List of duels

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Ilya Repin's picture of the duel from Eugene Onegin Yevgeny Onegin by Repin.jpg
Ilya Repin's picture of the duel from Eugene Onegin

The following is a list of notable one-on-one duels or single combats in history and in legend or fiction.

Contents

Antiquity

Middle Ages

Robert the Bruce killing Henry de Bohun in single combat during a battle Bruce defeats de Bohun on the eve of Bannockburn, from a children's history book.jpg
Robert the Bruce killing Henry de Bohun in single combat during a battle

Early modern and modern duels

Asia

China

  • During the Three Kingdoms period of China, in 195 [3] warlord Sun Ce encountered an enemy general, named Taishi Ci, by accident when both of them were scouting the other. The two fought until the arrival of their men compelled them to break off. The result was that Sun Ce seized Taishi Ci's weapon while Taishi Ci grabbed Sun Ce's helmet. There was however no record that any one of them was injured in this duel. This is one of the few examples of two generals dueling during a time of war.
  • In the Eastern Han dynasty, a military general, Guo Si (who served under the warlord Dong Zhuo) challenged another powerful military general, Lü Bu to a famous duel in the Battle of Chang'an. Guo Si was defeated after he was pierced by Lü Bu's spear.
  • In the Eastern Han dynasty, two of Lü Bu's military officers, Hao Meng and Cao Xing engaged in an isolated combat. During the fight, Hao Meng injured Cao Xing with his spear, and Cao Xing cut off one of Hao Meng' arms.
  • In the Eastern Han dynasty, a military general, Pang De (who served under the warlord Ma Teng) slew the enemy general Guo Yuan (a subordinate of warlord Yuan Tan) in the midst of battle and took his head.
  • In the Eastern Han dynasty, a military general, Yan Xing engaged the warlord Ma Teng's eldest son Ma Chao in a duel and nearly killed him by piercing him with a spear.
  • In the Eastern Han dynasty, a military general, Lü Meng (who served under the warlord Sun Quan) challenged warlord Liu Biao's military general, Chen Jiu to an isolated combat and killed him.
  • During the Northern and Southern Dynasties period, a Xianbei military general, Dugu Xin (who served under the Xiongnu general Erzhu Rong) challenged an enemy general, Yuan Sizhou to a duel and captured him alive.
  • During the Transition from Sui to Tang, warlord Wang Shichong's general Shan Xiongxin engaged Tang's general Li Shimin in an isolated combat, nearly killing him. However, Li Shimin's guard general Yuchi Jingde arrived in time and challenged Shan Xiongxin to another duel, Shan was defeated and fell off from his horse.
  • In the Tang dynasty, a military general and prince of Tang, Li Yuanji challenged another military general Yuchi Jingde to an isolated spears fight, and Li was defeated by Yuchi.
  • In the Tang dynasty, a military general of Tang, Xue Rengui personally engaged 10 of Tiele Turks' strongest warriors in a small battle and killed three of them, intimidating the entire Tiele coalition and causing them to submit to Tang.
  • Bai Mei, one of the legendary five elders of the Shaolin Temple, killed Jee Sin, (another one of the elders) in a brutal duel following the destruction of the Shaolin Temple.

India

Oceania

Australia

  • 1801: Captain John Macarthur dueled Colonel William Paterson, shooting him in the shoulder. Macarthur was sent back to England to be court-martialed.
  • 1826: Robert Wardell duelled with Australia's (Colony of New South Wales') first Attorney-General, Saxe Bannister. Dr Wardell had previously lost to Saxe Bannister in obtaining the Attorney-General position. [5] A long-running feud ensued: Bannister sued Wardell for libel, with Saxe saying in a speech in open court that Wardell was the "scum of London". [6] After three shots were fired on each side without effect, Wardell's apology was accepted.
  • 1827: Robert Wardell duelled with the Colonel Henry Dumaresq, the aide-de-camp and brother-in-law of the governor of New South Wales, Ralph Darling. Dr Wardell had written an article titled "How-e to Live by Plunder", [7] in which he claimed Dumaresq had leaked information to The Australian . Three shots were fired by each, and no one was injured. [8]
  • 1832: William Nairne Clark (barrister, news proprietor and explorer) fought a duel at Cantonment Hill, Fremantle, Western Australia, with pistols with George French Johnson (merchant), fatally wounding him in the right hip. Clark was subsequently charged with, and acquitted of, the murder of his opponent. [9] [10]
  • 1839: Dr. Barry Cotter challenged George Arden. They fought on the racecourse at the foot of Batman's Hill in Melbourne. Cotter fired first and missed (his bullet going through the beaver hat of his second William Meek) and Arden fired wide intentionally.
  • 1840: Peter Snodgrass challenged William Ryrie, following hot words at dinner on New Year's Eve. They fought at the foot of Batman's Hill in Melbourne. Snodgrass shot himself in the toe, whereupon Ryrie fired into the air.
  • 1841: Peter Snodgrass challenged Redmond Barry, who was later a Supreme Court judge. They fought near Liardet's Pier Hotel in Melbourne. Snodgrass discharged his pistol prematurely, and Barry fired into the air.
  • 1842: F. A. Powlett fought a duel with Arthur Hogue at Flemington near Melbourne. There were two exchanges of shots, but no injury save to Hogue's coat, through which Powlett sent a ball each time.
  • 1846: Alexander Sprot and W. J. Campbell fought a duel over the border in South Australia (having been prevented from doing so in the Port Phillip District by a Magistrates' order). Both survived.
  • 1851: Major Sir Thomas Mitchell confronted Sir Stuart Alexander Donaldson in Sydney. Mitchell issued the challenge because Donaldson had publicly criticised the cost of the Surveyor General's Department. Both duellists missed.

