Gentlemen and Blackguards by Nicholas Foulkes
By the mid 19th Century, the Epsom Derby was regarded as the major sporting event of the British calendar. But it was also the focus for criminals and swindlers, as gambling fever gripped the nation.
When the 1844 Derby ended in chaos, with the two favourite horses doped and the result challenged, the subsequent court case threw a light into this murky world. And this forced changes throughout society as the hedonistic free-wheeling spirit of the time gave way to Victorian values and codes of respectable behaviour.
But the book not only concerns itself with the Derby, as historian Nicholas Foulkes also examines the way that gambling had affected all sections of society. Along the way there are murky tales of illegal gaming houses, prize fighting, murder, suicide and dueling.
Gentleman and Blackguards, with its cast of colourful characters, is a very readable account of a fascinating point in British history – the dawning of the Victorian age.
