Fox tossing

Last updated
An engraving of German aristocrats engaged in the sport of fox tossing or Fuchsprellen (lit. "fox bouncing") Das Fuchsprellen, Hoflustbarkeit aus dem vorigen Jhd.jpg
An engraving of German aristocrats engaged in the sport of fox tossing or Fuchsprellen (lit. "fox bouncing")

Fox tossing (German : Fuchsprellen) was a competitive blood sport popular in parts of Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. It involved throwing live foxes and other animals high into the air. It was practiced by members of the aristocracy in an enclosed patch of ground or in a courtyard, using slings with a person on each end to catapult the animal upwards. It was particularly popular for mixed couples, even though it was hazardous for the people launching the animals as the terrified animals would often turn on the participants. The result was often fatal for the tossed animals.

Contents

Background

Fox and wild boar tossing. Painting from Jagdschloss Grunewald Jagdschloss Grunewald-90.jpg
Fox and wild boar tossing. Painting from Jagdschloss Grunewald

Fox tossing would take place in an arena, usually either created by setting up a circle of canvas screens in the open or by using the courtyard of a castle or palace. [1] Two people would stand six to seven-and-a-half metres (20 to 25 feet) apart, holding the ends of a webbed or cord sling known as a Prellgarn or Prelltuch ('bouncing cloth') which was laid flat on the ground. [2] An animal such as a fox would then be released from a cage or trap and driven through the arena, across the sling. As it crossed the sling the participants pulled hard on the ends, throwing the animal high into the air. [3] The highest throw would win the contest; expert competitors could achieve throws of as high as 7.5 m (24 ft). On occasion, several slings were laid in parallel, so that the animal would have to run the gauntlet of several teams. [1]

The result was often fatal for the tossed animal. Augustus II the Strong, the King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, held a famous tossing contest in Dresden at which 647 foxes, 533 hares, 34 badgers and 21 wildcats were tossed and killed. [3] Augustus himself participated, reportedly demonstrating his strength by holding the end of his sling by just one finger, with two of the strongest men in his court on the other end. Other rulers also participated in the sport. The Swedish envoy Esaias Pufendorf, witnessing a fox-tossing contest held in Vienna in March 1672, noted in his diary his surprise at seeing the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I enthusiastically joining the court dwarfs and boys in clubbing to death the injured animals; he commented that it was remarkable to see the emperor having "small boys and fools as comrades, [which] was to my eyes a little alien from the imperial gravity." [4] [5]

A fox-tossing tournament of the early 18th century, as depicted in Der vollkommene deutsche Jager (1719) Fox tossing 1719.jpg
A fox-tossing tournament of the early 18th century, as depicted in Der vollkommene deutsche Jäger (1719)

The sport was especially popular as an activity for mixed couples, with the rivalry between the separate couples adding to the entertainment. At Augustus's 1648[ under discussion ] contest, 34 boars were driven into the enclosure "to the great delectation of the cavaliers, but to the terror of the noble ladies, among whose hoop-skirts the wild boars committed great havoc, to the endless mirth of the assembled illustrious company." The same contest also saw the introduction of three wolves, but the reaction of the participants to this unusual departure is not recorded. [3]

The tossing of foxes and other animals was not without risk to the participants, as it was common for the terrified animals to turn on the people taking part. Wildcats were particularly troublesome; as one writer remarked, they "do not give a pleasing kind of sport, for if they cannot bury their claws and teeth in the faces or legs of the tossers, they cling to the tossing-slings for dear life, and it is next to impossible to give one of these animals a skilful toss". [6]

Masquerade

On occasion, tossing formed part of a costumed masquerade in which the tossed animal as well as the participants would be decorated and masked. Gentlemen would dress as mythical heroes, Roman warriors, satyrs, centaurs or jesters. Ladies would dress as nymphs, goddesses or muses. The tossed animals—hares as well as foxes—would be "dressed up in bits of cardboard, gaudy cloth and tinsel", sometimes being decorated as caricatures of well-known individuals. At the conclusion of the tossing, the guests would head off in a torchlit procession or go indoors for a grand banquet. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atalanta</span> Greek mythological character

Atalanta is a heroine in Greek mythology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fox hunting</span> Traditional equestrian hunting activity

Fox hunting is a traditional activity involving the tracking, chase and, if caught, the killing of a fox, normally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds. A group of unarmed followers, led by a "master of foxhounds", follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spear-thrower</span> Tool to give more leverage when throwing a spear-like projectile

A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever, or atlatl is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a bearing surface that allows the user to store energy during the throw.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Augustus II the Strong</span> Elector of Saxony (r. 1694–1733); Ruler of Poland-Lithuania (r. 1697–1706, 1709–33)

Augustus II the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the House of Wettin.

Hog-dog rodeo or hog-dogging, is a spectator event that simulates wild or feral boar hunting with dogs. It requires specially trained and bred "hog dogs" that are used to bay and sometimes catch a hog or boar. In most cases, bay dogs psychologically control the pig and no physical contact occurs. In some cases, however, such as Uncle Earl's Hog Dog Trials, along with bay dog events, catch dog events have been included in the past. In these, specially bred and equipped dogs caught and held the hog by the ears before the animals were quickly separated by a person who hog-tied the pig.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Game (hunting)</span> Wild animals under pursuit or taken in hunting

Game or quarry is any wild animal hunted for animal products, for recreation ("sporting"), or for trophies. The species of animals hunted as game varies in different parts of the world and by different local jurisdictions, though most are terrestrial mammals and birds. Fish caught non-commercially are also referred to as game fish.