New Zealand

Europe

France

  • July 10, 1547: Guy Chabot de Jarnac, in a judicial duel with François de Vivonne de la Châtaigneraie, a favourite of the King and one of France's greatest swordsmen. Jarnac fooled La Châtaigneraie with a feint and hit him with a slash to the hamstrings. His dignity offended, La Châtaigneraie refused medical aid, and died. This both ended the practice of trial by combat in France, and created the myth of "Le Coup de Jarnac" – a legendary strike that supposedly allowed amateurs to defeat masters.[ citation needed ]
  • 27 April 1578: Duel of the Mignons claims the lives of two favorites of Henry III of France and two favorites of Henry I, Duke of Guise.
  • 12 May 1627: at the Place Royale in Paris, François de Montmorency-Bouteville dueled François d'Harcourt Beuvron without fatality, but Montmorency-Bouteville's second, François de Rosmadec, Comte de Chappelles, dueled and killed Beuvron's second, the Marquis de Bussi d'Amboise. While Beuvron took refuge in England, Montmorency and Rosmadec, despite their nobility, were beheaded at the Place de Grève in Paris on 22 June 1627.
  • 1641: Kenelm Digby and a French nobleman named Mont le Ros. Digby, a founding member of the Royal Society, was attending a banquet in France when the Frenchman insulted King Charles I of England and Digby challenged him to a duel. Digby wrote that he ".. run his rapier into the French Lord's breast until it came out of his throat again"; Mont le Ros fell dead.
  • 10 September 1718: Countess de Polignac and Marquise de Nesle fight a duel in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris in rivalry over their mutual lover the Duke de Richelieu. [11] [12]
  • 31 January 1772: Mademoiselle de Guignes and Mademoiselle d'Aguillon fight a duel in Paris. [13]
  • 1794 to 1813: Pierre Dupont de l'Étang and François Fournier-Sarlovèze fought over 30 duels, beginning with Fournier challenging Dupont after the latter had delivered a disagreeable message to his fellow officer. Dupont eventually overcame his opponent 19 years later in a pistol duel, and forced Fournier to promise never to bother him again. The story was immortalized by Joseph Conrad and made into the movie The Duellists by Ridley Scott.
  • 1830: French writer Sainte-Beuve and one of the owners of Le Globe newspaper, Paul-François Dubois, fought a duel under a heavy rain. Sainte-Beuve held his umbrella during the duel claiming that he did not mind dying but that he would not get wet.
  • 1832: British officer Charles Hesse was fatally shot by Charles Léon in the Bois de Vincennes following a dispute over cards.
  • 1832: Évariste Galois and (possibly) Pescheux d'Herbinville; Évariste Galois, the French mathematician, died of his wounds at the age of twenty.
  • 23 February 1870: Édouard Manet and Louis Edmond Duranty; Duranty, an art critic and friend of Manet, had written only the briefest of commentary on two works of art that Manet had entered for exhibition. The frustrated Manet collared Duranty at the Café Guerbois and slapped him. Duranty's demands for an apology were refused and so the men fought a duel with swords in the Forest of Saint-Germain-en-Laye three days later on the 23rd. Émile Zola acted as Manet's second and Paul Alexis acted for Duranty. After Duranty received a wound above the right breast the seconds stepped in and declared that honour had been satisfied. The men remained friends despite the encounter.
  • 1888: General Georges Boulanger and Charles Floquet (Prime Minister of the French Republic); the General was wounded in the throat but survived.
  • 5 February 1897: Marcel Proust fought journalist Jean Lorrain, after Lorrain published an excoriating review of Proust's first book "Pleasures and Days" and hinted that Proust was having an affair with Madame Alphonse Daudet's son, Lucien. Proust and Lorrain exchanged shots at 25 paces. Proust fired first, his bullet hitting the ground by Lorrain's foot. Lorrain's shot missed, and the seconds agreed that honor had been satisfied. [14]
  • On Friday 15 January 1904 during a debate in the French Chamber of Deputies on the subject of Labour Exchange Riots, Marcel Sembat and Jean-Baptiste Boutard exchanged remarks that led to them meeting the following morning at an undisclosed location in Paris where shots were exchanged without effect. [15]
  • 7 October 1949. Film director Willy Rozier challenged film critic Francois Chalais over comments Chalais had made about actress Marie Dea in Rozier's 1949 film 56 Rue Pigalle . Fought with rapiers in a forest, and to first blood, not death, Rozier wounded Chalais in the right forearm in the third round, winning the encounter in front of a dozen journalists and photographers. [16] The film would go on to become a hit in France, vindicating Rozier further. Silent film footage of the arrangements being made for the fight in a Parisian alley, and of the duel itself, are included as an extra on the DVD release of the film.
  • 20 April 1949: Duel between Armand Fevre and Pierre Merindol. [17]
  • 21 April 1967: The last official duel in the history of France happened between Gaston Defferre and René Ribière, both delegates at the French National Assembly. During an argument in the assembly room, Defferre said to Ribière "shut up, idiot" ("taisez-vous, abruti"). Defferre won the duel after four minutes of sword fighting, wounding his opponent twice. [18]

