history of circus thesis statement

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History of Circus: From Ancient Roots to Controversial Sensation

Throughout history, the word “circus” has meant many things. Yet, from violent spectacles to ethical abuse, it was all in the name of entertainment.

Picture this: in a small town in 19th century America, a train stops at the station, whistling smoke with a rumbling steam engine. Out disembark a troupe of acrobats, knife throwers, lions, and elephants, all clad in colorful costumes. The circus has arrived! For a short time, the town will host the circus, and its performers will delight young and old before packing up and continuing on their way throughout the country. The town is left behind as if nothing had ever happened.

This scene was well-known throughout the 19th century, especially in the United States. From their origins in ancient Rome to our modern times, circuses have thrived. The history of this strange institution was born from violence, and the journey was long to get to the ethical performances we know today.

Before the History of the Circus: The Circus Maximus of Ancient Rome

In ancient Rome, the word “circus” had a very different meaning than it does today. The Circus Maximus was the “oldest and largest public space in Rome” and, when it reached its largest dimensions during the 1st century CE, could allow two hundred and fifty thousand people to sit in its stands. Though it was most well-known as a racetrack for horse-drawn chariot racing, it also held the military processions for the Roman Games every September for fifteen days , “wild animal hunts, public executions and gladiator fights.” One such fight involved a small army of gladiators fighting twenty elephants at the same time.

Thus, it isn’t difficult to see where the inspiration for the modern circus comes from. The Circus Maximus was a place where animals and humans were pitted against one another for the spectacle of it all and to entertain audiences during festivals. However, these are the only similarities between the circus of ancient Rome and the modern circus, as we will see.

Phillip Astley: The Father of the Modern Circus

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Philip Astley is the father of the modern circus. Born in 1742 in Newcastle-under Lyme , England, Astley was the son of a cabinetmaker who did not follow in his footsteps. At twenty-six years old, Astley founded the Astley’s Riding School in London with his wife, Patty, where they both taught students and offered horse show performances. Musicians performed live music during those shows. The show also traveled to Paris, where the Astleys incorporated other acts “such as acrobats, a clown, and a band.”

What made these horse shows endure? It was their ability to entertain everyone, not only adults and children but also people from all social classes. Philip Astley’s show welcomed people from high society as well as lower-class people. These horse shows were the precursor to the modern circus and foretold what would make the modern circus so popular. It was entertainment for the masses at a time of great social divides.

The Royal Amphitheatre, lit with flaming candles at the time, burned down three times when Astley ran the shows. It was eventually bought by Andrew Ducrow, known as the “father of British circus equestrianism’.”

Charles Dibdin: The Man who Coined the Term “Circus”

While Philip Astley is the father of the modern circus, he wasn’t the one who coined the term. That honor goes to his contemporary, Charles Dibdin . Born in 1745 in Southampton, England, Charles Dibdin was dipped into the world of music at a young age. Dibdin sang in a choir at Winchester Cathedral for three years until 1759 and eventually became a music composer. He became a “composer, musician, dramatist, novelist and actor.”

From 1782 and for the next two years, Charles Dibdin became the manager of the Royal Circus. This was the first modern use of the word “circus.” Located not far from Philip Astley’s Riding School, Charles Dibdin’s show also used horses, like the ones in Philip Astley’s Royal Amphitheatre. One was modeled after the other, but only one man can be called the one who coined the word “circus.”

The 19 th Century: How a Changing Culture Allowed the Circus to Thrive

During the 18th century , all performances that would eventually be associated with the circus, from traveling menageries to horse shows to acrobat acts, already existed. Menageries traveled across the country, and horse shows and acrobat acts delighted audiences in arenas. But it was only when these performances were brought together under the same roof that the modern circus was born.

The 19th century was a time of social upheaval, not only in performances but also in technology. Indeed, the Industrial Revolution was the last ingredient needed to create the traveling circus in its most popular form. The invention of the steam engine, which powered modern trains, changed everything. Technological advancements facilitated communication and transportation. The Industrial Revolution allowed the circus to hop from one city to another. Employees packed up the Big Tent and all the performers in boxes and crates, only to start all over again in the next town.

People, from owners to performers, may have created those spectacles. But without the technological advancements of the nineteenth century, the 19th-century circus as we know it would have never been as popular as it was during its heyday.

Barnum & Bailey: The Most Famous Circus in History

The most famous circus in all of 19th-century America was the Barnum and Bailey show. While one of its founders, Phineas Taylor Barnum, born in 1810, is the more well-known of the two, the circus could never have seen the light of day without his business partner, James Anthony Bailey, born in 1847.

Even before Bailey’s birth, Barnum was already a figure in the entertainment industry when he bought his American Museum. The “Greatest Show on Earth” as we know it wouldn’t find its footing until 1871 when all the ingredients that had made classic circus acts with freak shows and animal menageries were brought into one. Bailey, who grew up on circuses as a child, became part of the operations when he merged the circus he co-owned with James E. Cooper, the Cooper, Bailey & Company Circus, with that of Barnum’s in 1881. Thus, the Barnum and Bailey Circus was born.

Long after Barnum died in 1891 and Bailey died in 1906, the Greatest Show on Earth thrived for the following decades. The Ringling Brothers bought it for the hefty sum of four hundred thousand dollars after Baily’s death, and it remained one of the most prominent circuses of its time, even well into the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

Freak Shows & A History of Ethics

Freak shows were a large part of circus life during the 19th century. Brought on the scene even before the circus, especially in P.T. Barnum’s American Museum, they followed him across the country with his traveling Barnum and Bailey Circus. Freak shows were a way to entertain by mocking physical differences and exploiting and harassing performers within an environment of cheer and merry. Well-known “freaks” were, among others, conjoined twins, people with disabilities, and bearded women.

