A History Of Wrestling
Chapter Six: The Explorer Hath Cometh
#PWHS #Article #AHistoryOfWrestling #AHOW #TheExplorerHasCometh
While the Spaniards and Portuguese were off claiming territory across the waters. France, Germany, England and other western European countries as well as northern and eastern ones were enjoying the Renaissance period. While taking care of battles closer to home. Wrestling was wrestling. Unmistakable. Even with the unique twist each country put on the sport. And a sport it really was becoming during the 1400s going into the 16th century. A major reason for this was that hand-to-hand combat was no longer as important for warfare. Don't get me wrong training without arms was still a big part of military life as it always will be. However, with long range weapons constantly improving, wrestling was less and less associated with the grim, endless reality of life on the battlefield.
Often said is that the later defined Graeco-Roman style of wrestling actually began during this period. Many aspects of the now Olympic sport resembles in part both that of the the old French and German styles. Then, either side of the continent you had Turkey and their Ottoman Empire with distinct styles, and the British Isles were quickly developing their own styles. The Brits especially had many different styles within the small group of islands. Seemingly each region carried the flag of their own special brand.
What could be called the most important wrestling match in history took place in the year of 1520. In English documents it has been thoroughly recorded what a fine and avid sportsman King Henry the Eighth was. Annual tournaments were held with the King himself taking part. So, when Henry met King Francis I in a meeting to help the two Kings bond as they had similar sporting interests, it was a big deal. Of course, the occasion was celebrated with a festival which contained different forms of entertainment, music and tournaments for various sports. A rule was put in place that the two Kings should not meet in any contest.
The story continues that Henry being the boisterous and defiant ruler he was challenged Francis to a wrestling match. Francis couldn't be seen to back down from the English King and the two squared off. This kind of history often gets manipulated depending upon which side is recalling it, but it seems Francis downed Henry in short order. Versions exist that part of France was up for grabs or some other prize which would shift the political power to one country or the other. When looking further into the situation though, the latter parts become apparent to being nothing more than myth.
If that was not enough to show off the heights of popularity wrestling reached during this time of wealth, fine art and discovery, then maybe the next literary reference will give you a better idea. The author is one, anyone who has the most basic of education in the western world will have heard of. So well respected are his works that they're still a major part of school curriculum and regularly viewed in theaters across the world. British sitcom character Edmund Blackadder sums up the immense influence of this particular writer in Blackadder Back & Forth.
After punching the man in the nose Blackadder proclaims, "That is for every schoolboy and schoolgirl for the next 400 years! Do you have any idea how much suffering you're going to cause?" Unlikely though it may seem, William Shakespeare did indeed describe a scene of wrestling in a 16th century play called, As You Like It:
"The Duke's Wrestler: Come where is this young gallant that is so desirous to lie with his mother earth?
Orlando: Really, sir; but his will hath in it a more modest working.
Duke Frederic: You shall try but one fall.
The Duke's Wrestler: No, I warrant your Grace, you shall not entreat him to a second that have so mightily persuaded him from a first.
Orlando: You mean to mock me after; you should not have mocked me before; but come your ways.
Rosalind: O excellent young man.
Celia: If I had a thunderbolt in my eye I can tell who should down.
(Duke's wrestler is thrown)
Duke: No more, no more.
Orlando: Yes, I beseech your Grace; I am not yet well breathed.
Duke: How dost thou, Charles?
Le Beau: He cannont speak, my lord.
Duke: Bear him away..."
In Asia the sacred texts of Sikhism, the Guru Granth Sahib, composed somewhere around the same time, featured a wrestler who is quoted as saying the following:
"I am a wrestler; I belong to the Lord of the World. I met with the Guru, and I have tied a tall, plumed turban. All have gathered to watch the wrestling match, and the Merciful Lord Himself is seated to behold it. The bugles play and the drums beat. The wrestlers enter the arena and circle around. I have thrown the five challengers to the ground, and the Guru has patted me on the back. All have gathered together, but we shall return home by different routes. The Gurmukhs reap their profits and leave, while the self-willed manmukhs lose their investment and depart."
