Capoeira: The History of an Afro-Brazilian Martial Art

126 BIMBA AND ‘REGIONAL’ STYLE
Finally Bimba has to be seen in the context of the emergence of modern sports and more particularly, the
systematization of combat arts, in which he ought to be compared with other outstanding inventors of
tradition. Many European sports were institutionalized during the second half of the nineteenth century.
This was the case for British boxing and the French savate, the most prominent among European combat
traditions. The Queensberry Rules (1867) established clear regulations, which distanced boxing competitions
from the older prize-fighting contests. Savate was codified in the 1870s by Joseph Charlemont, who also
contributed to the spread of the practice around the world. 2
These developments were not limited to Europe or the Western world. Most modern styles of oriental
martial arts from China, Korea and Japan also developed between 1850 and 1950. They consisted of a
systematization and reform of older techniques by one or several prominent masters. In Japan the warrior
caste of the samurai had excelled for centuries in the practice of martial arts with and without weapons.
Among tbe combat techniques emphasizing the use of bare hands the ju-jitsu (the art of softness or giving way)
was particularly widespread; hundreds of schools existed during the Togukawa period (1600–1868). When
the samurai lost their pre-eminence after the Meiji restoration (1868), their martial arts also underwent
substantial transformation. If the emphasis had been so far on the practical application of techniques (jutsu)
by samurai warriors, the modernized forms insisted more on their function as a path (do) towards the
spiritual achievement of the individual. Thus the bujutsu of the samurai evolved into the budo, the ensemble
of modern Japanese martial arts, among which are judo, aikido and karatedo. 3 Judo was created by by
Jigoro Kano (1860–1938), who merged techniques from different ju-jitsu schools and shifted the emphasis
from combat to physical education. He opened his first academy in Tokyo in 1882. Inspired by Western
rationalism, Dr Kano adopted uniforms for practice, standardized tbe ranking system and introduced the
now famous colour belt system. Modern karate was codified in Japan during the 1920s by Gichin
Funakoshi (1868–1957) and aikido during the 1930s by Morihei Ueshiba (1883–1969). All three martial
arts eliminated the most lethal techniques, established rules that sought to avoid injuries, and set up codes of
behaviour that intended to help students to attain spiritual goals through regular practice. Practice focused
on mortal combat did not disappear altogether, despite the formal outlawing of ju-jitsu by the emperor
Meiji. Some masters continued to practise ju-jitsu surreptitiously or subsumed their techniques into judo. 4
When Japan defeated Tsarist Russia in 1905, the West became seriously interested in Nippon fighting
techniques. This fostered the expansion of ju-jitsu and judo, and later of karate and aikido, throughout the
world. Japanese fighters started to tour the main cities of the Western world to exhibit their art. Prominent
among these was Mitsuyo Maeda (1880–1941), a student of Kano who engaged in over 1,000 challenge
matches and exhibitions, including a demonstration for US President Theodore Roosevelt, in 1904. The
introduction of Japanese fighting techniques in Brazil led to reactions among and responses from capoeiras,
amateurs of combat sports and the military. Two officers of the Brazilian Army published in 1905 a manual
of Japanese Physical Education, translated from an English book by H.I.Hancock. 5 A few years later the
Brazilian Navy even considered adopting ju-jitsu for the training of recruits. That provoked some debate
and ironical comments from the nationalist press, which of course favoured the use of capoeira instead of
imported fighting traditions. 6
Direct confrontation with ju-jitsu or judo techniques (the difference is not always clear in the sources)
were provided by Japanese champions who came to Brazil. They often issued challenges in tbe cities they
visited for anyone to come and fight with them in a free style contest. One famous fight took place in Rio, in
1909, where a Japanese champion, Sada Miako, was teaching ju-jitsu. Ciríaco da Silva, a black docker from
the interior town of Campos, took up the challenge. The match was carried out before a considerable
audience in a pavilion especially mounted for that occasion on the Avenida Central. There are two versions
of how Ciríaco, nicknamed Macaco, defeated the ju-jitsu champion. According to the most likely one, the