HISTORICAL
DEVELOPMENT OF
SPORT
Recap : Medieval era
Activities were
• occasional due to limited time and energy
• simple in nature and orally passed down
through generations
• functional first particularly for hunting and
defence
• participated in during feasts and festivals
• mainly local in nature due to lack of mobility
Popular games and recreations of
pre-industrial Britain
• Real Tennis – confined to gentry and privileged
due to cost of equipment and facilities.
Popular games and recreations of
pre-industrial Britain
• Football – a winter activity played especially at
new year and Shrove Tuesday. Little rules
apart from distinct teams and goals. Injury
and damage to property a regular occurrence
Popular games and recreations of
pre-industrial Britain
• Cricket – originated in southern England
primarily as a pastime for shepherds. The
game allowed both peasants and gentry to
participate together usually estates played
one another. Rules published early on which is
unique to sport in this time.
19th Century Athleticism and the role
of the public school.
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Public schools -fee paying schools
attended by the upper classes.
Pupils would board at these schools.
Facilities were basic and life was brutal.
Discipline was maintained by flogging and
bullying and fagging were common.
19th Century Athleticism and the role
of the public school.
The barbarian phase.
• Boys would have brought recreations they had taken
part in at home to the school e.g. mob games which
were spontaneous and violent.
• Animal sports were also popular e.g. hunting, cock
fighting.
• Many of the sports had associations with gambling and
drinking.
• Schools tried to limit the boys participation leading to
more conflict between staff and pupils.
• Cricket was readily accepted as it had been codified,
was non violent and seen as suitable for gentry.
19th Century Athleticism and the role
of the public school.
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The Arnoldian / athleticism phase
House system lead to formation of early sports teams
Prefects would organise games
Bounds established so games confined to school grounds
Muscular Christianity where it is thought that there is a
close link between Christianity and sportsmanship
• Philosophy of character – where you developed character
through participating in sport.
• Boys were allowed to play sports every day. However they
were still isolated due to lack of travel and different rules.
Games evolved to suit the grounds of the school e.g. eaton
wall game
19th Century Athleticism and the role
of the public school.
The games cult and philistine copies
• Due to the industrial revolution there was a new affluent class
resulting in a need for more private education.
• An increase in public schools.
• These were called ‘philistine schools’ as opposed to the ‘barbarian
schools’ which were the original private schools.
• Teachers who had worked in the original schools carried ideas to
these new schools.
• The Clarendon Commission investigated the management and
programmes of 9 great public schools. It found that schools instilled
character in pupils many of whom went on to be influential leaders
in all walks of life and that team games was the main developer of
character at these schools.
19th Century Athleticism and the role
of the public school.
The impact of athleticism on society
• COLONIAL – boys left school and took posts helping
administer and govern the Empire’s colonies. They took their
sport with them initially playing each other then introducing
the sports to the population.
• ARMY – another popular career was as commissioned
officers. Again they took sports to the armed services to fill
their own boredom and to instil moral value in the working
class soldiers
• PATRONAGE – supporting sporting events by buying trophies
or giving land for pitches
• UNIVERSITY – they gave them time to pursue and refine
sports. Since the men came from different schools with
different rules for the same games compromise had to be
reached.
19th Century Athleticism and the role
of the public school.
• INDUSTRY – boys went from school to their father’s
factories where they took their sports.
• CHURCH – careers in the church were popular because
their education had had a religious background
Muscular Christianity promoted sport as a way for
teaching morals and virtues.
• CLUBS – many old boys formed their own clubs so they
could continue to play sport on leaving school
• Administration – when they could no longer play men
formed and developed governing bodies for their
sports to administer rules etc.
HOMEWORK QUESTIONS
1. Explain how public schools in the 19th century used sport and
games as a means of social control. (4)
2. Give reasons for the importance of combat sports in pre industrial
society. (4)
3. Outline the main characteristics of festival games in the UK before
1800.
(5)
4. In pre-industrial Britain, peasant sports were described as
‘occasional and rural’.
(i) Explain when and where peasant sports would take place.
(3)
(ii) Outline four other main characteristics of peasant sports in preindustrial Britain. (4)
5. Explain how public schools, at the beginning of the 19th century,
adapted festival games in order to make them an essential element
in the training of a gentleman. (5)