Once again Hugh Leonard's, A Handbook of Wrestling comes in handy. As mentioned previously, England had such a diverse array of wrestling styles, even more so when compared to some countries which comprised of many more square miles of land. All parts of history are important in some context, to this story only certain ones are important in that they made it to America and eventually all got combined to make the American style of "Catch wrestling," better and more correctly known as professional wrestling. So, to sum up English wrestling as a whole from at least the sixteenth century until the beginning of the twentieth century, Professor Leonard wrote:
"Hundreds of pages might be written upon English wrestling. The champions have been many, and each locality had its own champion through long years—thus admitting of frequent challenges between rival communities, and in many cases of fierce encounters. The more convenient means of communication between the towns, and the easy methods of travel, have in a slight measure reduced the differences between the styles—the same being a natural result of a compromise on rules between two rival champions."
No doubt in terms of wrestling history as it relates to the development of professional wrestling in America, the pilgrimage of people from England to the "New World" in the early 1600s was a huge deal. The story of the first British settlers is something that doesn't need to be recapped. There are just a couple of points which must be made clear about it.
There should be no doubt in anyone's mind that wrestling existed in America prior to the arrival of the British. Native Americans as with all other indigenous people have their folklore within their respective tribes that go back centuries.
We can only ponder over whether wrestling was taken with the original pilgrims or the waves of arrivals that immediately followed. Arguably the more interesting question lays before the British though. Various parts of America had been reached by the French, Spanish and Dutch decades before even the first Jamestown settlement had been founded. More than likely wrestling had come up at some point, so the question becomes not, "Had they seen a different kind of grappling before?" But, "How many different styles had they seen?"
Those who left Britain for America did not come solely from Plymouth in Devon. Some of them for example came from what is now known as London a city that played host to the most popular styles of wrestling in England throughout the years. Which leaves the question of which English form of wrestling were first introduced to States unanswered. My guess would become either the Devonshire or Cornish styles, however the Cumberland and Westmorland style is a strong possibility. Both Devonshire and Cornish styles were utilized in the U.S. until the 20th century within pro-wrestling. the Cumberland and Westmorland style was not particularly featured in the 19th century at all.
The Cornish technique weathered the times of change much better than Devonshire in America, although it still was only participated in small mining towns in only a few places for the most part by the end of the 19th century. In places like California, Cornish wrestling was still one of the biggest sports in the early 1800's right up until the arrival of Graeco-Roman in the 1870's. A few different ideas could emerge from that. Could Devonshire have been the first style turned into a regular sporting fixture in America by the British, with it fading out of fashion as other techniques came across.
Alternatively that could mean absolutely nothing. Cornish may have been the first and it just went through a revival phase in the nineteenth century. Something else that is interesting about these two particular forms of wrestling. Is that they both have a strong resemblance to Collar & Elbow wrestling which was brought across with Irish slaves as America really started to develop beyond meagre settlements.
Anyway, at the close of the seventeenth century the British Empire had grown to an impressive size for such a tiny set of islands. The French and the Dutch were also planting their flags on any foreign land they could claim. The once dominant Spain and Portugal were now the ones dealing with problems at the homebase. Soldiers would be left in the new lands by the different empires and they'd study enemy combat tactics. Part of this meant learning how they performed hand-to-hand combat and vice-versa for the locals.
If these international exchanges had not happened between enemy troops it is extremely difficult to imagine whether wrestling would have evolved in the same manner or if an entirely different path would have been taken. With anything the possibilities in hindsight are infinite though.
In an 1854 edition of the New York City based New York Clipper, the first American based newspaper to cover only entertainment and sports, it was printed:
"About a century ago, these games were in high repute; but the many restrictions imposed on the diversions of the lower classes of society caused their decay in all parts of the empire...hail the revival of them with pleasure."
As any American knows on July 4, 1776 the British were no longer coming, which is what the above quote is in reference to. Certainly an explanation is given in that which explains why wrestling was not regularly documented prior to the nineteeth century nor any sport in general for that matter.