Germany

Great Britain and Ireland

  • 1597: Sir William Brooke (son of William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham) was fatally wounded in a duel with Thomas Lucas (son of Sir Thomas Lucas) at Mile End Green, Essex, in December. The Privy Council issued warrants for Lucas' arrest on 24 and 29 December 1597, but he fled to the continent and was later pardoned. [19]
  • 1598: Playwright Ben Jonson kills actor Gabriel Spenser in a duel fought with swords. The cause is unknown.
  • 1609: Sir George Wharton and Sir James Stuart fought a duel over a game of cards in Islington. Both were killed and buried in the same grave. [20]
  • 1609: Sir Hatton Cheke and Sir Thomas Dutton fought in Calais. Cheke was killed.
  • 1613: Edward Bruce, 2nd Lord Kinloss, and Sir Edward Sackville (later 4th Earl of Dorset), fought a duel over Venetia Stanley. They fought in Bergen-op-Zoom, Netherlands, to avoid the wrath of the King; Lord Bruce was killed, but Venetia Stanley ended up marrying Sir Kenelm Digby.
  • 1613: Grey Brydges, 5th Baron Chandos, and James Hay (later 1st Earl of Carlisle)
  • 1652: George Brydges, 6th Baron Chandos, and Colonel Henry Compton (grandson of Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton); Compton was killed, Chandos was found guilty of manslaughter and died whilst imprisoned.
  • 1668: George Villiers (later 2nd Duke of Buckingham) and Francis Talbot, 11th Earl of Shrewsbury; Shrewsbury was killed, and George Villiers' second Sir J. Jenkins was killed by the Earl's second.
  • 1694: John Law and Edward Wilson; Wilson challenged Law over the affections of Elizabeth Villiers (later Countess of Orkney); Wilson was killed. Law was tried and found guilty of murder and sentenced to death. His sentence was commuted to a fine, upon the ground that the offence only amounted to manslaughter. Wilson's brother appealed and had Law imprisoned but he managed to escape to the continent. [21]
  • 1698: Oliver Le Neve and Sir Henry Hobart, 4th Baronet on Cawston Heath, Norfolk; Sir Henry was killed and Le Neve fled to Holland.
  • 1711: Richard Thornhill, Esq and Sir Cholmeley Dering, 4th Baronet; Sir Cholmeley was killed and Richard Thornhill convicted of manslaughter. [22]
  • 1712: Hamilton–Mohun duel in Hyde Park, London. Both participants Charles Mohun, 4th Baron Mohun, and James Douglas, 4th Duke of Hamilton, were killed. Their seconds George Macartney, Esq, and Colonel John Hamilton were found guilty of manslaughter.
  • 1731: George Lockhart of Carnwath, Scottish spy, writer and politician, killed in a duel in Scotland.
  • 1731: William Pulteney, 1st Earl of Bath, and John Hervey, 2nd Baron Hervey
  • 1736: Henry St Lawrence and Hamilton Gorges: Gorges kills St Lawrence, is tried for murder but acquitted.
  • 1749: Captain Clarke R.N. and Captain Innis R.N; Innis was killed. Clarke was sentenced to death but received a Royal Pardon. [23]
  • 1762: John Wilkes and Samuel Martin in Hyde Park. Martin, in his place in the House of Commons, had alluded to Wilkes as a "stabber in the dark, a cowardly and malignant scoundrel." Wilkes prided himself as much upon his gallantry as upon his wit and loyalty, and lost no time in calling Martin out. The challenge was given as soon as the House adjourned, and the parties repaired at once to a copse in Hyde Park with a brace of pistols. They fired four times, when Wilkes fell, wounded in the abdomen. His antagonist, relenting, hastened up and insisted on helping him off the ground; but Wilkes, with comparative courtesy, as strenuously urged Martin to hurry away, so as to escape arrest. It afterwards appeared that Martin had been practising in a shooting gallery for six months before making the obnoxious speech in the House; and soon after, instead of being arrested, he received a valuable appointment from the ministry. [24]
  • 1765: William Byron, 5th Baron Byron and William Chaworth; Chaworth was killed. Byron was tried in the House of Lords and acquitted of murder, but found guilty of manslaughter, for which he was fined.
  • 1772: Richard Brinsley Sheridan and Captain Matthews; as the result of a quarrel between the two concerning Elizabeth Linley, to whom Sheridan was already secretly married, both men went to Hyde Park, but on finding it too crowded repaired instead to the Castle Tavern, Covent Garden, where they fought with swords. Both men were cut, but neither was seriously wounded. [25] Sheridan won this duel as Mathews pleaded for his life after losing his sword. They fought a second duel in July at Kingsdown near Bath to resolve a dispute over the first duel. Both men's swords broke, and Mathews stabbed Sheridan several times, seriously wounding him, before escaping in a post chaise.
  • 1779: Charles James Fox and Mr Adams
  • 1780: William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, and Colonel Fullarton [25]
  • 1783: Richard Martin ("Humanity Dick"), who engaged in over 100 duels, fought George "Fighting" FitzGerald in the Castlebar barrack yard. Later in the same year Martin's cousin, James Jordan forces a duel: Jordan is shot and dies of his wounds. As a result of this, Martin later refuses to duel with Theobald Wolfe Tone, even though he was having an affair with his wife.
  • 1786: Lord Macartney and Major-General James Stuart; Lord Macartney was wounded.
  • 1787: Sir John MacPherson and a Major Browne; Browne had been British Resident at the court of Shah Alam II, he took offence at his recall and challenged MacPherson, the former governor-general of India, on the latter's return to Britain. A pistol ball passed through MacPherson's coat and another struck a pocketbook in his coat pocket, but the two men were uninjured.
  • 1789: HRH Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany, and Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Lennox; Lennox had called the Prince out after the Prince had accused him of making ".. certain expressions unworthy of a gentleman". Lennox had no recollection of making such expressions and his demands for a retraction were refused. Lennox demanded satisfaction; the two men met with pistols on Wimbledon Common on 26 May 1789. According to a report in The Times by the seconds, Lord Rawdon for the Prince and Lord Winchilsea for Lennox, Lennox's shot "grazed His Royal Highnesses' curl". The Prince then refused to fire stating that he had been called out to give satisfaction to Lennox and the satisfaction had been given and the matter was closed.
  • 1791: Mr John Graham pleader of the Temple called out Richard Julius Attorney of Lincolns Inn over a hypocrisy in affairs of gallantry. They met 12 July on Blackheath where Graham received a ball to his groin which proved fatal. The papers of the day were outraged see http://www.thekingscandlesticks.com/webs/pedigrees/710.html
  • 1791: On 23 November 1791, a duel, originating in a trifling dispute, was fought near Newmarket, between Henry Applewhaite and Richard Rycroft, students at Pembroke Hall, Cambridge University. Rycroft was so severely wounded that he died two days later. Applewhaite and his second, John Hollond of Trinity College, were expelled from the University. At the Bury Lent Assizes of 1792, Applewhaite surrendered and stood trial for the murder of Rycroft. The bill was ignored by the grand jury, no evidence was offered on the coroner's inquisition, and he was acquitted. It is said that on this occasion "the flower of the University voluntarily came forward to give testimony of his generally amiable character." [26] [27] [28]
  • 1792: Lady Almeria Braddock and Mrs Elphinstone; so called "petticoat duel"; Lady Almeria Braddock felt insulted by Mrs Elphinstone and challenged her to a duel in London's Hyde Park after their genteel conversation turned to the subject of Lady Almeria's true age. The ladies first exchanged pistol shots in which Lady Almeria's hat was damaged. They then continued with swords until Mrs. Elphinstone received a wound to her arm and agreed to write Lady Almeria an apology. [11]
  • 1792: Mr O'Conner acquitted of the murder of Capt. Kerr, in a duel. [29]
  • 1798: Pitt–Tierney duel. William Pitt the Younger and George Tierney; both emerged unscathed.
  • 1799: Colonel Ashton and Major Allen; Duel took place in India; Ashton was killed.
  • 1803: Captain James Macnamara and Colonel Montgomery; over a dispute between their dogs fighting in Hyde Park. Both were wounded, Montgomery mortally. Macnamara was tried for manslaughter at the Old Bailey but was acquitted. [30]
  • 1804: Captain Best fatally wounded Thomas Pitt, 2nd Baron Camelford. He died three days later. [31]
  • 1804: A duel was fought on Kersal Moor, Salford, in July 1804 between Mr. Jones and Mr. Shakspere Philips. Mr. Jones fired at Mr. Philips without effect and Mr. Philips then fired his pistol in the air, upon which the seconds interfered, the two man shook hands, and honour was satisfied.
