Read book Gentlemen and Blackguards : Gambling Mania and the Plot to Steal the Derby of 1844 by Nicholas Foulkes in DOC, EPUB
9780297844594 English 0297844598 During the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill - largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s had seen the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labour and the parliamentary representation of such industrial centres as Manchester. Nevertheless as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the Regency: games of faro, hazard, whist, and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was ostensibly self-regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honour. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession.However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Increasingly vociferous moralists inveighed against the vice. It became evident that the government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and it now put Britain's premier race, the Derby, on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan each owned by intriguing characters John Gully, a social climbing former prizefighter, and his great rival William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, and by the time it had finished it was apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had been doped.Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas Derby Day as the inspiration for a gripping factual story, a sort of inverted Seabiscuit. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial and also the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view important social change., In the early 1840s, Britain was the gambling capital of Europe and racing a national obsession, with the Epsom Derby assuming the status of an unofficial national holiday, attracting hundreds of thousands of spectators and many millions of pounds in wagers. It was a time of frenzied speculation, high stakes and low morals, when every ruse, subterfuge and fraud was practised - and the biggest sin was getting caught. But as the cheerfully unprincipled Regency era began to give way to the earnest and conspicuous high-mindedness of the Victorian period, reformers decided it was time to root out the canker gnawing at Britain. In the summer of 1844, the murky world of illegal gambling hells, crooked hazard tables and the dubious practices of the Turf were made the subject of a far-reaching Parliamentary Enquiry. When the Derby of the same year ended in chaos, with the two favourite horses doped and the result challenged by the Prime Minister's brother, the Turf's most dedicated follower and greatest tyrant Lord George Bentinck, took it upon himself to uncover the truth of what happened that day: following a trail of a evidence that led to one of the most sensational court cases of the 19th century. This is a story of men, money, gambling and sporting obsession; of rogues and rascals, subterfuge and chicanery, with duelling, suicide and murder thrown in. It is a tale of outrageous criminality, aristocratic complacency, and a gripping investigation to expose the most audacious sporting plot of the age. A compelling detective story peopled with low-life aristocrats, high-minded reformers, GENTLEMEN AND BLACKGUARDS paints a rich and vivid panorama of the full spectrum of early Victorian society, bringing to light an overlooked turning point in British history., In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill - largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labour, the birth of the police force and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was self-regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honour. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas 'Derby Day' as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period., In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill--largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labor, the birth of the police force, and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist, and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was self regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honor. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas "Derby Day" as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period., In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social illlargely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labor, the birth of the police force, and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist, and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was self regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honor. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas "Derby Day" as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period.", The gambling mania that gripped early 19th-century Britain, focusing on the corrupt Derby race of 1844. In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill - largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labour, the birth of the police force and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was selfregulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honour. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas 'Derby Day' as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period.
9780297844594 English 0297844598 During the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill - largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s had seen the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labour and the parliamentary representation of such industrial centres as Manchester. Nevertheless as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the Regency: games of faro, hazard, whist, and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was ostensibly self-regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honour. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession.However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Increasingly vociferous moralists inveighed against the vice. It became evident that the government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and it now put Britain's premier race, the Derby, on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan each owned by intriguing characters John Gully, a social climbing former prizefighter, and his great rival William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, and by the time it had finished it was apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had been doped.Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas Derby Day as the inspiration for a gripping factual story, a sort of inverted Seabiscuit. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial and also the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view important social change., In the early 1840s, Britain was the gambling capital of Europe and racing a national obsession, with the Epsom Derby assuming the status of an unofficial national holiday, attracting hundreds of thousands of spectators and many millions of pounds in wagers. It was a time of frenzied speculation, high stakes and low morals, when every ruse, subterfuge and fraud was practised - and the biggest sin was getting caught. But as the cheerfully unprincipled Regency era began to give way to the earnest and conspicuous high-mindedness of the Victorian period, reformers decided it was time to root out the canker gnawing at Britain. In the summer of 1844, the murky world of illegal gambling hells, crooked hazard tables and the dubious practices of the Turf were made the subject of a far-reaching Parliamentary Enquiry. When the Derby of the same year ended in chaos, with the two favourite horses doped and the result challenged by the Prime Minister's brother, the Turf's most dedicated follower and greatest tyrant Lord George Bentinck, took it upon himself to uncover the truth of what happened that day: following a trail of a evidence that led to one of the most sensational court cases of the 19th century. This is a story of men, money, gambling and sporting obsession; of rogues and rascals, subterfuge and chicanery, with duelling, suicide and murder thrown in. It is a tale of outrageous criminality, aristocratic complacency, and a gripping investigation to expose the most audacious sporting plot of the age. A compelling detective story peopled with low-life aristocrats, high-minded reformers, GENTLEMEN AND BLACKGUARDS paints a rich and vivid panorama of the full spectrum of early Victorian society, bringing to light an overlooked turning point in British history., In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill - largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labour, the birth of the police force and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was self-regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honour. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas 'Derby Day' as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period., In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill--largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labor, the birth of the police force, and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist, and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was self regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honor. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas "Derby Day" as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period., In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social illlargely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labor, the birth of the police force, and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist, and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was self regulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honor. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas "Derby Day" as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period.", The gambling mania that gripped early 19th-century Britain, focusing on the corrupt Derby race of 1844. In the early 19th century, gambling was a grave social ill - largely uncontrolled and corrupt. The 1830s saw the institution of the Poor Law, the abolition of slavery, the regulation of child labour, the birth of the police force and the widening of parliamentary representation. But, as far as gambling was concerned, the beginning of 1844 saw things much as they had been since the 18th century: games of faro, hazard, whist and roulette could be played in houses around the West End; while racing was selfregulated by the Jockey Club and a vaguely defined sense of honour. Almost exclusively aristocratic in tone, racing was, in the days before football, the chief national sporting obsession. However, the popularity of gambling and the turf was at odds with the increasingly regulated tempo of life in the 1840s. Vociferous moralists began to inveigh against the vice. The government was on a mission to clean up, if not eradicate, gambling in Britain and Britain's premier race, the Derby, was put on public trial. The Derby of 1844 was expected to be a two-horse race between Ugly Buck and Ratan, owned respectively by the intriguing characters, John Gully, a social-climbing former prize-fighter, and his great rival, William Crockford, the club owner. The race itself was full of drama, not least when it became apparent that Ratan and Ugly Buck had both been doped. Nick Foulkes brilliantly takes Frith's narrative canvas 'Derby Day' as the inspiration for a gripping story. There are strong characters, the tension of class rivalries, the drama of the race and the trial, as well as the opportunity to use the gambling of the time as a lens through which to view the wider social change of the period.