Sports In The Middle Ages

Sport in the middle ages was sometimes considered nonexistent; However, nothing could be further from the truth. While the games played in those times bear little resemblance to today’s events, there is no question that it is from these early times that the format of many modern games has evolved.

Sports In The Middle were actively played. Even though these were often called the dark ages, many popular games in modern times can trace their roots back to these times. They include the following.

• Archery
• Bandy 
• Boxing
• Football
• Golf
• Horse racing
• Jeu De Paume (Tennis)

Have you ever wondered how the games you play today originated? In many instances, these owe their existence to similar forms of the game played thousands of years ago.

The Middle Age Game Of Archery

The use of bows and arrows can be traced back 70,000 years to the later Middle Stone Age.

Around the beginning of the middle ages, the bow and arrow were used for hunting and warfare and remained the preeminent weapon until it was surpassed by firearms.

In  1363 King Edward III issued the edict banning handball, football, hockey, coursing, and cock-fighting. 

Following this, he mandated 

“that every able-bodied man on feast days when he has leisure shall in his sports use bows and arrows, pellets or bolts, and shall learn and practice the art of shooting.”

The early form of archery as a sport involved shooting at artificially made earth mounds covered in turf and roof butts – called butts.

Another form of the sport was called “Roving.”

The rules of this were as follows.

1. One player would designate a tree stump or other natural object as the target.
2. Each player would have a single shot, and the one whose arrow landed closest would choose the next target – and so on.

A 14^th-century version of the game was called shooting the “popinjay.”

The rules of popinjay were as follows.

1. A wooden bird was attached to a log pole from a clock tower.
2. The first archer to hit the bird wins.

The Middle Age Game Of Bandy

The first record of the game “Bandy” is on one of Canterbury Cathedral’s painted glass windows.

The window portrays a young boy holding a curved stick in one hand and a ball in another.

These were produced and installed in the 13^th century. Shakespeare (1564 – 1616) references the game Bandy in Romeo and Juliet.

The name originates from the Teutonic term “bandja” (curved stick.)

Originally the names hockey and Bandy were used interchangeably. The distinction was eventually made that hockey was played on grass and Bandy on ice.

Ice hockey grew out of Bandy, however, not as a replacement.

The early games of Bandy were played with a ball or a puck. A ball was eventually settled on and became the standard. Ice hockey grew out of Bandy, where a puck is used.

The modern game of Bandy grew out of the early format, and particularly after the 18^th-century rules were developed, it evolved into the current structure. 

The Middle Age Game Of Boxing

Pugilism (Boxing) can be traced back to the 23rd Greek Olympics in 688 BC.

After this, the earliest records exist in some Italy provinces between the 12th and 17th centuries. These described games where contestants fought each other with bare knuckles.

In the 16^th century, with fewer people wearing swords, there was renewed interest in fighting with fists. The sport grew in popularity with the resulting organization of the sport and the first set of standardized rules.

1. The first set of rules, “The London rules,” were published  in 1743 by Jack Broughton (1704 – 1789)
2. These were superseded by the “London Prize Ring rules” being established in 1838.
3. These were eventually replaced by the Queensberry rules in 1867.

The Middle Age Game Of Cricket

The generally accepted theory is that children in the South East of England played a form of the middle-age game of cricket during the 11^th to 13^th century.

There is no definitive agreement regarding the source of the name. However, it may be from one of the following words.

1. Old English words “cryce” or “cricc,” which means “crutch” or “staff.”
2. An old Saxon word, “cryce,” means “stick.”
3. A middle Dutch “krick,” which means stick or crook.

Some historians have theorized that cricket was first played in Flanders (as opposed to England), and the name originated from the high Dutch phrase, “met de (krik ket) sen,”  which translated literally means “with the stick chase.”

The earliest mention of cricket being played formally is in the Renaissance period (1611 AD). Court records show that two men were fined 12d each for missing church On Easter Sunday.

In 1654 Jasper Vinall was knocked on the head with a cricket ball and died – was this the first recorded death in cricket?

By the 17^th century, huge crowds would assemble to watch.

In the game’s early form, bowlers would roll (or skim) the ball. Later this was changed into an underhand toss, which changed to a round arm, and finally, the overhand bowling action in use today.

