No one can write about the Georgian and Regency period
without coming across the darker sides of life during that time, such as
bull-baiting and cock-fighting. Much as
we might abhor cruel sports today, they were an important part of life in the
18th and early 19th century.
Hogarth's print of the cock-fight shows rich and poor coming together to enjoy the "sport" and if you look closely you
will see a shadow thrown on the pit from a basket suspected above. It was the practice to "basket" any
cock-fighter who indulged in foul play, or any gambler who failed to pay his
debts. The man "basketed" in
Hogarth's print is offering his watch as a pledge to get him out and back to the game.
At the height of the cock-fighting days the chief pits in
London were the Cock-pit Royal (both George III and George IV owned fighting
birds), one at Moss Alley, Southwark and the New Pit, Hoxton, where a famous
series of mains (i.e. fights) were fought between the gentlemen of Islington
and Hackney for 5 guineas a battle.This was a relative small price to pay for a cock-fight. In 1815 Joe Gilliver, who fought cocks for George III and George
IV, fought a famous main at Lincoln, with seven battles of 5000 guineas each,
and Gilliver won five of them.
There is a story that in May 1794 a game-cock was penned up
in one of the coops on the deck of HMS Marlborough, along with the common birds
that served as food for the sailors. The
Marlborough, commanded by Captain Berkeley, was engaged in action against the French at the Battle of Ushant in 1794 (The
Glorious First of June), where all its masts were shot away and in the ensuing
damage the coops were also blasted apart. The
fighting cock flew to the stump of the mainmast and began to crow and
beat its wings. The crew were well aware
that this was the behaviour of fighting birds when they were victorious and they
took this for an omen and fought on to victory.Apparently when the story became known, people travelled
from all over England to see this cock, and a silver medal was struck by order
of the Captain – now Admiral Berkeley – and the game-cock was allowed to retire to
Goodwood where it had the freedom of the parks and wore the medal suspended
around its neck.
Is this story true? I
have no idea, as I have only one reference to it and I can't find any evidence
to back it up, but knowing the passion of 18th century people for
their gaming, I can imagine it happening!
Cock-fighting was certainly big business and very
popular. Gentlemen would even hold cock-fights in their houses and it was common for clauses to be
inserted into the leases of farms and cottages, ensuring the right of walking a
certain number of game-cocks on the land.
In the north of England, the colliers and weavers continued
cock-fighting long after it was banned in 1835. Lancashire had its
"hush-shops" where unlicensed beer sellers supplied their customers
but in a strict rule of silence. When a
"guest" entered, a glass of beer was put before him. Payment was not
made then, but by secret arrangement, so that they did not break the law by
actually "selling" beer.
Cock-fights were held on land adjacent to these hush shops, with lookouts
posted to warn of informers. Bull-baiting also continued in Lancashire into the
19th century, with the last bull-baiting taking place in 1838.
Life was very harsh in England during those times and
thankfully the wild scenes of the bull-baiting and the cock-fight have given
place to a fever for horse-racing or football, but sometimes it's worth
reminding ourselves that there was a harsher side to the colourful life of the
past.
Sarah Mallory
Bought for Revenge – pub August 2013 by Harlequin
