302:. Phelps died three days later as a result of the injuries he sustained from the fight with Swift which occurred at Melbourne Heath in Cambridgeshire. The battle was a brutal affair lasting 85 rounds and 95 minutes. The event had a large audience of 3000, as it was easily accessible by coach, and Swift was well known. Swift's prize fighting had led to the death of two former opponents, and William Phelps, himself, had previously killed a man in a prize fight. These factors later incited several magistrates to act and three months later, in June 1838, Curtis was sentenced to eight months imprisonment at Herford Assizes for acting as a principle to manslaughter in the second degree, even though he had only acted as second to the victim. Curtis was discharged from custody, however, on 11 July 1838, when a coroner determined that the cause of death could not be exclusively attributed to the fight. The death of William Phelps eventually led to the adoption of the
290:, but he was not as well known or judged to be as skilled as his opponent. Another critical factor in the match was that Perkins was five years younger, and seemed to have greater stamina in the closing rounds. The first seven rounds seemed to clearly favor Curtis, but the tide turned in the eighth, and in the eleventh and last round he received a blow on the temple. Curtis had been sorely tested in the eighth through the eleventh rounds, and he could not return to scratch after the blow to his temple in the twelfth, and had his seconds end the bout in only 24 minutes. The bout was well publicized in London area newspapers, and one of the most significant of Curtis's career. Curtis's loss and the large purse he received led to a period of profligate or drunken days he shared with his aristocratic followers. Drunken idleness weakened his body, and ended his boxing career when he lost the confidence of his sponsors.
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Scottish boxer George Cooper who was active at the same time, but a larger boxer, and older. In the seventh, Cooper floored his opponent, but Curtis easily led the fighting and ended the match. Curtis won his first match with the larger and two inch taller Peter Warren the same year on 23 July, in ten rounds at
Colnbrook, England. Curtis boxed at around 128 pounds, or 9 stones, 2. In the final round, Curtis unleashed a left to the nose and a right to the jaw, and finished with a right to the eye, that ended the match, leaving his opponent struggling to remain conscious.
253:, one of his most skilled opponents. Curtis vanquished Aaron in fifty minutes on a specially constructed stage in Andover, England, 70 miles East of London. Aaron was known as a "John Bull" or rushing boxer with good hitting strength but he was outweighed a full stone or 12 pounds by Curtis. Though Aaron stood to profit from the £100 purse, Curtis was a threatening opponent, and though slightly shorter, he was an accomplished boxer, two years younger, and had easily defeated the skilled and larger Peter Warren in a previous contest. London's
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knee. The thirteen round bout was fierce, and though Warren was the larger boxer, Curtis showed superior science. In their bout on 8 July 1823, the odds on Curtis were six to four, and an impressive total of 600 pounds made up the purse. Warren's knee was injured in an early round, likely the second, and he verbally conceded the fight to Curtis. The match was the third the two had fought.
286:, a talented Jewish lightweight he had mentored in his early career. Both Curtis and Perkins were believed by their backers to have been undefeated in former contests, and a crowd close to 5,000 assembled to view the contest. A purse of £100 was provided for each participant. Perkins was as much as two inches taller and roughly fourteen pounds heavier, according to London's
321:, Owen Swift's second at the fight. It is not unlikely the Marquess and other nobleman were occasionally in the company of Curtis when he turned to drinking after his loss to Jack Perkins, and after his incarceration after the death of William Phelps. Such behavior contributed to Curtis's poor health and early death five years later.
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a working class newspaper writing near the height of the working class movement in
Leicester, went into slightly greater detail, attributing the cause of his death partly to "the irregular and dissipated life he had been leading for several years". Dissipated in this instance referred to a debauched
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In two matches that were critical in establishing his reputation, Curtis defeated the well known boxer Peter Warren on 16 April 1823 in
Moulsey Hurst, and on 8 July 1823 in Blindlow Heath in one round. In his April 16 bout, Warren was disqualified for striking Curtis on the head while sitting on his
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He turned professional in 1820, and began his career at the age of eighteen. His first match was with an opponent named Watson on 27 June 1820 in
Moulsey Hurst, England, which he won. His second battle on 28 August 1820, was with Ned Brown at Wimbledon Common, and he won in fifteen rounds, earning
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Curtis bested the slightly heavier Ned
Stockman at South Mims, 17 miles North of London, on 16 May 1826, when despite his having boldly and insolently challenged Curtis to accept the match, Stockman laid down and refused to continue fighting in the third round after being repeatedly peppered by his
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Curtis was born on
Suffolk Street, Southwark in Greater London on 1 February 1802. He had three brothers who boxed as well; Jack, George, and Bill. In the brutal calling of bare-knuckle boxing Dick's brother Jack was killed in the ring by the boxer Ned Turner while Dick was still in the midst of
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Curtis was scheduled to fight Dick Hares, sometimes spelled Ayers on 13 April 1824, but as was not uncommon during this period, the
Constable and his deputy prevented the fight and sent home the backers and a crowd of hundreds where they had assembled at Shepperton Ridge in Surrey. Curtis later
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wrote of Curtis that "His power of hitting...for his size is considered greater than any man in the ring". As expected, Curtis was favored in the opening betting at 6-4. Aaron fared well in the first three rounds, but the momentum slowly turned and by the fifth he got far worse in a vicious
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He defeated the younger boxer Cooper, the "Gypsey" on 25 May 1822 in seven rounds taking 22 minutes in Epson Downs, England, and though he fought carefully he had greater science throughout. This boxer was most likely one of the Gypsey brothers Tom or Jack Cooper, who both boxed, and not the
176:(1 February 1802 – 16 September 1843) was an English bare-knuckle boxer who was considered the best and most powerful English lightweight of his era. He had only one loss in his career and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2006.