Before we get to the declaration, there was something noteworthy that took place in the year of 1727. A man known as Sir Thomas Parkyns released a book entitled, Progymnasmata. The Inn-Play: or, Cornish-Hugg Wrestler. Digested in a Method Which Teacheth to Break All Holds, and Throw Most Falls Mathematically. A long title to go with his official title, The Second Baronet of Bunny, Nottinghamshire. At the time that was a fairly distinguished position to hold.
Parkyns was a philanthropist who believed in the benefits of wrestling for the health of the human race. His book while a guide to wrestling, the first currently known devoted to the subject, was also somewhat of a peaceful protest. He promotes the exercize value along with the fact a sword or a gun can kill you instantly where as someone can be subdued without fatality if wrestling techniques are properly utilized. You can purchase a modern release of the book for a reasonable price if more information is required on his teachings.
A final aspect of wrestling in American and English culture has to be addressed. Prizefighting or more commonly known today as bare-knuckle boxing arose to the height of popularity, especially among gamblers, in the eighteenth century in England. Very few, if any, universal rules were in place for the first half of the 1700's. A boxer named Jack Broughton attemped to "clean up" the sport in the 1740's, but for the most part very few rules were adopted across the board until well into the 1800's.
Part of this freedom allowed wrestling to be incorporated into a boxers arsenal. A throw would count in favor of a fighter, a throw also brought the end to a round and allowed a chance for a breather. This meant those in attendance got a vicious package of bare-knuckle boxing and wrestling all combined into what was often a lengthy affair. In some ways 18th century prizefighting was extremely similar to pankration.
Many say modern professional wrestling started in the carnivals of France. I would argue that the roots of the system that became professional wrestling are straight out of this period of prizefighting. When Broughton first tried to provide a guideline of behaviour, it had to be included a fight would be "fair" and that "no man shall take a fall if he is not thrown nor hit." Earlier in this series I remarked how there is no need for a rule if the act has never been committed. So, why have a rule stipulating the above, if nobody had ever been caught doing such things?
When the 19th century started very few people could have predicted the industrial revolution. A movement that changed the way people lived their day-to-day lives had not been seen for a very long time. Some may even say the last time something changed the human race that much was when we figured out farming way before the current era. Within a hundred years trains, ships as public transport, cars, newspapers, electricity, and so on were all either firmly in place as staples of life or were about to be at that point. Vast changes took place to every aspect of life in the western world.
Likewise mammoth changes took place in the way sporting events were organized. The rules Jack Broughton had tried to put out there were finally adopted almost exactly as he had intended. That put into motion the end to wrestling in bare-knuckle boxing. The removal of wrestling from prizefights allowed wrestling to flourish as its own sport going in its own direction.
People often cite the rise of professional wrestling in America was due to the end of the Civil War. I disagree wholly. I think it has a lot more to do with the implementation of the Marquee of Queensbury rules in boxing. They were put into place during the late 1860s in England and took over the boxing world in English speaking countries within twenty years. They completely took out all use of wrestling in boxing and put gloves on the hands of all boxers. Bareknuckle fights were banned.
With those things happening, the ending of the war, the changes in social tastes, and the ease at which athletes were now able to travel, all played a part in the rise of professional wrestling in my opinion. Exactly how it all came together in the 1800s with pioneers like Jean Dupuis in Europe during the '30s. The masked wrestlers of France in the '60s. The humble beginnings in America prior to the Civil War to the toughened Collar & Elbow veterans after like Homer Lane, Harry Hill and Colonel James Hiram McLaughlin. The French imports like Alfred Perrier, Professor Thiebaud Bauer, and Andre Christol, or, the English imports like Professor William Miller, Joe Acton and Edwin Bibby. How all those men and more came together to lay the foundations for professional wrestling, as we know it, in the United States of America, well, that's a story that's being continuously told on this website through our results pages, timeline, and other material on here.
It's a story that becomes fuller almost every day as more research is done. Yet, it's a story that no one person is fully equipped to tell at the present as there has been so much material never before available, becoming available over the last ten years it is impossible to keep up with it. What we do know is that it's a story which like any other point in pro-wrestling ultimately revolves around making money. Just like the period of time known as the industrial revolution which the story took place in.