<i>Lord Brocktree</i> 2000 novel by Brian Jacques

Lord Brocktree is a fantasy novel by Brian Jacques, published in 2000. It is the 13th book in the Redwall series to be published. It is the earliest chronological installment in the series, and the last prequel written by Jacques.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Venatio</span> Type of entertainment in Ancient Rome involving the hunting and killing of wild animals

Venatio was a type of entertainment in Roman amphitheaters involving the hunting and killing of wild animals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hare coursing</span> Competitive activity where sighthounds pursue hares

Hare coursing is the pursuit of hares with greyhounds and other sighthounds, which chase the hare by sight, not by scent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medieval hunting</span> Aristocratic hunting practice

Royal hunting, also royal art of hunting, was a hunting practice of the aristocracy throughout the known world in the Middle Ages, from Europe to Far East. While humans hunted wild animals since time immemorial, and all classes engaged in hunting as an important source of food and at times the principal source of nutrition, the necessity of hunting was transformed into a stylized pastime of the aristocracy. In Europe in the High Middle Ages the practice was widespread.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blood sport</span> Any entertainment sport where blood is commonly shed

A blood sport or bloodsport is a category of sport or entertainment that involves bloodshed. Common examples of the former include combat sports such as cockfighting and dog fighting, and some forms of hunting and fishing. Activities characterized as blood sports, but involving only human participants, include the ancient Roman gladiatorial games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bottle-kicking</span>

Bottle-kicking is an old Leicestershire custom that takes place in the village of Hallaton each Easter Monday. It is an outdoor sport played across a mile-long playing area, in which two teams attempt to move a wooden barrel across the opposing team's stream at the far end of the area.

Legislation on hunting with dogs is in place in many countries around the world. Legislation may regulate, or in some cases prohibit the use of dogs to hunt or flush wild animal species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Animals in sport</span> Sports that involve use of animals

Animals in sport are a specific form of working animals. Many animals, at least in more commercial sports, are highly trained. Two of the most common animals in sport are horses and dogs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cock throwing</span> Blood sport widely practised in England until the late 18th century

Cock throwing, also known as cock-shying or throwing at cocks, was a blood sport widely practised in England until the late 18th century. A rooster was tied to a post, and people took turns throwing coksteles at the bird until it died. Cock throwing was traditionally associated with Shrove Tuesday. A contributor to The Gentleman's Magazine in 1737, during an anti-Gallican phase of British culture, was of the opinion that cock throwing arose from traditional enmity towards the French, for which the cock played an emblematic role.

In the Elizabethan era (1558–1603), there was a wide range of leisure activities entertaining both the nobility and the common classes. Among these leisure activities were animal fighting, team sports, individual sports, games, dramatics, music and the arts.

<i>Devonshire Hunting Tapestries</i>

The Devonshire Hunting Tapestries are a group of four medieval tapestries, probably woven in Arras, Artois, France, between about 1430 and 1450. The tapestries are known as Boar and Bear Hunt, Falconry, Swan and Otter Hunt, and Deer Hunt. These enormous works, each over 13 feet tall and altogether about 133 feet wide, depict men and women in fashionable dress of the early fifteenth century hunting in forests. The tapestries formerly belonged to the Dukes of Devonshire, and were hung on the walls at Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire. In 1957, they became the property of the British Government in the tax settlement after the death of the 10th Duke of Devonshire. The tapestries were then allocated to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, where they remain. Few fifteenth-century tapestries of this size and grandeur still exist, which is what makes the Devonshire Hunting Tapestries so exceedingly rare.

Romania has a long history of hunting and remains a remarkable hunting destination, drawing many hunters because of its large numbers of brown bears, wolves, wild boars, red deer, and chamois. The concentration of brown bears in the Carpathian Mountains of central Romania is largest in the world and contains half of all Europe's population, except Russia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sabueso Español</span> Dog breed

The Sabueso Español or Spanish Hound is a scenthound breed with its origin in the far north of Iberian Peninsula. This breed has been used in this mountainous region since hundreds of years ago for all kind of game: wild boar, hare, brown bear, wolf, red deer, fox, roe deer and chamois. It is an exclusive working breed, employed in hunting with firearms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Native American weaponry</span> Weapons used by Native Americans for hunting and warfare with other Native American tribes

Native American weaponry was used by Native American warriors to hunt and to do battle with other Native American tribes and Europeans.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Sacheverell Sitwell. The Hunters and the Hunted, p. 60. Macmillan, 1947.
  2. Edward Brooke-Hitching. Fox Tossing, Octopus Wrestling, and Other Forgotten Sports, p. 102. Simon and Schuster, 2015. ISBN   978-1-4711-4899-6
  3. 1 2 3 Howard L. Blackmore. Hunting Weapons: From the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century, p. xxiii. Courier Dover Publications, 2000. ISBN   0-486-40961-9
  4. Jeroen Frans Jozef Duindam. Vienna and Versailles: the courts of Europe's dynastic rivals, 1550–1780, p. 147. Cambridge University Press, 2003. ISBN   0-521-82262-9
  5. Tim Blanning. The Pursuit of Glory: Europe 1648-1815 , p. 403. Allen Lane, 2007. ISBN   0-7139-9087-2
  6. William Adolph Baillie-Grohman. Sport in Art: An Iconography of Sport Illustrating the Field Sports of Europe and America from the Fifteenth to the End of the Eighteenth Century, p. 241. Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent, 1919.