  • 1807: Sir Francis Burdett, 5th Baronet and James Paull; both men were wounded.
  • 1807: Major Alexander Campbell and Captain Alexander Boyd, a married man with six children, were officers in the second battalion 21st (later the Royal Scots Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot, based at Newry Barracks in Northern Ireland. After dinner in their mess on the evening of 22 June 1807 there was a disagreement between them on the topic of tactical regimental manoeuvring. Ultimately, Major Campbell insisted that Captain Boyd fight him, and after the doors to the mess were closed pistols were obtained and they duelled in the mess that evening. There was not enough room to pace out the full distance and when they wheeled to fire their pistols were almost touching. The Major shot the Captain in the abdomen and within a few hours he died as a result of his wound. The Major fled. A warrant was issued for his arrest but he evaded capture for some months and was treated as an outlaw. At trial on 4 August 1808 Major Campbell was found guilty of wilful murder and he was hanged at Newry at midday on Wednesday 24 August 1808. [32] [33] [34] [35] [36]
  • 1809: Castlereagh–Canning duel. George Canning and Lord Castlereagh; Canning was slightly wounded.
  • 1809: Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey, and Henry Cadogan; The contest took place on Wimbledon Common. Both men discharged their pistols, honour was satisfied and the parties left the field uninjured. [37]
  • 1815: Daniel O'Connell and Captain John Norcot d'Esterre; d'Esterre was killed. [38]
  • 1821: John Scott and Jonathon Henry Christie. Scott was the founder and editor of the London Magazine . The duel was born out of the Cockney School controversy. John Gibson Lockhart had been abusing many of Scott's contributors in Blackwood's Magazine (under a pseudonym (Z), as was then common). In May 1820, Scott began a series of counter-articles, which provoked Lockhart into calling him "a liar and a scoundrel". In February 1820, Lockhart's London agent, J.H. Christie, made a provocative statement, and Scott challenged him. They met on 16 February 1821, at a farm between Camden Town and Hampstead. Christie did not fire in the first round, but there was a misunderstanding between the seconds, resulting in a second round. Scott was hit in the abdomen, and died 11 days later. Christie and his second were tried for willful murder and acquitted; the collection for Scott's family was a notable radical cause.
  • 1822: James Stuart and Alexander Boswell. [39]
  • 1822: Richard Temple-Grenville, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, and Francis Russell, 7th Duke of Bedford. [25]
  • 1824: The 3rd Marquess of Londonderry and Ensign Battier; Battier was a cornet in the Marquess' regiment. When Battier's pistol misfired, he declined the offer of another shot and left. He was later horsewhipped by the Marquess' second Sir Henry Hardinge.
  • 1826: David Landale, a linen merchant from Kirkcaldy, duelled with his bank manager, George Morgan, who had slandered his business reputation. This was the last duel to be fought on Scottish soil; George Morgan, a trained soldier, was shot through the chest and mortally wounded by Landale, who had never before held a pistol. Landale was tried for murder but found not guilty. The subject of a book "Duel" by his descendant James Landale.
  • 1826: Early in the morning of Monday 23 January 1826, James Edward Devereux, of Carigmenan, accompanied by his second F. Joyce Esq., and John Hyacinth Talbot, of Talbot Hall, accompanied by his second, William Harvey, of Kyle, came together at Annice, in the county of Kilkenny, in Ireland. The meeting arose out of some unpleasant feelings excited by Mr Devereux having presided at meetings of Catholics in the county, to which Mr Talbot objected. Both gentlemen fired, without effect. [40]
  • 1829: Wellington–Winchilsea duel. The Duke of Wellington and the 10th Earl of Winchilsea; both aimed wide.
  • 1832: On Thursday 8 March 1832, Sir J. de Veulle, Chief Magistrate of the Island of Jersey, and Charles de Lagarde, had a "hostile meeting," at the Jardin d'Olivet on Jersey. After exchanging two shots each they shook hands and separated. [41]
  • 1835: William Arden, 2nd Baron Alvanley, and Morgan O'Connell, son of Daniel O'Connell. Alvanley asserted that Morgan's father had been "purchased" by William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne on his accession to the office of Prime Minister, O'Connell retorted by calling Alvanley "a bloated buffoon".
  • 1839: The 3rd Marquess of Londonderry and Henry Gratton
  • 1840: James Thomas Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, and Captain Harvey Garnett Phipps Tuckett; Captain Tuckett was wounded. Cardigan was arrested, tried in the House of Lords and was acquitted. [42]
  • 1840: Prince Louis Napoleon and Charles, Count Léon; Police arrived to prevent the duel; both men were arrested and taken to Bow Street Prison.
  • 1841: Malachy Kelly of Woodmount House (Tonalig, Co. Roscommon) & Owen Lynch of Woodpark Lodge (Rathpeak, Co. Roscommon). Both men were sons of local landlords, Hugh Kelly & Owen Lynch Snr. It is understood that the duel arose over a dispute during a horse race meeting a few weeks previous. The Duel was held on Ballygill Bridge, Ballinasloe, over the River Suck on the Roscommon/Galway border on 28 May 1841. Malachy Kelly died of his wounds 5 days later on the 3rd of June. ( Freemans Journal, Dublin, 07/06/1841). This is the last known fatal duel to have taken place in Ireland.
  • 1842: On the evening of Monday 11 July 1842, in the lobby of the House of Commons, in the presence of several other persons, Craven Berkeley, then the MP for Cheltenham, asked Captain Henry Boldero, the MP for Chippenham, what he, Boldero, would do, if, hypothetically, a drunk person were to damn the Queen in his presence. There are two versions of Captain Boldero's reply. The Morning Chronicle of Wednesday 13 July, claims that he replied, "that if any person in his presence, whether drunk or sober, chose to damn the Queen, he would take no notice of it; for he would be no eaves-dropper." Captain Boldero took exception to this version and wrote to several of those persons present and asked them what they thought he had said. Five of these men, all Members of Parliament, Henry Liddell, W. Thompson, Charles Douglas, Beriah Botfield, and William Cripps, all replied that his answer had not included the words, "or sober." He had said that if a drunk person damned the Queen in his presence he would wait until the following morning when he was sober, and deal with the matter then. Captain Boldero then wrote to Craven Berkeley and asked him if he knew who had written to the newspaper, and Berkeley replied that he did not, but that the version in the newspaper was "substantially correct." Captain Boldero replied suggesting that, "either your memory must have failed you in a very extraordinary manner, or you are intentionally perverting the true facts of the case." Berkeley took exception to, essentially, being accused of lying about it, and neither man being prepared to back down or apologise they nominated their seconds. Mr Berkeley was accompanied by the Hon William Ridley-Colborne, MP, and Capt Boldero by Mr W. F. Mackenzie, MP. They met at five o'clock on the morning of Friday 15 July in the neighbourhood of Osterley Park, a large country house in West London that was then the home of George Child-Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey. Having exchanged shots without effect, they left the ground. [43] [44]
  • 1843: Colonel Fawcett and his brother-in-law, Lieutenant Monro, in Camden; Colonel Fawcett was killed.
  • 1845: Lieutenant Henry Charles Moorhead Hawkey, Royal Marines, and James Alexander Seton; Seton died on 2 June, some days after the duel, as a result of an infected gunshot wound. Seton was the last known Briton to die because of a duel fought on British soil. This is recorded in other sites as having taken place at Browndown Camp, Gosport, Hampshire.
  • 1851: Mr William Henry Gregory and Captain the Hon. George Lawrence Vaughan, The duel took place in Osterley Park.
  • 1852: The last recorded fatal duel on British soil was fought by Lt. Frederic Constant Cournet and Emmanuel Barthélemy, two French political refugees. The duel took place on Priest's Hill in Englefield Green. Barthelemy killed Cournet and was subsequently arrested for murder. However, he was later convicted only of manslaughter, and served a few months in prison. Barthelemy was hanged in 1855 after he shot and killed two men in the course of a violent struggle. [45]