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Curtis' lone defeat came at the hands of Jack
Perkins of Oxford on 30 December 1828, when he lost on a foul at the Parish Meadow at Henley Bottom in an eleven round match, around thirty-four miles from London. Curtis was attended by his friend
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In a lesser known, and less reliably reported match on 9 July 1825, Curtis again defeated Peter Warren with a terrific left in the seventh, that was followed by two blows that ended the match. The fight was held in
Warwick, England.
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exchange where his face was clearly injured. In the ninth round, only fifty minutes into the contest, Curtis floored Aaron with a blow that reflected "his whole force", on Barney's throat knocking him out and ending the match.
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on 16 September 1843. He died at his home on Little Surrey Street on
Blackfriars Road within an hour of midnight. He had been taken with a painful illness for several months before his death, and died in poverty. The
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At the height of his popularity on 25 January 1828, Curtis performed an exhibition at Liverpool's Royal Amphitheatre with English champion Jem Ward, Jewish lightweight Young Dutch Sam, and Ned Stockman.
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On 19 October 1827, he defeated Jack Teasdale in seventeen rounds at Egham, England. London papers carried more publicity about the planning for the fight than the results of the fight itself.
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which included certain safety measures, and excluded some of the harsher forms of fighting by making them fouls. London Prize Ring Rules replaced the less restrictive
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was seen at the match between Swift and Phelps, and the Marquess was known at times to both drink and gamble to excess, a habit which had had negative consequences for
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On 24 October 1821, he defeated the well known English boxer Lenney in 29 rounds at Moulsey Hurst, and though mention of the fight was made in London's
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defeated Dick Hares in a three round match at Moulsey Hurst, England on 25 May 1824. The fight took twenty minutes according to London's
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wrote that he had long been ill from his "nightly excesses", a phrase usually used to imply drinking in the parlance of the era. The
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On 13 March 1838, Curtis was one of two seconds to William Phelps known as "Brighton Bill" in his fight with the well known boxer
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Description of Owen's fight with Phelp and subsequent death in "The Late Fatal Prizefight",
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The Annual Register, Or A View of the History and Politics of the Year 1838
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Did poorly in the eighth through last rounds in "Dick Curtis and Perkins",
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Perkins ends the match with a final right to Curtis's temple in round 11
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Perkins was five years younger in "Sparring at the Tennis Court",
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Spelled Ayers in "The Fights Appointed at Moulsey Hurst",
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Victories over Peter Warren, Dick Hares, and Ned Stockman
1169:"Roberto Duran, Pernell Whitaker elected to boxing hall"
1083:. London: J.G. & F. Rivington. 1839. pp. 40–41
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883:"Second Fight Between Dick Curtis and Peter Warren",
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474:Cooper, the Gypsey, was Tom or Jack Cooper
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310:of 1743, under which Curtis fought.
885:The Bristol Mercury and Daily Post
831:Warren fight details in "Boxing",
637:Held on a newly constructed stage
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714:International Boxing Hall of Fame
225:, but that estimate may be high.
125:5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
947:"Dick Curtis and Barney Aaron",
896:"Sparring at the Tennis Court",
329:Curtis sustained injuries while
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1153:"The End of Such Things",
1025:"Sporting Intelligence",
844:"Sporting Intelligence",
818:"Boxing at Epson Races",
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1140:"Death of Dick Curtis",
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1197:Biography at the IBHOF
1116:The Caledonian Mercury
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716:, "Pioneer" Category.
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805:"Fight at Warwick",
699:Led to boxing demise
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488:Moulsey Hurst, Eng.
449:Moulsey Hurst, Eng.
410:Moulsey Hurst, Eng.
117:126-133 lb, 57-60 kg
37:Curtis at 20 in 1824
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1129:The Star of Freedom
433:15 Rounds, 57 mins
416:Little known match
413:16 rounds, 25 mins
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1175:. Associated Press
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624:Barney Aaron
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523:Barney Aaron
485:16 Apr 1823
446:24 Oct 1821
427:28 Aug 1820
394:
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251:Barney Aaron
248:
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199:
187:
185:his career.
183:
173:
172:
145:
101:
74:(1843-09-16)
18:
1217:1843 deaths
1212:1802 births
667:2 Jan 1828
583:Ned Savage
505:8 Jul 1823
174:Dick Curtis
114:lightweight
85:Nationality
25:Dick Curtis
1206:Categories
1066:Puglistica
857:"Boxing",
720:References
654:17 Rounds
592:17 Rounds
424:Ned Brown
300:Owen Swift
233:opponent.
180:Pro career
102:Statistics
53:1802-02-01
673:5 rounds
612:3 Rounds
552:5 Rounds
363:1 Forfeit
109:Weight(s)
61:Southwark
1173:ESPN.com
807:Observer
533:Forfeit
519:Forfeit
511:1 Round
390:Duration
385:Location
375:Opponent
331:sparring
288:Observer
255:Observer
223:Observer
202:Observer
134:Orthodox
1087:27 July
911:The Era
758:7 March
443:Lenney
404:Watson
355:12 wins
88:British
933:7 July
708:Honors
370:Result
359:1 loss
160:Losses
130:Stance
122:Height
680:Loss
395:Notes
325:Death
1181:2008
1089:2015
935:2019
760:2020
661:Win
642:Win
620:Win
600:Win
580:Win
560:Win
540:Win
499:Win
479:Win
459:Win
440:Win
421:Win
401:Win
380:Date
152:Wins
69:Died
43:Born
1208::
1171:.
926:.
788:^
768:^
750:.
727:^
361:,
1183:.
1091:.
937:.
762:.
357:,
163:1
55:)
51:(
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