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John "Jack" Broughton, (c. 1703 – January 8
1789), was an England|English bare-knuckle
fighter. He was the first person to ever codify a
set of rules to be used in such contests; prior to
this what "rules" there were were very loosely
defined and tended to vary from contest to
contest. His London Prize Ring rules are widely
regarded as the foundation stone of the sport that
would become boxing, and were by far the most
widely used in pugilistic contests prior to the
development of the Marquess of Queensberry rules
in the 1860s.

Broughton was of obscure birth, he is varyingly
described as being born in either London or
Gloucestershire. He served his apprenticeship in
the Port of London, initially working as a
lightermen|lighterman but eventually, in light of
his physical prowess (Broughton was nearly 6 foot
tall, a rarity in those days, and very muscular),
working as a waterman rowing passengers on the
River Thames. In 1730 he won a major annual race
on the Thames against a number of other waterman
who had recently finished their apprenticeships.

Throughout the 1730s Broughton fought
semi-professionally and earned a sizable
reputation. Although records of fights fought in
this era are few there is no evidence that
Broughton ever lost a fight, and, following his
retirement, he certainly claimed to have been
undefeated. Broughton's fights often attracted
sizable audiences, so much so that on one occasion
a spectator was crushed to death. Another of his
fights served as the inspiration for Paul
Whitehead's poem The Gymnasiad.

Broughton used the money he earned from fighting,
along with help from a number of wealthy patrons,
to open his own amphitheatre in 1743. It was at
this time that he developed his code of rules,
which he hoped would allow fighters a certain
degree of protection (Broughton himself had once
killed an opponent in a fight).  Aside from
boxing, Broughton's amphitheatre also hosted such
other violent spectacles as bear-baiting and
fights using weapons. Following his retirement
from boxing in 1744, Broughton devoted much of his
time to running an academy for aspiring fighters.

In 1750 Broughton came out of retirement to settle
a dispute, the details of which are unknown.
Despite being far older than his opponent,
Broughton entered the contest as the clear
favourite. However, despite a strong start, the
fight did not go his way and he suffered an
embarrassing loss (destroying the perfect record
he claimed for himself). The amphitheatre
eventually closed in 1754, but Broughton continued
to teach young boxers until his death.

Aside from his career in boxing, Broughton also
served in the Yeomen of the Guard (the bodyguard
of the British monarch), as a member of which he
accompanied George II of Great Britain|George II
at the Battle of Dettingen, the last time a
British monarch fought in a battle.

Following his death in 1789, Broughton was
interred at Westminster Abbey. His headstone did
not bear an epitaph for nearly 200 years because
the Dean of the Abbey felt that the epitaph that
Broughton had requested was inappropriate. It was
not until 1988 that Broughton's request was
fulfilled and the words "Champion of England" were
engraved on the headstone.

Broughton was one of the original inductees of the
International Boxing Hall of Fame, inducted as a
pioneer of the sport.

==Reference==
*Roberts, James B. & Alexander G. Skutt (2002).
Boxing Register: International Boxing Hall of Fame
Official Record Book. London, McBooks Press. ISBN
1590130200.
*Hennell, Reginald (1904). The History of The
King's Body Guard of the Yeoman of the Guard