Italy

Women Gladiators (Jusepe de Ribera, 1636) Jose de Ribera 026.jpg
Women Gladiators (Jusepe de Ribera, 1636)
  • 1552: Isabella de Carazi and Diambra de Petinella fight a duel in rivalry about a common lover, Fabio de Zeresola: the duel became famous and the object of a painting by Jusepe de Ribera, Women Gladiators [46]
  • 1898: Italian politician Felice Cavallotti was killed in a duel with Count Ferruccio Macola, whom he had insulted.
  • 1921: Benito Mussolini seriously wounded Francisco Ciccotti, at the time an editor in Rome, in a duel with swords. The duel lasted an hour and a quarter and ended with Ciccotti unable to continue due to wounds received. [47]

Malta

  • 1802: Lieutenant Colonel John Baylis shot a fellow officer and reportedly close acquaintance in a pistol duel at Fort San Salvatore, on the island of Malta. Baylis had challenged a Captain Richard Newman to the duel, believing him to have been having an affair with his wife. Newman was mortally wounded and died in a military hospital in the island on 13 May 1802. Baylis was removed from his command and returned to Britain; although he was found innocent in a subsequent court martial. [48]

Portugal

  • 1924: Prime Minister Álvaro de Castro fought a duel with swords with Flight Captain Ribeiro over a political dispute. The duel ended with Ribeiro being wounded in the arm. [49]
  • 1925: António Beja da Silva, the vice-mayor of Lisbon, fought António Centeno, the president of the portuguese Reunited Gas and Electricity company (Companhias Reunidas de Gás e Eletricidade), over the rising prices of gas. [50]

