Pre-Industrial Britain Flashcards
What was the characteristics of sport in Pre-Industrial Britain?
Popular
Local
Uncoded
Courtly
Occasional
Cruel and Violent
Rural
Occupational
Wagering
Nature/Simple
What were the social and cultural factors of pre-industrial britain?
Pre-Industrial
Transport
Educated - schools existed for the UC boys,
many people were illiterate
Social Class - two tier class system, upper
class and lower class
Time/Money - the UC had plenty and the LC
very little
Law and order - no police force at the time,
no one to in force rules
Agricultural and Rural
Changing nature + free time
Gambling
Lack of technology
Gender - males and females held different
roles
What was Mob Football?
Played by the lower class
Very few rules
only rule was “no murder”
Was a mass game
Cruel and violent
Similar to rugby/football
What was Cock Fighting?
Played mainly by the upper class.
14 foot square pit with 8 inch tall fence.
1849 parliament made it illegal
Lower class often participated in “throwing at cocks”
the cockerel was tied to a stake and sticks and stones were thrown at it.
If you won, you could take the cockerel home
What was Pedestrianism?
Lower class sport
Lower class would run and upper class would be the patrons.
linked to employment
Runners were footmen
kick stones out of the way of the carriage.
> Captain Robert Bardy was a famous pedestrian, he walked one mile every hour for 1000 hours
What was Real Tennis?
Played by upper class.
Played in grand halls of aristocrats.
Had rules.
How did Gender affect sport?
Women participated in very different activities to men.
Women seen as the weaker sex
- activities had to suit this view and not be too strenuous or dangerous.
Upper class women might be involved in activities such as hawking or archery.
Lower class women had few rights in society and all women had few choices in activities that they could get involved in.
- during country fairs or wakes; would get involved in smock race
How did Law and Order affect sport?
Pre-indust Britain had little in the way of formal law and order. This shaped the types of activities that were undertaken.
The lower classes would be more involved in violent activities
- e.g. bare knuckle fighting or animal batting
This reflected the lack of order in activities and cruelty to animals in bloody sports
- Mob football had few rules, which reflected the lack of law and order in society at the time
Sir Robert Peel created a modern police force through the introduction of the 1829 Metropolitan Police Act
How did Education and Literacy affect sport?
The UC were educated and literate. In contrast, the LC were uneducated and illiterate
- this characterised the types of activities that both classes were involved in.
The UC could read and write, they could understand more codified activities
- e.g. real tennis
The lower class could not read and write, so were involved within simple uncoded activities
- e.g. mob football
UC boys would have been educated at public schools.
LC boys would’ve been expected to help work the land.
Schooling wasn’t a legal requirement at the time.
- state schools opened as a result of the Educated Act of 1870.
Some children would’ve been taught to read by the local church if they were fortunate, but once they were old enough to work, they would have to support their families.
How did the Availability of Time affect sport?
The LC worked long hours labouring on the land. This meant there was very little energy and opportunities to participate in sport
- activities were limited to holy day fairs and festivals and were based in/around public houses.
- e.g. people played drinking games and bare knuckle fighting.
The UC had plenty of time as they did not have the need to work as this group were born into money.
- they played real tennis, cricket, fox hunting, etc. .
How did the Availability of Money affect sport?
The UC had much more money and time available, so had more opportunities for involvement.
- they were able to afford horses, equipment and appropriate clothing for sports
- they played real tennis, using expensive equipment and facilities.
The LC had very little money to access specialist equipment, clothing or transport. They couldn’t afford to miss work to participate in sport or pastime, these opportunities were not available to them.
How did the Type and Availability of Transport affect sport?
The main type of transport was horse and cart or just walking.
If individuals wanted to travel, they tended to do so on foot (travelled to neighbouring villages).
Roads at the time were in bad conditions, this prevented many from travelling
- this influenced peoples access to activities as everything was kept local and this resulted in localised rules being in place for sports.
The UC had more opportunities to travel further, as they had access to horse and cart, but didn’t travel far due to road conditions.
- many aristocrats would build facilities in their own homes