Thank you for reading my "A History of Wrestling." It's been a blast going back through this old work and adjusting pieces as I went a long and I hope y'all have enjoyed reading them and if you've missed any, or want to re-read any of them, here is a link to the first which has a contents for you to choose from.
Often said is that the later defined Graeco-Roman style of wrestling actually began during this period. Many aspects of the now Olympic sport resembles in part both that of the the old French and German styles. Then, either side of the continent you had Turkey and their Ottoman Empire with distinct styles, and the British Isles were quickly developing their own styles. The Brits especially had many different styles within the small group of islands. Seemingly each region carried the flag of their own special brand.
What could be called the most important wrestling match in history took place in the year of 1520. In English documents it has been thoroughly recorded what a fine and avid sportsman King Henry the Eighth was. Annual tournaments were held with the King himself taking part. So, when Henry met King Francis I in a meeting to help the two Kings bond as they had similar sporting interests, it was a big deal. Of course, the occasion was celebrated with a festival which contained different forms of entertainment, music and tournaments for various sports. A rule was put in place that the two Kings should not meet in any contest.
The story continues that Henry being the boisterous and defiant ruler he was challenged Francis to a wrestling match. Francis couldn't be seen to back down from the English King and the two squared off. This kind of history often gets manipulated depending upon which side is recalling it, but it seems Francis downed Henry in short order. Versions exist that part of France was up for grabs or some other prize which would shift the political power to one country or the other. When looking further into the situation though, the latter parts become apparent to being nothing more than myth.
If that was not enough to show off the heights of popularity wrestling reached during this time of wealth, fine art and discovery, then maybe the next literary reference will give you a better idea. The author is one, anyone who has the most basic of education in the western world will have heard of. So well respected are his works that they're still a major part of school curriculum and regularly viewed in theaters across the world. British sitcom character Edmund Blackadder sums up the immense influence of this particular writer in Blackadder Back & Forth.
After punching the man in the nose Blackadder proclaims, "That is for every schoolboy and schoolgirl for the next 400 years! Do you have any idea how much suffering you're going to cause?" Unlikely though it may seem, William Shakespeare did indeed describe a scene of wrestling in a 16th century play called, As You Like It:
"The Duke's Wrestler: Come where is this young gallant that is so desirous to lie with his mother earth?
Orlando: Really, sir; but his will hath in it a more modest working.
Duke Frederic: You shall try but one fall.
The Duke's Wrestler: No, I warrant your Grace, you shall not entreat him to a second that have so mightily persuaded him from a first.
Orlando: You mean to mock me after; you should not have mocked me before; but come your ways.
Rosalind: O excellent young man.
Celia: If I had a thunderbolt in my eye I can tell who should down.
(Duke's wrestler is thrown)
Duke: No more, no more.
Orlando: Yes, I beseech your Grace; I am not yet well breathed.
Duke: How dost thou, Charles?
Le Beau: He cannont speak, my lord.
Duke: Bear him away..."
In Asia the sacred texts of Sikhism, the Guru Granth Sahib, composed somewhere around the same time, featured a wrestler who is quoted as saying the following:
"I am a wrestler; I belong to the Lord of the World. I met with the Guru, and I have tied a tall, plumed turban. All have gathered to watch the wrestling match, and the Merciful Lord Himself is seated to behold it. The bugles play and the drums beat. The wrestlers enter the arena and circle around. I have thrown the five challengers to the ground, and the Guru has patted me on the back. All have gathered together, but we shall return home by different routes. The Gurmukhs reap their profits and leave, while the self-willed manmukhs lose their investment and depart."
Once again Hugh Leonard's, A Handbook of Wrestling comes in handy. As mentioned previously, England had such a diverse array of wrestling styles, even more so when compared to some countries which comprised of many more square miles of land. All parts of history are important in some context, to this story only certain ones are important in that they made it to America and eventually all got combined to make the American style of "Catch wrestling," better and more correctly known as professional wrestling. So, to sum up English wrestling as a whole from at least the sixteenth century until the beginning of the twentieth century, Professor Leonard wrote:
"Hundreds of pages might be written upon English wrestling. The champions have been many, and each locality had its own champion through long years—thus admitting of frequent challenges between rival communities, and in many cases of fierce encounters. The more convenient means of communication between the towns, and the easy methods of travel, have in a slight measure reduced the differences between the styles—the same being a natural result of a compromise on rules between two rival champions."