Russia

  • 1666: First recorded Russian duel featured two foreigners living at the German Quarter – Major Patrick Gordon and Major Montgomery.
  • March 3, 1801: Prince Boris Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky challenged statesman Alexander Ribeaupierre for his alleged affair with Anna Lopukhina, a royal mistress. With heavily chopped arm, Ribeaupierre was exiled soon after the duel.
  • ca. 1807: Cavalryman Michael Lunin challenged Prince Alexey Orlov after latter permitted him to do so. Orlov, having harsh shooting skills, missed twice from twelve steps (first shot, however, hit Lunin's epaulette, and second holed his hat), while Lunin, being a notable marksman, kept stiff upper lip and also missed twice on purpose – shooting upwards in the skies, he then taught the Prince in French language, how to aim and squeeze the trigger properly, laughing at infuriated nobleman during the process. Third shot never happened. Details are still debated.
  • 1808: Gen. Nikolay Tuchkov was challenged by Prince Mikhail Dolgorukov. It happened amidst the Finnish War, so Tuchkov proposed to Dolgorukov, who also has the rank of a general, instead of conventional duel, to make joint appearance on the frontline, so a seldom enemy bullet could justify the argument. So was their decision, and Dolgorukov has been killed soon by a cannonball flown from Swedish lines.
  • 1814: Congress of Vienna: The Coalition's stubborn refusal to hand over all of Poland to Russia leads a tense Tsar Alexander I of Russia to supposedly challenge Metternich to a duel. The tsar changes his mind however and Poland is partitioned once more.
  • 1817: The honour of celebrated ballerina Avdotia Istomina occasioned a fourfold duel: kammerjunker count Alexander Zavadovsky kills podporutchik (lieutenant) of Chevalier Guards Regiment Basily Sheremetev (from not-titulated cadet branche of Sheremetev family), while the future Decembrist Yakubovich shot through a palm of the playwright Alexander Griboedov.
  • 1823: Mysterious duel of Aleksandr Pushkin with the poet Kondraty Ryleyev, who was also a leader of the Decembrists
  • 1823: General and rising statesman Pavel Kiselyov kills general Ivan Mordvinov; the duel was Mordvinov's call
  • 1825: Duel between Konstantin Chernov and Vladimir Novosiltsev; both were mortally wounded, and the funeral of Chernov had turned into a first political demonstration in Russia, three months before the Decembrist revolt
  • 1820s: Fyodor Ivanovich Tolstoy killed eleven officers in various duels
  • 1836: Nicholas I of Russia challenged by a nobleman
  • 1837: The most famous and talked about Russian duel: Aleksandr Pushkin mortally wounded after a gunshot he received in a duel at the Black Rivulet with a French officer on Russian service Georges d'Anthès, rumoured to have an affair with Pushkin's wife Natalia. D'Anthès went on to become French minister and senator and married Pushkin's sister-in-law (a few weeks before the duel, in a last attempt to avoid the confrontation).
  • 1840: There was to be a duel between Mikhail Bakunin and Mikhail Katkov, but it was called off. [51]
  • 1841: Mikhail Lermontov killed in a duel with Nikolai Martynov, a year after his duel with De Barante, son of the French ambassador to Russia.
  • 1908: Lieutenant General Konstantin Smirnov was seriously wounded in a pistol duel with Lieutenant General Alexander Fok. Fok challenged Smirnov after Smirnov publicly accused Fok of incompetence during the Siege of Port Arthur. [52]
  • 1909: Another parliamentary duel – Alexander Guchkov vs Count Alexei Uvarov.
  • 1909: Two first-rank Russian poets, Nikolay Gumilyov and Maksimilian Voloshin, dueled for the heart of a non-existent woman, poet Cherubina de Gabriak, at the Black Rivulet in St. Petersburg.

Serbia

  • 1926. Disagreements over whether the national aero club should order French or German planes caused a quarrel between writer Miloš Crnjanski and pilot and officer Tadija Sondermayer. After a heated argument, Crnjanski challenged Tadija to a duel. Crnjanski was the first to shoot and miss, after which Tadija shot into the air and said that he was giving up. [53]

Spain

Sweden

  • 1788: Count Adolph Ribbing and Baron Hans Henrik von Essen; the duel was held because Essen's proposal had been accepted by the father of a woman, the heiress Charlotta Eleonora De Geer, whom Ribbing had also proposed to and whom he believed to be in love with him. Essen was injured and Ribbing declared winner. The duel was regarded a scandal and a crime against the king [54]

Switzerland

Americas

Argentina

  • 1814: Buenos Aires, Argentina. Colonel Luis Carrera, brother of Chilean revolutionary General José Miguel Carrera, killed Colonel Juan Mackenna in a duel. The reason was the sense of honor that the Carreras had, as Mackenna disrespected the family name many times. This was the second time that both duellists met, and the third time that Mackenna was challenged in a duel by a Carrera (the first time it was by Luis Carrera himself, while the second time it was by his brother, Juan José Carrera, the oldest of the brothers and noticeable by his strength. Yet Mackenna was able to run away from the duels both times). They dueled at night, in the first round, Mackenna shot at his head, but missed and blew Carrera's hat away, in the second round, Carrera was able to hit Mackenna in his hand, blowing his thumb away and piercing a hole in his throat, thus killing Mackenna. Carrera was arrested the next day, particularly because Mackenna was part of a secret society called Lautaro Lodge, which had the control of the government at the time.
  • November 3, 1968, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Admiral Benigno Ignacio Varela and journalist Yolivan Biglieri were protagonists of the last duel know to have taken place in Argentina according to the rules of chivalry. [55]

