DURING the Middle Ages, the sport of baiting was extremely popular in England and was patronised by all classes of people, from the very rich to the poor, and great amounts of money changed hands in wagers on the outcome of these contests. Almost every town and village in the country had its bull ring. Bulls, bears, horses, and other animals were trained for baiting.
the animal might turn around. The dog was trained to "play low", keeping his own head close to the ground, or, if a larger specimen of the breed, would creep on his belly to avoid being above the bull's horns when the bulls attempted to use them to throw the dog into the air.
Most of the dogs were so tenacious that they would hold on to the bitter end and be tossed off eventually rather than let go as the bulls swung them around violently in the air. A great many dogs were killed, more had their limbs broken and some held so fast that by the bull swinging them, their teeth were often broken out. Often the men were tossed as well as the dogs.
Bull baiting took place in rope enclosures inside circular buildings, reminiscent of the old Roman amphitheatres. These were in turn surrounded by kennels built on scaffolding, safely away from the public.
The following description given by the French Advocate Mission, who lived in England, during the reign of William III, is taken from Chamber's Book of Days:
"After a coming Bull-baiting had been advertised, the bull, decorated with flowers or coloured ribbons would be paraded round the streets of the town, and the dog which pulled off the favours in the subsequent baiting would be especially cheered by the spectators. The parade ended, the bull, with a rope tied round the root of his horns, would be fastened to a stake with an iron ring in it, situated in the centre of the ring."
As mentioned previously, the first bull runnings in England were supposed to have been at Stamford in the year 1209, in the reign of King John, and at Tutbury in 1374. There are, however, grounds for the belief that bull-baiting began much earlier, and that it was probably first indulged in by butchers who employed their dogs to chase, catch, and throw the bulls, and to bait them so as to render the flesh tender. Moreover, Claudian's writings suggest that the practice of baiting bulls was a form of diversion in his time.
"William, Earl of Warren, Lord of the town, standing upon the walls of the castle saw two bulls fighting for a cow in the castle meadow, until all the butchers' dogs pursued one of the bulls (maddened with noise and multitude) clean through the town. This sight so pleased the Earl, that he gave the castle meadow where the bulls' duel began for a common to the butchers of the town after
the first grass was mowed, on condition that they should find a mad bull the day six weeks before Christmas Day, for the continuance of the sport forever."
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