Middle Age Game Of “Playing Ball” Or “Game Ball” (Football)

In 1180 the middle age game of “mob football” was played between towns and villages.

The purpose of this game was to drive the “ball” through the opposing team’s goal. It is believed that the goals were only a few yards apart.

The rules were quite simple – there weren’t any.

Any number of people could play on each side, resulting in mismatched numbers playing against each other. 

The game was open to both men and women playing together. 

The game was started with a neutral person throwing the ball into the air; after that, each team would rush forward to gain possession. There were no rules to protect the refs, so they would stay clear of the action.

The mobs of people on each team would rush forwards “en masse.” 

The ball was commonly made from a pig’s bladder, which is why it is still called a “pigskin,” even though it is made from cowhide or synthetic material.

In the middle ages, the game experienced a huge rise in popularity when it was sometimes called mob football (with good reason.)

In 1308 AD William FitzStephen, a cleric and administrator in the service of Thomas Becket described the mob football played by youths in London. During the match, a spectator was stabbed. 

In 1314 AD, The Lord Mayor of London, Nicholas de Farndon, banned football.

This cannot have been very successful because, in 1349, King Edward III banned  “The playing of handball, football, and hockey.”

Included in this order was a ban on “coursing as well as cock-fighting, or other such idle games.”

In 1424 AD, the Scottish Parliament of James  I introduced the “Football Act 1424,” which banned ‘fute-ball.’ 

Over the years, the following monarchs attempted to ban football.

1. Kings Edward II and III
2. King Richard II
3. Kings Henry V and VI
4. Oliver Cromwell
5. Queen Elizabeth I

There were two reasons which were used.

1. The game was dangerous and caused injuries and death.
2. It took time away from the much more civilized game of archery!

Clearly, they were not successful in their legislation.

The Middle Age Game Of Golf

Some historians suggest that Golf was developed in the 12^th century.

The early game may have involved shepherds knocking rocks into rabbit holes at a site that is now known as the Royal St Andrews Golf Club.

Some academics suggest that Golf has grown out of the ancient Roman game of “Paganica.” This game used a ball stuffed with feathers that was hit by a bent stick.

Yet others theorize that Golf originated in China during the Ming dynasty, where a scroll dating back to 1369 AD shows someone swinging a “golf” club at a ball. He seems to be attempting to sink the ball into a small hole.

The first formal record is of King James II of Scotland, who banned it because it distracted people from their archery.

In 1502 AD James IV lifted the ban because he enjoyed playing Golf.

In 1503 AD and 1504 AD, a royal record listed “For golf clubbes and balles” in reference to the King’s own equipment.

Middle Age Horse Racing

The first record of a horse racing meeting in England was in 1174, during the reign of Henry II, at Smithfield, in London, during a horse fair.

In ancient Greece, between 7400BC and 40AD, records exist of mounted chariots being used in races during the Olympic games.

During this time organized horseracing events were held in China, Persia, Arabia, and other Middle Eastern and in North African countries.

Some of these horses were brought back to Europe and England during the crusades. At sales fares, jockeys would ride the horses at speed to demonstrate their ability to buyers.

The first record of a winning purse being offered in a horse race was during the ten year reign of Richard the Lionheart, which ended in 1099 AD. The race was run over 3 miles (4.8 km.)

By the 16^th century, racehorses were bought and sold across Europe.

The Middle Age Game Of Jeu De Paume (Tennis)

The game Jeu De Paume dates to at least the 12th century and is generally believed to be the foundation of the modern game of tennis.

Instead of tennis racquets, Jeu De Paume, translated into English, means “Palm Game”; the players used the palms of their hands to whack the ball back to each other. 

This is very similar to volleyball.

To protect the player’s hands, they would often be wrapped in cloth.

In the 16^th century, in the Renaissance period, the game evolved into one that used racquets instead of palms.

The oldest known tennis court is found at Hampton court palace and dates back to 1530 (AD.)

Conclusion

Historians are beginning to push back against the term “Dark Ages” being used to describe the middle ages. While the great artistic works of Michael Angelo and cohorts were produced in the Renaissance period, there were huge changes in society during the middle ages.

One of these was the creation of new sports (some adapted from older games’ forms). Almost all modern sporting disciplines can trace their origins back to the middle ages.

Header image courtesy: 152089538 © Jaroslav Moravcik – Dreamstime.com