No doubt in terms of wrestling history as it relates to the development of professional wrestling in America, the pilgrimage of people from England to the "New World" in the early 1600s was a huge deal. The story of the first British settlers is something that doesn't need to be recapped. There are just a couple of points which must be made clear about it.
There should be no doubt in anyone's mind that wrestling existed in America prior to the arrival of the British. Native Americans as with all other indigenous people have their folklore within their respective tribes that go back centuries.
We can only ponder over whether wrestling was taken with the original pilgrims or the waves of arrivals that immediately followed. Arguably the more interesting question lays before the British though. Various parts of America had been reached by the French, Spanish and Dutch decades before even the first Jamestown settlement had been founded. More than likely wrestling had come up at some point, so the question becomes not, "Had they seen a different kind of grappling before?" But, "How many different styles had they seen?"
Those who left Britain for America did not come solely from Plymouth in Devon. Some of them for example came from what is now known as London a city that played host to the most popular styles of wrestling in England throughout the years. Which leaves the question of which English form of wrestling were first introduced to States unanswered. My guess would become either the Devonshire or Cornish styles, however the Cumberland and Westmorland style is a strong possibility. Both Devonshire and Cornish styles were utilized in the U.S. until the 20th century within pro-wrestling. the Cumberland and Westmorland style was not particularly featured in the 19th century at all.
The Cornish technique weathered the times of change much better than Devonshire in America, although it still was only participated in small mining towns in only a few places for the most part by the end of the 19th century. In places like California, Cornish wrestling was still one of the biggest sports in the early 1800's right up until the arrival of Graeco-Roman in the 1870's. A few different ideas could emerge from that. Could Devonshire have been the first style turned into a regular sporting fixture in America by the British, with it fading out of fashion as other techniques came across.
Alternatively that could mean absolutely nothing. Cornish may have been the first and it just went through a revival phase in the nineteenth century. Something else that is interesting about these two particular forms of wrestling. Is that they both have a strong resemblance to Collar & Elbow wrestling which was brought across with Irish slaves as America really started to develop beyond meagre settlements.
Anyway, at the close of the seventeenth century the British Empire had grown to an impressive size for such a tiny set of islands. The French and the Dutch were also planting their flags on any foreign land they could claim. The once dominant Spain and Portugal were now the ones dealing with problems at the homebase. Soldiers would be left in the new lands by the different empires and they'd study enemy combat tactics. Part of this meant learning how they performed hand-to-hand combat and vice-versa for the locals.
If these international exchanges had not happened between enemy troops it is extremely difficult to imagine whether wrestling would have evolved in the same manner or if an entirely different path would have been taken. With anything the possibilities in hindsight are infinite though.
In an 1854 edition of the New York City based New York Clipper, the first American based newspaper to cover only entertainment and sports, it was printed:
"About a century ago, these games were in high repute; but the many restrictions imposed on the diversions of the lower classes of society caused their decay in all parts of the empire...hail the revival of them with pleasure."
As any American knows on July 4, 1776 the British were no longer coming, which is what the above quote is in reference to. Certainly an explanation is given in that which explains why wrestling was not regularly documented prior to the nineteeth century nor any sport in general for that matter.
Before we get to the declaration, there was something noteworthy that took place in the year of 1727. A man known as Sir Thomas Parkyns released a book entitled, Progymnasmata. The Inn-Play: or, Cornish-Hugg Wrestler. Digested in a Method Which Teacheth to Break All Holds, and Throw Most Falls Mathematically. A long title to go with his official title, The Second Baronet of Bunny, Nottinghamshire. At the time that was a fairly distinguished position to hold.
Parkyns was a philanthropist who believed in the benefits of wrestling for the health of the human race. His book while a guide to wrestling, the first currently known devoted to the subject, was also somewhat of a peaceful protest. He promotes the exercize value along with the fact a sword or a gun can kill you instantly where as someone can be subdued without fatality if wrestling techniques are properly utilized. You can purchase a modern release of the book for a reasonable price if more information is required on his teachings.
