Bill Richmond

Bill Richmond was born into slavery on 5 August 1763 in Cuckold's Town, Staten Island, and as a teenager caught the attention of British General Earl Percy, commander of British forces in New York during the American War of Independence, after acquitting himself well in a brawl with Redcoat soldiers.

Percy brought Richmond to England in 1777, had him educated in York, and arranged an apprenticeship as a cabinet maker; Richmond developed his boxing skills informally in response to the racist abuse he endured, honing a reputation as a dangerous counter-puncher on the Yorkshire underground scene.

Richmond's ring career took off after age 40, when he defeated the Jewish boxer known as Fighting Youssop in 1805 and then Jack Holmes after 26 gruelling rounds, earning him a shot at England's leading pugilist, Tom Cribb, later that year; Richmond lost the bout but impressed observers with his footwork and defence against a much younger opponent.

Richmond became landlord of the Horse and Dolphin pub in Leicester Square and took on the American ex-slave Tom Molineaux as his protégé, training him for two historic, ferociously contested title fights against Cribb in 1810 and 1811 that drew national attention to Black boxers for the first time.

Richmond's sporting celebrity earned him the honour of serving as an usher at the coronation of King George IV in 1821, and he continued running his London boxing academy until his death in 1829; he was posthumously inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1999.