{PDF EPUB} Richmond Unchained the Biography of the World's First Black Sporting Superstar by Luke G

Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} Richmond Unchained The Biography of the World's First Black Sporting Superstar by Luke G. Williams Bill Richmond (1763-1829): Bare-knuckle king of the prize fight ring. Bill Richmond is one response you are unlikely to get if you ask someone to name a sporting great, but the bare-knuckle boxer, born in the 18th century, was arguably the first black sporting icon in history. Born into slavery on Staten Island in New York in 1763, Richmond was released at the age of 13 to British army commander General Percy. Some reports say Percy was impressed by the fighting prowess of the young Richmond and took him to England where he was provided for and educated in York, later marrying a local woman. 'Maggie the Machine' - the girl who never gave up. Richmond was frequently targeted with racism and was involved in a number of street brawls locally. Writer Pierce Egan (1772-1849) noted five boxing matches won by Richmond, who was already developing a reputation as a dangerous counter-puncher on the underground scene in Yorkshire. He moved to London near the turn of the 19th century where he was employed by naval officer and nobleman Lord Camelford - a man with a passion for pugilism, who was also cousin of then-Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger. According to Luke G Williams, author of Richmond Unchained: the biography of the world's first black sporting superstar, Richmond challenged George Maddox while in the company of Lord Camelford at a prize fight at Wimbledon Common, losing to the battle-hardened boxer inside nine brutal rounds. It was Lord Camelford's death in a duel with a former friend that was the catalyst for Richmond's ring return. He earned memorable wins against Jack Holmes and Jewish fighter Youssop, and began training boxers, before losing to rising star Tom Cribb in a bruising 90-minute encounter in Sussex in 1805. Undeterred, Richmond would mount another comeback in 1808 with a series of impressive wins, reigniting his popularity, and paving the way for a rematch with Maddox a year later. An action-packed fight saw both men earn plaudits with Richmond's status and reputation elevated further after avenging his earlier defeat to Maddox in fearsome style after a gruelling encounter. 'Impetuous men must not fight Richmond' After becoming landlord of the Horse and Dolphin pub in London's Leicester Square, Richmond's focus turned to training young contender Tom Molineaux, who later suffered two defeats to his former adversary Cribb. But Richmond again returned to the ring in 1814 - aged 50 at the time - beating Jack Davis before locking horns with the durable Tom Shelton, a man who was described as half his age. He would beat Shelton in a 23-round battle of attrition, with Egan commenting at the time: "Impetuous men must not fight Richmond as in his hands they become victims of their own temerity. The older he grows, the better pugilist he proves himself." That appears to be Richmond's last contest, ending with a record of 17 wins and two losses. He continued to train fighters - as well as socialites including peer and poet Lord Byron - after his retirement. And such was Richmond's standing in society, he even acted as an usher at the coronation of King George IV in 1821. It capped a remarkable rise from squared circles to royal circles for the trailblazing Richmond, who died eight years later in December 1829 at the age of 66. Richmond was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame 170 years later in 1999. Bill Richmond – the pioneering pugilist. If you asked someone to identify the most significant sportsperson from black history responses would vary; the majority would probably cite Muhammad Ali, while others might make a case for Jackie Robinson or Jack Johnson. Yet the undisputed founding father of black sporting endeavour is none of the above. In fact, to trace the life of the first black sporting superstar, we must travel to America in the 1760s, during the turbulent days leading to the American War of Independence. Bill Richmond was born into slavery on 8 August 1763 in Staten Island, an outpost of the British colonies to the southwest of Manhattan. By the end of his remarkable life, Richmond had left his origins as a slave far behind and earned unprecedented acclaim for a black sportsman. Richmond did not achieve such fame in revolutionary America, but within the unlikely environs of Georgian England. The vehicle that enabled Richmond’s rise to prominence was boxing, a sport that united the lower and upper classes like no other leisure pursuit. So famous was he during the 19th century that his life was referenced in works of literature by writers such as William Hazlitt, Thomas Moore and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, while his likeness appeared in popular prints by artists such as Richard Dighton and Thomas Rowlandson. Bill Richmond at the