Canada

  • 1800: John White, 39, Upper Canada's first lawyer and a founder of the law society, was fatally shot on January 3, 1800, by a government official named John Small, who challenged him to the duel. White was alleged to have gossiped at a Christmas party that Mrs. Small was once the mistress of the Duke of Berkeley in England, who had tired of her and paid Small to marry her and take her to the colonies.
  • 1817: John Ridout, 18, was shot dead on July 12, 1817, at the corner of what is now Bay St. and Grosvenor St. in Toronto by Samuel Peters Jarvis, 25. The reason for the duel was unclear. On the count of two, the nervous Ridout discharged his pistol early, missing Jarvis by a wide margin. Ridout's second, James Small (whose father survived the only other duel in York) and Jarvis' second, Henry John Boulton insisted that Jarvis be allowed to make his shot. Ridout protested loudly and asked for another pistol, but Small and Boulton were adamant that the strict code of duelling must be observed. Jarvis shot and killed Ridout instantly. Jarvis was pardoned by the courts, even though he had shot an unarmed man.
  • 1819: What historians have called "The Most Ferocious Duel" in Canadian history took place on April 11, 1819, at Windmill Point near the Lachine Canal. The opponents were William Caldwell, a doctor at the Montreal General Hospital, and Michael O'Sullivan, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada. The dispute arose when Caldwell accused O'Sullivan of lacking courage. The two opponents exchanged fire an unheard-of five times. O'Sullivan was wounded twice in the process, and in the final volley, he took a bullet to the chest and hit the ground. Caldwell's arm was shattered by a shot; a hole in his collar proved he narrowly missed being shot in the neck. Amazingly, neither participant died during the fight, although both took a long time to recover. O'Sullivan went on to become Chief Justice of the Court of King's Bench in Montreal, and when he died in 1839, an autopsy revealed a bullet still lodged against the middle of his spine.
  • 1826: Rudkin versus John Philpot a duel fought in Newfoundland at St. John's who met at West's Farm near Brine's Tavern at the foot of Robinson's Hill, adjacent to Brine's River to settle their seemingly long standing differences that was further exacerbated by the love of an Irish colleen who lived in a cottage near Quidi Vidi and a game of cards that ended in an argument over the ownership of the pot.
  • 1833: The last fatal duel in Upper Canada [56] was fought in Perth, Ontario, on June 13, 1833. Two law students and former friends, John Wilson and Robert Lyon, quarrelled over remarks Lyon made about a local schoolteacher, Elizabeth Hughes. Lyon was killed in the second exchange of shots on a rain-soaked field. Wilson was acquitted of murder, eventually married Miss Hughes, became a Member of Parliament, and later a judge.
  • 1836: Two duelling politicians from Lower Canada were lucky to have sensible seconds. Clément-Charles Sabrevois de Bleury, a member of the Lower Canadian Legislative Assembly, insulted fellow politician Charles-Ovide Perreault. Perreault then struck de Bleury, and a duel was set. Both men were determined to settle the matter with pistols, but their seconds came up with a unique solution. The two foes would clasp hands and de Bleury would say, "I am sorry to have insulted you" while at the same time Perreault would say, "I am sorry to have struck you." They would then reply in unison, "I accept your apology." The tactic worked, and the situation was resolved without injury.
  • 1837: William Collis Meredith and James Scott. On Monday, 9 August 1837, at eight o’clock in the evening, Meredith (who had articled under the previously mentioned Clement-Charles Sabrevois de Bleury from 1831 to 1833) and Scott (no stranger to duels) stepped out to face one another on the slopes of Mount Royal, behind Montreal. Earlier that day, following a dispute over legal costs, Meredith had challenged Scott. Meredith chose James M. Blackwood to second him, whilst Scott's choice was Louis-Fereol Pelletier. The pistols used were Meredith's which he had bought in London, on a previous trip to England. On the first exchange Scott took a bullet high up in his thigh, and the duel was called to a stop. The bullet lodged itself in Scott's thigh bone in such a way that it could not be removed by doctors, which caused him great discomfort for the rest of his days. Ironically for Scott, this was exactly where he had shot Sweeney Campbell in a duel when they were students. In the early 1850s (Scott died in 1852), when both the adversaries had become judges, one of the sights then to see was Meredith helping his brother judge up the steep Court House steps, a result of the lameness in his leg that had remained with Scott since their encounter. Meredith was later knighted and went on to serve as Chief Justice of the Superior Court of the Province of Quebec.
  • 1840: Joseph Howe was called out by a member of Nova Scotian high society for his populist writing. When his opponent fired first and missed, Howe fired his shot in the air and won the right to refuse future challenges.
  • 1873: The last duel in what is now Canada occurred in August 1873, in a field near St. John's, Newfoundland (which was not Canadian territory at the time). The duellists, Mr. Dooley and Mr. Healey, once friends, had fallen in love with the same young lady, and had quarrelled bitterly over her. One challenged the other to a duel, and they quickly arranged a time and place. No one else was present that morning except the two men's seconds. When they had counted off the standard ten yards, they turned and fired. Dooley hit the ground immediately. Healey, believing he had killed Dooley, was seized with horror. But Dooley had merely fainted; the seconds confessed they had so feared the outcome that they loaded the pistols with blanks. Although this was a serious breach of duelling etiquette, both opponents gratefully agreed that honour had indeed been satisfied. [57]

Chile

United States

Uruguay

  • 1920: Former President José Batlle y Ordóñez shot and killed Washington Beltrán Barbat in a formal duel. The former president challenged Beltrán, a journalist after he became offended by statements published by Beltrán in the newspaper El País . The former president was no stranger to duels having previously challenged two others, whom he considered to have besmirched his dignity. [59]

Proposed duels

Duels in legend, mythology and religious text

Notable examples of single combat in legend , mythology and religious text:

Duels in fiction

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Rider, Jeff (2001). "The Art of History". God's Scribe: The Historiographical Art of Galbert of Bruges. Catholic University of America Press. p. 106. ISBN   978-0813210186.
  2. ↑ Prescott Journal Miner: April 16, 1920
  3. ↑ Zizhi Tongjian, Chapter 61, Han Annal 53, Emperor Xian of Han, the Second Year of Xingping
  4. ↑ Wolpert, Stanley (2004) [First published 1977]. A New History of India (7th ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 190. ISBN   978-0-19-516677-4.
  5. ↑ Osborne, Mike (2017-05-31). "Biography: Robert Wardell". The Australian Media Hall Of Fame. Melbourne Press Club. Retrieved 2024-11-22.
  6. ↑ "Duel Between Mr. Bannister, the Attorney-General, and Dr. Wardell, Editor of The Australian". The Monitor . Vol. I, no. 24. 27 October 1826. p. 3. Retrieved 22 November 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  7. ↑ "How-e to Live by Plunder". The Australian. No. 179. 17 March 1827. p. 3. Retrieved 22 November 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ Gray, Nancy, "William John Dumaresq (1793–1868)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 2024-11-22
  9. ↑ "PISTOLS FOR TWO". The West Australian . Vol. XLIX, no. 9, 524. Western Australia. 5 January 1933. p. 17. Retrieved 16 June 2017– via National Library of Australia.
  10. ↑ "MAGISTRATES COURT". The Perth Gazette and Western Australian Journal . Vol. III, no. 105. Western Australia. 3 January 1835. p. 419. Retrieved 16 June 2017– via National Library of Australia.
  11. 1 2 Baldick, Robert (1970). The duel : a history of duelling. Internet Archive. London : Spring Books. ISBN   9780600328377.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  12. ↑ Lewis G. M. Thorpe: Nottingham French Studies, V. 41. W. Heffer., 2002.
  13. ↑ Florence Marryat: Her Father's Name
  14. ↑ Alden, Douglas W. (1938). "Marcel Proust's Duel, by Douglas W. Alden". Modern Language Notes. 53 (2). The Johns Hopkins University Press.: 104–106. doi:10.2307/2912041. JSTOR   2912041.
  15. ↑ Nottingham Evening Post, Sat 16 Jun 1904 p. 5
  16. ↑ "Un Duel de Cinema". Le Monde.fr. 8 October 1949.
  17. ↑ "DUEL FOUGHT NEAR PARIS WITH SABRES". The Argus . Melbourne. 20 April 1949. p. 4. Retrieved 23 October 2015– via National Library of Australia.
  18. ↑ Account of the Defferre-Ribière duel with pictures (in French). (Translated)
  19. ↑ "BROOKE ALIAS COBHAM, William (1565–97)". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  20. ↑ "WHARTON, George (1583-1609), of Wharton Hall, Westmld". History of Parliament Online.
  21. ↑ Adams, Gavin John (2012). Letters to John Law. Newton Page. pp. xxi. ISBN   9781934619087.
  22. ↑ "The Newgate Calendar – Richard Thornhill, Esq". Exclassics.com. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
  23. ↑ "The Newgate Calendar – CAPTAIN CLARKE, R.N". Exclassics.com. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
  24. ↑ 'Hyde Park', Old and New London: Volume 4 (1878), pp. 375–405. Date accessed: 25 December 2007.
  25. 1 2 3 "Hyde Park | British History Online". British-history.ac.uk. 2003-06-22. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
  26. ↑ Annals of Cambridge Vol IV (1852) p. 441-2
  27. ↑ "Cambridge Chronicle", 31 Mar 1792 p. 5
  28. ↑ Alumni Cantabrigienses Part II (1940) by J. A. Venn p. 64
  29. ↑ Reading Mercury, 5 November 1792, p. 1
  30. ↑ Tracy, Nicholas (2006). Who's Who in Nelson's Navy: 200 Naval Heroes. London: Chatham Publishing. p. 236. ISBN   978-1-86176-244-3.
  31. ↑ Hopton, Richard (2008). "Prologue". Pistols at Dawn: A History of Duelling. Piatkus Books. pp. 1–5. ISBN   978-0-7499-2996-1.
  32. ↑ "Caledonian Mercury", Sat 11 Jul 1807 p. 3
  33. ↑ "Aberdeen Press and Journal", Wed 20 Apr 1808 p. 4
  34. ↑ "British Press", Wed 31 Aug 1808 p. 3
  35. ↑ "Gloucester Journal", Mon 20 Jul 1807 p.\ 4
  36. ↑ "Dublin Evening Post", Tue 9 Aug 1808 p. 3
  37. ↑ Sir Walter Scott (1811). The Edinburgh Annual Register. John Ballantyne and Company. p. 151.
  38. ↑ "Multitext - Daniel O?Connell". Archived from the original on 2013-07-30. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
  39. ↑ Buchan, George (1823). Remarks on duelling; comprising observations on the arguments in defence of that practice. Edinburgh: Waugh & Innes. pp.  1-161.
  40. ↑ "Belfast Commercial Chronicle", Sat 28 Jan 1826 p.\ 2
  41. ↑ "Essex & Herts Mercury", Tue 20 Mar 1832 p. 1
  42. ↑ "The Newgate Calendar – THE EARL OF CARDIGAN". Exclassics.com. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
  43. ↑ "Morning Chronicle", Wed 13 Jul 1842 p. 5
  44. ↑ "Globe", Fri 15 Jul 1842 p. 3
  45. ↑ "1855: Emmanuel Barthelemy, duelist". Executed Today. 22 January 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  46. ↑ Pérez Sánchez, Alfonso E.; Spinosa, Nicola; Bayer, Andrea (1992). Jusepe de Ribera: 1591 – 1652. Metropolitan Museum of Art. pp. 110–111. ISBN   978-0-87099-648-1.
  47. ↑ "Il Duce's Duelist Dies in Argentina". The Spartanburg Herald . 15 September 1937.
  48. ↑ Late RAMC, Col W Bonnici. "The 35th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot". www.maltaramc.com. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
  49. ↑ "Fought duel with Swords," Montreal Gazette, July 3, 1924.
  50. ↑ O último duelo que aconteceu em Portugal Diário de Notícias, April 8, 2016.
  51. ↑ Leier, Mark (2007-04-01). Bakunin: The Creative Passion. Macmillan. ISBN   9781429906487 . Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  52. ↑ "Women Watch Duel of Russian Generals," NY Times, March 19, 1908.
  53. ↑ Dziadul, Paweł (2012-01-01). ""Književna istorija", nr 145, Institut za književnost i umetnost, Beograd 2011, ss. 962". Poznańskie Studia Slawistyczne (3): 291. doi: 10.14746/pss.2012.3.19 . ISSN   2084-3011.
  54. ↑ Cecilia af Klercker (1903). Hedvig Elisabeth Charlottas dagbok II 1783–1788 (The diaries of Hedvig Elizabeth Charlotte II) (in Swedish). P.A. Norstedt & Söners förlag. p. 212.
  55. ↑ Infobae "La sangrienta historia del último duelo en la Argentina: traición, sables y odio para pelear hasta la muerte" by Eduardo Anguita. Buenos Aires June 4, 2019
  56. ↑ lists a later fatal duel on 22 May 1838 at Verdun, Québec
  57. ↑ O'Neill-Yates, Chris (December 28, 2018). "How a pair of men in St. John's survived the last duel fought on Canadian soil". CBC News. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  58. ↑ Sánchez Latorre, Luis (8 January 2005). "Pasando y Pasando Eres un fifiriche, eres un zascandil". (Opiniones). Las Últimas Noticias (in Spanish). Archived from the original on June 16, 2008.
  59. ↑ "Ex-President of Uruguay Kills Editor In Formal Duel Fought With Pistols," NY Times, April 3, 1920.
  60. ↑ Ocampo, Ambeth (2010). Looking Back. Anvil Publishing, Inc. pp. 20–22. ISBN   978-971-27-2336-0.
  61. ↑ "BBC article: Bush challenged to 'duel' with Saddam, October 3, 2002". BBC News. 2002-10-03. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
  62. ↑ Wallace, Kelly (October 3, 2002). "W. H. rejects Bush-Saddam duel offer". CNN.com. (CNN Washington Bureau). Archived from the original on April 17, 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-19.

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