ELIZABTHAN SPORTSBy: Kayler Yoxtheimer

Basic Info

Many of the games and leisure activities that we use in our free time, were also enjoyed by many in the 16th Century.

While used for fun, most of the sports played during this period were a major source of gambling

The violent nature of people during this period was also translated into the games they played

Sports

Very different but yet similar to modern day sports

Unlike now, where the matches are friendly and not life threatening, the players in these games got a kick out of hurting and possibly killing each other

Most of the sports matches were to the death or very high stakes

Team Sports

Not very popular until Queen Elizabeth’s tenure as Queen

Most violent of games due to the large number of participants

Include capture-the-flag like games where teams were to capture opposing members and defend their flag

Also included Shuttlecock (Badminton), Skittles (Bowling), Rounders (Baseball) as well as others

Individual Sports

More gambling involved due to higher probability of betting correctly

Include archery, billiards, fencing, hammer throwing, horseshoes, tennis, and wrestling

Quarterstaff Contests

Quarterstaff- long, hardwood staff with reinforced metal tip

Fighters used them to club or stab each other until one of them couldn’t fight any longer

Often played by the lower class because the weapons were extremely cheap and easy to make

Card Games

Very popular among all classes HEAVY gambling Included One and Thirty (Blackjack), Ruff

and Honours (Rummy), and Maw (Euchre)

Board Games

Like card games, board games were equally popular among classes

Include chess, Tables (backgammon), and Shovelboard (shuffleboard)

Dice Games

As most of the games previously mentioned have changed throughout the centuries, dice games have stayed relatively the same

Games like Dice and Craps have been the same for hundreds of years, with the only difference being the Elizabethan names of Knucklebones and Hazard respectively

Children’s Games

Children’s games, like dice games, have been the same for a long time

Games like Blind Man’s Bluff, Hopscotch, and Marbles have been around since the 1500s and are still played today