coronation of George IV, art by Trevor Von Eeden. Richmond’s eventual life as a celebrity in England would have seemed utterly inconceivable when he was born. The youngster’s slave master was the Reverend Richard Charlton, rector of St Andrew’s Church in Staten Island, who, in an example of the hypocrisy typical of this period, saw no moral contradiction between gospel values and slavery. The arrival of the British military in Staten Island in 1776 proved pivotal for the teenaged Bill, who endeared himself to General Hugh Percy, an English soldier famed for his kindness. Percy persuaded Charlton to release Richmond from slavery, brought the youngster to England and paid for him to be educated and then apprenticed to a cabinetmaker in York. At this stage the black population of Britain was larger than many might imagine. Many black citizens had arrived after being promised freedom in return for fighting against the rebels in the War of Independence. Sadly, life for these new arrivals was usually characterised by poverty, with little prospect of advancement within a society hidebound by a strict social and ethnic hierarchy. The well-dressed, literate and self-confident Richmond was an inevitable target for bigots. The regularity of the racial abuse he suffered while growing up was recounted by the leading boxing writer of the day, Pierce Egan, who described several occasions when Richmond became embroiled in brawls after being insulted, once after he was labelled a ‘black devil’ for being in the company of a white woman – probably a reference to Mary, who later became his wife and bore him several children. On such occasions, Richmond would answer these taunts in the time- honoured manner of many an English gentlemen – with his fists in a makeshift boxing ring. By handing out a series of severe beatings, he taught his abusers, in the words of Egan, that it was wrong to discriminate against a man on “account of his country or his colour”. Richmond’s reputation for his unique mixture of gentlemanly manners and imposing physicality soon spread. By 1795, he had moved to London, where he was employed by Lord Camelford, an aristocrat with a quick temper but generous heart. Several times Richmond visited prize fights in Camelford’s company and in January 1804 he issued an impromptu challenge to experienced boxer George Maddox. The seasoned Maddox was not the sort of boxer a novice should face in his first major contest, though, and Richmond was defeated. A less determined man would probably have quit boxing but, after Camelford’s death in a duel, Richmond returned to the sport. Having discovered an aptitude for teaching, he began training and seconding other fighters and was soon a regular attendee at the Fives Court, London’s leading pugilistic exhibition venue. By 1805 Richmond was on the comeback trail, defeating Jewish boxer Youssop and vanquishing contender Jack Holmes to secure a contest against highly touted Tom Cribb. Unfortunately, Cribb and Richmond’s counter-punching styles resulted in a dull bout, which Cribb won, leaving Richmond in tears. The contest solidified a grudge between the two men, which would last years. Bill Richmond in action Art by Trevor Von Eeden. Richmond didn’t box again until 1808, when several quick wins helped him land a dream fight – a rematch with Maddox. The contest, in August 1809, demonstrated Richmond’s mastery of ‘boxing on the retreat’. He battered Maddox mercilessly, earning the admiration of spectator William Windham, MP, who argued the skill and bravery on show were as impressive as that displayed by British troops in their triumph at the Battle of Talavera. Richmond’s winnings enabled him to become landlord of the Horse and Dolphin pub near Leicester Square. It was here that he probably met Tom Molineaux, another former slave. Richmond immediately discerned Molineaux’s pugilistic potential and put his own boxing career to one side to train him, with a view to a challenge against Cribb, who was now champion. Under Richmond’s tutelage, Molineaux demolished two contenders before squaring up to Cribb at Copthall Common in December 1810. It was an epic contest, and one of the most controversial bouts in boxing history – Cribb won, barely, amid the chaos of a ring invasion and whisperings of a long count that had allowed the champion longer than the allowable 30 seconds to recover in between rounds. Molineaux, many maintained, had been cheated. Historians disagree about whether the alleged bias shown to Cribb was motivated by racism, nationalism or fears on the part of Cribb backers that they would lose their wagers. Certainly, before the fight there was nervousness about the prospect of a Molineaux victory, with the Chester Chronicle claiming that “many of the noble patronizers [sic.] of this accomplished art, begin to be alarmed, lest, to the eternal dishonour of our country, a negro should become the Champion of England!” A rematch was inevitable but, by the time it happened in October 1811, Molineaux was past his best.

Load more