Elizabethan+Bear+Baiting+and+Cock+fighting

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Elizabethan Bear Baiting and Cock fighting By: Paris Taylor Elizabethan Bear Baiting and Cock fighting were popular sports during the Elizabethan era. The sport was called blood sport.

Cock fighting Roosters fighting against each other. They were placed in a cockpit for the fight (Singman 153). A cockpit is a small or large round arena. Surrounded by benches for the people to sit and watch. The roosters were fitted with sharp blades on each foot to fight with.(Lace 59). They also would fight with there beaks. The birds were very expensive so only wealthy men could purchase them (Lace 59).

Cock fighting was an Elizabethan sport that involved Bull Baiting Bull baiting is when a bull would be chained in the middle of an arena (Singman 153). There would be one or more bulldogs, or bullmastiffs in the arena. The dogs were specially trained to clamp their jaws on the bull’s nose or ears until the bull would fall to the ground.

Bear Baiting Bear baiting was similar to bull baiting, but just replaced with a bear.

About the sports The sport was introduced to England in the 1200s. When the sport first came out it would just be something to watch. But then turned it into a gambling sport. People would place really high bets on the outcome. Queen Elizabeth was pleased to spend an afternoon watching the sport (Elizabethan bear & Bull baiting).



Works Cited //Bear Baiting//. N.d. //Pitbulllover//. Web. 19 Apr. 2010. Chrisp, Peter. //Shakesspeer eyewitness//. New York: DK Publishing, 2004. Print. “Elizabethan Bear & Bull Baiting.” //www.elizabethan-era.org.uk//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2010. Lace, William W. //Elizabethan England//. Farmington Hills: Thomson Gale, 2006. Print. Singman, Jeffrey L. //Daily life in Elizabethan England//. Westport: Green wood press, 1995. Print.