Sport and Society Flashcards
Identify the historical context of Britain pre-industrial revolution
• Rise of aristocratic and popular sport in England reflected the influence of the Roman conquest on the existing British celts and invaders such as Vikings and Anglo-Saxons
• By the Norman conquest, many folk activities existed but Norman aristocracy divided sporting pastimes into aristocratic pursuits and folk games
Outline recreation during Feudal times in Britain
• Aristocrats indulged in pastimes such as ‘parforce’ hunting, involving killing game
• Folk games emerged as religious festivals that were imposed on older pagan customs and became holy day celebrations and wakes
• Violent annual mob games existed in many towns as well as blood sports, many of these continuing to the end of the 19th century
• Popular sports were only possible with the sanction of the clergy and often landowner involvement
Outline the social context of Britain pre-industrial revolution, in regards to sport
• Two classes; the upper class and lower class (peasants) who had different pastimes. The upper class had considerably more opportunity and provision than the lower class
• Gender: Society was patriarchal and sport was made dominated
• Law and order: No police force led to an ‘uncivilised’ society so sports were cruel and violent
• Education and literacy: UC were literate, while LC were illiterate and used simple, unwritten rules
• Availability of time: UC had free time but time for the LC (agricultural) was determined by the seasons, there were occasional mob games that were often annual
• Availability of money: UC were usually rich and LC usually poor so games were simple with wagering and gambling (UC to show status or wealth and LC to go from ‘rags to riches’)
• Availability of transport: Horse and carriage for UC and LC were on foot so sport was local
Identify the two types of recreation in pre-industrial Britain
• Popular recreation
• Mob activities
Outline the upper class and popular recreation in pre-industrial Britain
• Upper class had significantly more opportunity, money and provision and those that owned large amounts of land didn’t partake in manual labour
• While the majority of the population worked on farmland, those that owned the land allowed popular recreational to take place via the provision of their land
• Eg. Real tennis
• Popular recreation was:
- Organised: Activities were regular with regular
fixtures
- Sophisticated: Aristocracy were educated and
literate so activities had clear rules and
regulations
- Developed: Activities required equipment and
facilities in order to take place
- Local and non-local: Aristocracy could afford to
travel in order to take part in activities
- Wagering: Upper class often wagered on the
outcome of mob activities
Outline the lower class and mob activities in pre-industrial Britain
• Lower class were manufacturers with little money and lived in poverty in poor, cramped conditions. Working conditions meant sport was irregular due to the limited time they had to participate
• Eg. Mob football
• Mob activity was:
- Irregular: Long working hours meant
participation was limited to sporting events held
occasionally
- Unwritten/simple rules: Many were uneducated/illiterate so rules were simple and passed by word of mouth
- Violent: Reflecting the harsh conditions of pre-industrial life with violent behaviour being used in physically demanding sports
- Local: Lack of transport restricted mob activities to local fields
What was the view and subsequent approach taken by the church in recreational activities
• Recognised the physical and moral benefits of regular physical activity on its parishioners and therefore the clergy gave permission for recreational activities to be used as a tool to develop morally upstanding members of society
• Most church organised activities took place on holy days and were therefore often irregular, however they did frown upon mob sports and endeavoured to ‘clean up’ activities as they promoted undesirable behaviour (violence)
Outline the role of wagering in sport in pre-industrial Britain
• Wagering gave the upper classes an opportunity to show how much income they had to spend, while it gave lower classes a chance to make their own money (rags to riches) so it became a key characteristic in pre-industrial British sport
• It contributed toward the division between the classes with more of the upper class spectating while the lower class participated because the aristocrats believed mob activities were below them
Outline what led to the emergence and development of modern-day sport in pre-industrial Britain
Indistrial, urban and agrarian revolutions
Identify the three revolutions that impacted British society
• Agrarian Revolution
• Industrial Revolution
• Urban Revolution
Outline the Agrarian revolution
• Agrarian revolution involved the gradual movement of workers from the countryside to larger towns caused by:
• Emergence of a gentry class
• Enclosure of much of the countryside
• Growth of the Methodist movement
• Gradual increased significance and respectability
in early Victorian society
• Poor wages of the rural working class
• Gradual mechanism of tenant farms
Outline the Industrial Revolution
• Industrialisation saw the emergence of the middle class, such as factory owners and doctors who financially benefited. This gave increased power to middle classes, better wages for some of the industrial working class and greater prosperity for the country as a whole
• This industrialisation resulted in urbanisation which is the large movement of the population from rural areas into towns and cities seeking jobs in newly built factories, which reduced space for sport as previously used rural areas were no longer there
• The urban revolution caused a massive rise in population, as industrial and well placed towns grew in size and national significance,
Describe the positive effects of the Industrial Revolution on British sport and society
• Transport (railways):
- Teams could travel a greater distance and so could play a wider range of opponents leading to leagues and tournaments in sports such as football (eg. FA cup)
- Spectators could travel to support their teams and transport was affordable so participation and spectatorship weren’t limited to upper classes
- Communication was aided by reporting of local fixtures in the written press so spectators could be aware of timings of matches
• Education:
- Improved for a larger part of the population as the British government worked to make education more accessible for a higher percentage of the population by providing funds and charities
- New laws meant more young children working in factories must attend school for a minimum 2 hours a day
- Improvement in education allowed recreational activities to become more refined as rules were codified and could be written and read so there was an improved understanding of more complex rules
Describe the negative effect of the Industrial Revolution on British society
• Less open space for games to take place
• Transport from towns to country was poor which deterred country-based people from travelling to participate
• Long working hours in factories decreased leisure time
• Low wages meant little disposable income to participate in sport
• Women and children were used as cheap labour
What improved working conditions during and after the Industrial Revolution
• 1847 Factories act reduced working days to 10 hours from 12 giving slightly more time for leisure activities, encouraging the growth of factory teams
• During the 1800s learning became available to even the poorest people who became more aspirational and had wider opportunities in management and operation in factories
