Richard Humphreys, the Celebrated Boxer Who Never Was Conquered

This colored mezzotint is based on Hoppner's portrait (MMA 53.113) of a celebrated eighteenth-century British pugilist Richard Humphreys, known as the "Gentleman Boxer." The print was issued shortly after a celebrated victory over Daniel Mendoza on January 9, 1788. Boxing historian Henry Miles records that Humphreys was "5 feet 8 inches, well-limbed, and had practised boxing to great advantage. He was apt and ready; his blows were effective; and his aims at the "mark," or wind, and under the ear, are talked of by contemporaries. Contrary to our modern notions [he] puzzled his antagonists by hitting with his right at leading off, and stopping with his left...His game was...justly esteemed a model of pugilistic excellence." For the January 9 match, held at Odiham, in Hampshire, Humphreys wore "fine flannel drawers, white silk stockings with gold-coloured clocks, pumps, and black shoe-ribbands," the costume shown in the print. When rain made the platform slippery, he removed his shoes and changed into worsted stockings. After a hard-fought 29 minutes, Mendoza fell, sprained a foot and conceded. It would take two more encounters (on May 6, 1788 and September 29, 1790) before Mendoza decisively gained the upper hand (see 66.683.9 for Gillray's 1788 portrait of Mendoza).