Pre-industrial Britain: Popular Recreation (pre-1780)

Question 1

Life in pre-industrial Britain

Answer 1

• communications & transport limited
• widespread illiteracy
• cruel/violent lower class
• limited free time (work based on the land)
• class divisions
• rural living

Question 2

Characteristics of popular recreation

Answer 2

• localised: lack of transport, played where they lived
• simple/basic: lack of rules & illiteracy
• violent/male dominated: aggressive + damage to property, no women
• annual/occasional: long work hrs, events = once a year e.g. cheese rolling
• 2 tier: real tennis = upper, mob football = lower, upper would gamble + bet on lower
• rural: open land for mob games, land available

Question 3

Describe mob football

Answer 3

. Played by Lower class only
. Localised, e.g. Ashbourne mob football due to lack of transport
. Rural
. Simple, used what was available
. Long working hrs = occasional e.g. Shrove Tuesday
. Violence + male dominated, illiteracy so no rules

Question 4

Describe ‘Real Tennis’

Answer 4

• played by upper class only: exclusive, courtly and royal
• literate, complex rules made
• high moral code, cordial manner
• lots of leisure time, played regularly
• expensive equipment, e.g. racquets
• travel, non-local

Question 5

Athletics as a popular recreation activity in pre-industrial Britain

Answer 5

• known as foot racing/‘pedestrianism’

: footmen (hired servants) competing as messengers by the gentry for their speed of movement across the land.

• gentry, bet on the footmen, how many miles
• upper class act as patrons for the footman, rewarding prizes.

Question 6

Characteristics of festivals pre-1780

Answer 6

Athletics became a ‘festival occasion’, included: running, hurdles + football

. Rules were simple
. Local, neighbouring villages could join
. Annual
. Rural
. Betting + wagering on the outcomes