ring lost the fashionable supporters who had encouraged it in the time of the Napoleonic wars and it fell on bad days. Yet even in 1860 the fight at Farnborough between the English champion, Tom Sayers and John C. Heenan of America , was watched by a large crowd and fully reported in English and American newspapers.
As boxing became less brutal, mainly because of the rules drawn up in 1867 by the 8th Marquess of Queensbury which insisted on such things as padded gloves being worn and other changes to ensure fair play it eventually came to be permitted by law.
James Figg , is acknowledged as the first champion of the English prize ring. In 1720 he opened a school of arms in London on the Oxford Road (now Oxford Street) known as Figg's Amphitheatre
Upon Figg 's death in 1734 George Taylor took over the management of the amphitheatre. Taylor called himself ‘champion’; an impertinence when everyone knew that Jack Broughton , had never been beaten by anybody and the list of his victims included George Taylor. Broughton began to find his supportive role more and more frustrating and was keen for his independence. By now he was a popular man with a growing circle of influential friends and his ideas for an amphitheatre devoted wholly to fisticuffs fell on receptive ears, particularly as he promised much better facilities for spectators than Taylor's emporium offered. Broughton's amphitheatre opened on Taylor's doorstep on 13th March 1743. Everyone, except for George Taylor, was happy with Broughton's new theatre, with its boxes and gallery for those seeking space and comfort and its pit for those who crowded round the raised stage. After a series of fights which clashed with and undercut (maximum price of 1s 6d) Taylor succumbed, closing his own theatre and took his fighters to join Broughton.
Jack Broughton decided he needed a set of rules to assist in the smooth running of the contests in his amphitheatre (in the same way as the Jockey Club saw itself regulating Newmarket racing only) and although 'Jack Broughton's Rules' (see Appendix 1) as they became known were not formulated as national rules for pugilism they were destined to govern prize-fighting for almost a century.
This new sport became popular and fights for money stakes (or prize-fights) drew big crowds, although they were against the law. Men were carefully trained to meet in the roped-off ‘ring’, usually marked out in a field. Fights went to a finish, that is, until one of the pair was unable to continue.
A round ended when one of the boxers fell to the ground, whether after many minutes, or after only a few seconds. When a round ended, the seconds took their men to their corners and attended them during an interval of half a minute. After this pause, the boxers again came ‘to the scratch’ and set to. If either failed to stand up after thirty seconds the fight was over, the loser being said to be ‘knocked out of time’ or ‘not up to scratch’. Some prize-fights lasted for hours; others ended in a few minutes.
The leading fighters were presented with ornate championship belts, silver cups and services of plate, by an admiring public. Eulogised and feted by the literati and worshipped by the mob during their lifetime, in death they were commemorated with splendid tombs.
At the height of the craze for pugilism, the popular Blackwood's Magazine had remarked, albeit tongue in cheek, that the man who has not read Boxiana is ignorant of the power of the English language'. Moreover, prize‑fighting as a popular spectacle was responsible for the introduction into our native tongue not just of slang words like 'claret', meaning blood, but of many metaphors still in common use. 'The phrase 'throw your hat into the ring', 'come up to scratch' and 'throw in the sponge', are all echoes of archaic prize‑ring practice.
In 1838 a new set of rules were introduced to replace Jack Broughton 's Rules and these were known as the Rules of the London Prize Ring or The New Rules .
The New Rules of 1838 were an attempt to bring a greater order and acceptability to the sport.
The way in which challenges for fights, details of forthcoming fights and reports of recent contests were broadcast by the sporting press with a newspaper entitled Bell's Life in London (the forerunner of today's Sporting Life ) appearing to be the number one sporting newspaper.
The newspaper Bell's Life in London not only reported the fights but also provided the publicity which fed and fostered interest in the ring throughout the country but it also during the peak years provided some of those organisational elements which helped pugilism to survive. The editor became the regular holder of the stake money for pugilism and other sports and at times held as much as £15,000 and he or one of his journalistic colleagues also became the most reliable stand-by as referee.
When gloves were adopted for contests (after earlier being used in training), hooking, swinging and upper-cutting were brought into play. Faster and more varied footwork came into use with the springy surface of the modern ring.
Later in the 19th century the prize ring lost the fashionable supporters who had encouraged it in the time of the Napoleonic wars and it fell on bad days. Yet even in 1860 the fight at Farnborough between the English champion, Tom Sayers and John C. Heenan of America , was watched by a large crowd and fully reported in English and American newspapers.
As boxing became less brutal, mainly because of the rules drawn up in 1867 by the 8th Marquess of Queensbury which insisted on such things as padded gloves being worn and other changes to ensure fair play it eventually came to be permitted by law.