How to Settle a Political Dispute - Try a Duel

Duelling with swords or pistols continued into the late 19th century as method of settling personal and political “injuries’ in the UK, USA, France and the Australian colonies. Duelling was governed by various codes and regulations about the "preservation of honour". The conflicts between political rivals Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton were ferocious. President Andrew Jackson was famous for several duels before he became President in 1829. While PM of the UK, the Duke of Wellington fought a duel with the Earl of Winchilsea.

DELIVERY MODE

• Face-to-Face

SUGGESTED READING

• Freeman, Joanne, Affairs of Honour, Yale Uni Press, 2001. ISBN 978-0300088779
• Nye, Robert, Masculinity and Codes of Honour in Modern France, OUP, 1993. ISBN 0195046498

COURSE OUTLINE

• The origins of duelling in mediaeval times
• Attempts by various monarchies and the Catholic Church to ban duelling and its persistence over centuries
• Famous duels in history and their consequences, including: Burr v. Hamilton (1804), playwright Ben Johnson v. actor Gabriel Spenser (1598), Duke of Wellington v. Earl of Winchilsea (1829)
• The demise of duelling in the late 19th century