A final aspect of wrestling in American and English culture has to be addressed. Prizefighting or more commonly known today as bare-knuckle boxing arose to the height of popularity, especially among gamblers, in the eighteenth century in England. Very few, if any, universal rules were in place for the first half of the 1700's. A boxer named Jack Broughton attemped to "clean up" the sport in the 1740's, but for the most part very few rules were adopted across the board until well into the 1800's.
Part of this freedom allowed wrestling to be incorporated into a boxers arsenal. A throw would count in favor of a fighter, a throw also brought the end to a round and allowed a chance for a breather. This meant those in attendance got a vicious package of bare-knuckle boxing and wrestling all combined into what was often a lengthy affair. In some ways 18th century prizefighting was extremely similar to pankration.
Many say modern professional wrestling started in the carnivals of France. I would argue that the roots of the system that became professional wrestling are straight out of this period of prizefighting. When Broughton first tried to provide a guideline of behaviour, it had to be included a fight would be "fair" and that "no man shall take a fall if he is not thrown nor hit." Earlier in this series I remarked how there is no need for a rule if the act has never been committed. So, why have a rule stipulating the above, if nobody had ever been caught doing such things?
When the 19th century started very few people could have predicted the industrial revolution. A movement that changed the way people lived their day-to-day lives had not been seen for a very long time. Some may even say the last time something changed the human race that much was when we figured out farming way before the current era. Within a hundred years trains, ships as public transport, cars, newspapers, electricity, and so on were all either firmly in place as staples of life or were about to be at that point. Vast changes took place to every aspect of life in the western world.
Likewise mammoth changes took place in the way sporting events were organized. The rules Jack Broughton had tried to put out there were finally adopted almost exactly as he had intended. That put into motion the end to wrestling in bare-knuckle boxing. The removal of wrestling from prizefights allowed wrestling to flourish as its own sport going in its own direction.
People often cite the rise of professional wrestling in America was due to the end of the Civil War. I disagree wholly. I think it has a lot more to do with the implementation of the Marquee of Queensbury rules in boxing. They were put into place during the late 1860s in England and took over the boxing world in English speaking countries within twenty years. They completely took out all use of wrestling in boxing and put gloves on the hands of all boxers. Bareknuckle fights were banned.
With those things happening, the ending of the war, the changes in social tastes, and the ease at which athletes were now able to travel, all played a part in the rise of professional wrestling in my opinion. Exactly how it all came together in the 1800s with pioneers like Jean Dupuis in Europe during the '30s. The masked wrestlers of France in the '60s. The humble beginnings in America prior to the Civil War to the toughened Collar & Elbow veterans after like Homer Lane, Harry Hill and Colonel James Hiram McLaughlin. The French imports like Alfred Perrier, Professor Thiebaud Bauer, and Andre Christol, or, the English imports like Professor William Miller, Joe Acton and Edwin Bibby. How all those men and more came together to lay the foundations for professional wrestling, as we know it, in the United States of America, well, that's a story that's being continuously told on this website through our results pages, timeline, and other material on here.
It's a story that becomes fuller almost every day as more research is done. Yet, it's a story that no one person is fully equipped to tell at the present as there has been so much material never before available, becoming available over the last ten years it is impossible to keep up with it. What we do know is that it's a story which like any other point in pro-wrestling ultimately revolves around making money. Just like the period of time known as the industrial revolution which the story took place in.
Thank you for reading my "A History of Wrestling." It's been a blast going back through this old work and adjusting pieces as I went a long and I hope y'all have enjoyed reading them and if you've missed any, or want to re-read any of them, here is a link to the first which has a contents for you to choose from.
Unique content strictly for the Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
A History Of Wrestling: Chapter Six.
Author: Jimmy Wheeler.
Published: October 26, 2017.
Article: #180.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
A History Of Wrestling: Chapter Six.
Author: Jimmy Wheeler.
Published: October 26, 2017.
Article: #180.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
A History Of Wrestling: Chapter Five - Read Here.
Other articles by Jimmy can be Read Here.