Description
Davis, Capt. F.J. ‘Boxing, Refereeing and Judging Under Imperial Services Boxing Association Rules’ Aldershot, William and May Co., 1935. 1st edition. 40 pages, plus 18 pages of illustrations and index. Very good condition with covers protected in plastic.
The 1935 first edition hardcover of A Handbook on Refereeing and Judging Boxing Under Imperial Services Boxing Association Rules by Captain F. J. Davis is a 40-page, highly specialized military officiating manual published in Aldershot, United Kingdom by WM. May & Co.. It stands out as an exceptionally rare artifact documenting the strict regulation, scoring, and technical oversight of boxing within the British Armed Forces during the interwar period.
Book Details:
• Author: Captain F. J. Davis (of the Queen’s Royal Regiment)
• Publisher: WM. May & Co., Aldershot, UK
• Publication Year: 1935 (True First Edition)
• Format: Small hardcover octavo (measuring 7.5″ by 5″), originally bound in the publisher’s pictorial cloth boards
• Length: 40 pages of core text, complemented by roughly 21 preliminary/appendices pages and 8 index pages
Content & Overview:
• Military Boxing Pedigree: The handbook draws directly from Captain Davis’s extensive firsthand experience commanding and organizing army boxing bouts. During this era, the military viewed boxing as a vital tool for cultivating raw physical fitness, discipline, and combative character in soldiers.
• The ISBA Regulatory Framework: The text serves as an official technical guide under the strict mandate of the Imperial Services Boxing Association (ISBA). The ISBA was originally instituted in 1919 to oversee joint competitive championships across the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force.
• Mechanics of Ring Officiating: Designed for officers and military officials tasked with scoring and maintaining order in the ring, the book details point-allocation metrics, proper ring positioning for referees, the enforcement of sportsmanship, and the management of fouls.
• Illustrations: Despite its slim page count, the manual is highly technical and illustrated with 29 photographs. These rare archival plates visually demonstrate specific boxing techniques, proper stances, and point-scoring connections to ensure uniform judging criteria across the Empire’s military branches.
• Collector’s Status: Given its practical military distribution, ephemeral nature, and small print run out of Aldershot (a major British army garrison town), very few copies have survived, making it an extraordinarily scarce find for antiquarian book collectors and military sports historians.
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