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Shows how boxers, journalists, politicians, publicans, and others used national, ethnic, religious, and racial identities to promote boxing. Even as many of them championed the sport's pure English pedigree, Irish, Jewish, and black boxers claimed a prominent place for themselves. Far from the unblemished Englishness that some supporters imagined, boxing put the diversity on display.
List of contents
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Preface
Introduction
One. Blood Sport, Identity and the Making of Bare-Knuckle Prizefighting, c. 1660-1770
Two. Britishness, Minorities and the Revival of Prizefighting, 1770-1790
Three. Sport as Symbol: Prizefighting in the Age of the French Revolution, 1790-1802
Four. National Spirit, Minorities and Prizefighting During the War with Napoleon, 1803-1812
Five. The Rise of "Boxing's Professionals": Journalists and Boxers in the Postwar Years, 1812-1823
Six. The Career of Jack Langan, Ethnic Entrepreneur
Seven. Emphasizing Englishness in the Age of Reform, 1825-1833
Eight. The Spread and Transformation of Bare-Knuckle Boxing in the Victorian World, 1834-1867
Conclusion
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Adam Chill is a former Professor of History and Coordinator of Global Studies at Castleton University. He lives in Greenland, New Hampshire.
