This event has been cancelled and will be rescheduled at a later date.
Dr Mike Callan, Associate Professor, University of Hertfordshire
President, International Association of Judo Researchers
Judo, developed in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano from a synthesis of forms of unarmed martial arts, soon spread internationally. It made its way to the UK, and was popularised in the music halls, receiving a boost due to an interest in ‘Things Japanese’ following the Russo-Japanese war. This talk explores the introduction of judo to the UK around the early part of the twentieth century. Drawing on archival material from the Bowen Collection at the University of Bath, it focusses on the chronology of the characters and context that led to the adoption of the ‘gentle way’.
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Image: Mounted and framed black and white photograph showing members of the Budokwai at 15 Lower Grosvenor Place, London, UK, 1922. (BOWEN/B/65)The Budokwai is the UK’s oldest judo club. It was established by Gunji Koizumi (1885-1965) in 1918 and is still going today.