Philip Astley, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

    

Philip Astley

English equestrian, circus owner, and inventor, regarded as being the "father of the modern circus"

Date of Birth: 08-Jan-1742

Place of Birth: Newcastle-under-Lyme, England, United Kingdom

Date of Death: 27-Jan-1814

Profession: squire, circus performer

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn


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About Philip Astley

  • Philip Astley (8 January 1742 – 20 October 1814) was an English equestrian, circus owner, and inventor, regarded as being the "father of the modern circus".
  • Modern circus, as an integrated entertainment experience that includes music, domesticated animals, acrobats, and clowns, traces its heritage to Astley's Amphitheatre, a riding school that Astley founded in London following the success of trick-riding displays given by him and his wife Patty Jones in 1768.
  • Astley's first competitor was equestrian Charles Hughes, who had previously worked with Astley.
  • Together with Charles Dibdin, a famous author of pantomimes, Hughes opened a rival amphitheatre in London, which Dibdin called the Royal Circus and Equestrian Philharmonic Academy.It has until recently been thought that Astley invented the idea of the circus ring by being the first trick-rider to ride in a circle.
  • This is not so.
  • Some trick-riders at that time still rode in a straight line, as do rodeo riders in America even now.
  • Astley rode in a circle, but in doing so was following the practice of an older rider, 'Old Sampson', to whom he apprenticed himself after leaving the army.
  • As a war hero, already famous to the public and with a flair for self-publicity, he and Patty put on their first show on Easter Monday, 4 April 1768.
  • Extending the performance with exhibitions of warlike sabre-work and sword-play, they performed their initial stunts in the open air at Ha'penny (= Halfpenny) Hatch, a field in Lambeth, London, near the present site of Waterloo railway station.
  • These performances rapidly became popular.
  • The Astleys also performed at other spots around London, which had a number of 'pleasure gardens' at that time to cater for a population rapidly expanding as the Industrial Revolution developed.
  • The circular format was a successful one, though Astley never used the title of 'circus' for his shows.
  • Astley's 'Ride' (he also called it 'the Circle') was a ring 65 ft (19 metres) in diameter.
  • Later, the size evolved to become standardised at 42 feet (13 metres) which is the size used by circuses ever since.
  • Leasing more permanent premises at Westminster Bridge from 1769, he improved conditions for audiences with a covered 'penthouse' or stand and by roofing over the cheaper standing areas.
  • The 'Ride' was still in the open.
  • In 1770 he hired acrobats, tightrope walkers, jugglers and a clown to fill in the pauses between acts.
  • and so initiated the format which we know as 'circus' and which has since been spread across most of the globe.

Read more at Wikipedia

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