The freak shows in P.T. Barnum’s circus went in tandem with the animal tricks, the acrobats, and the horse show performers. They were part of a long Western tradition of exploiting exhibitions, such as the human zoos in Universal Expositions. Still, some of these “freak” performers earned fame and fortune through these exhibits. An example would be Charles Stratton, also known as “General Tom Thumb,” who was a performer with dwarfism part of P.T. Barnum’s circus.

Freak shows would remain popular in America until the 1940s, when the exploitative nature of these exhibitions came to light. They were then completely outlawed.

The 20 th Century: Continuity & Decline

As the 19th century came to a close, the circus remained popular well into the new century. Though new forms of entertainment popped up during the 1920s, especially cinemas, circuses only had to reinvent themselves, abandoning their misinformed representations of foreign cultures in favor of aerial shows and other performances. The Great Depression brought the frenzy of the 1920s to a halt. At the time, many turned to circuses to find joy and happiness in their daily lives. Still, during the Second World War, circuses remained a comforting presence in people’s lives “when railroad shows traveled under the auspices of the Office of the Defense Transportation,” and circus owners advised their audiences to join in the war efforts.

But as the 1950s rolled around, the circus saw its decline. Televisions became the norm in American households and soon dethroned the circus as the most popular form of entertainment. Soon, only thirteen circuses remained, and as audiences shrank and performers unionized, showmen shrank their operations in sizes too, until the last few days of the Big Tents, when indoor venues replaced them in 1956.

The Death of the Traditional Circus (& Birth of the 21st-Century Circus)

As the Cold War split the world, the Civil Rights movement gained traction in America. Racist performances became increasingly criticized. The circus was seen for what it was: entertainment that exploited the suffering of others at a time when it was normalized. By the time animal rights activism was born in the 1970s, the modern circus had lost most of its appeal. By the early 1980s, ableist freak shows and sideshows were dismantled as well.

But as the modern circus saw its steadfast decline during the second half of the 20th century, it would eventually do what it did best: adapt.

In Baie-Saint-Paul, Québec during the 1980s, a group of performers delighted their audiences “by juggling, dancing, breathing fire and playing music.” Among those performers was a man named Guy Laliberté. As a child, Laliberté was taken to see the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (See Further Reading, Ian Halperin, p. 15) and grew avid of circus history as he dove into a biography on P.T. Barnum himself. In 1982, Laliberté participated with other performers in the holiday fair known as the Baie-Saint-Paul Fête Foraine, and this would be the start of his dream: to create the Cirque du Soleil, a circus on Québec soil.

Today, Cirque du Soleil has become one of the most well-known Québec companies worldwide and has delighted more than fifteen million spectacles to this day. Under Big Tents that can allow hundreds of people inside at a time, acrobats and performers wear elaborate costumes and delight audiences with their lavish shows. Cirque du Soleil travels all over the world and has a permanent residency in Las Vegas.

While the Cirque du Soleil can’t be called a circus in the traditional sense, as it has shed the trappings of 19th-century circuses, from animal shows to freak shows and sideshows, it has retained the primary goal of the modern circus: to entertain audiences of all social classes and all ages, young and old alike.

A Look Back at the History of the Circus

The circus had a long journey from the Circus Maximus in Ancient Rome to the Cirque du Soleil today. While the modern circus has shed the ethical issues dragging it down since the 19th century, it is still a place of entertainment, awe, and joy. Many men have paved the way for the circus, from Philip Astley to Charles Dibdin to P. T. Barnum and Guy Laliberté. Elephants, horses, and lions may no longer entertain in circuses, but those who remain are the performers who have found joy in their life’s work and have brought it to the public, far and wide.

Further Reading:

Halpering, Ian. Guy Laliberté: the fabulous life of the creator of Cirque du Soleil: a biography. Internet Archive, Montreal: Transit, 2009. Accessible online: https://archive.org/details/guylalibertefabu0000halp/page/14/mode/2up?q=barnum

Chariot Racing In The Roman Empire: Speed, Fame, and Politics

By Marianne Plasse BA in History, Undergraduate Certificate in Art History Marianne completed her bachelor's degree in History as well as an undergraduate certificate in Art History at the University of Montreal along with an undergraduate certificate in Proofreading at Laval University. Her areas of interest are the Mediterranean world during ancient times, European History from the fifteenth through to the twentieth centuries, and North American History from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries. I have a soft spot for Greek mythology, Impressionist painting, Charlie Chaplin comedies, and comic book movies.

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Thesis Statements

What is a thesis statement.

Your thesis statement is one of the most important parts of your paper.  It expresses your main argument succinctly and explains why your argument is historically significant.  Think of your thesis as a promise you make to your reader about what your paper will argue.  Then, spend the rest of your paper–each body paragraph–fulfilling that promise.

Your thesis should be between one and three sentences long and is placed at the end of your introduction.  Just because the thesis comes towards the beginning of your paper does not mean you can write it first and then forget about it.  View your thesis as a work in progress while you write your paper.  Once you are satisfied with the overall argument your paper makes, go back to your thesis and see if it captures what you have argued.  If it does not, then revise it.  Crafting a good thesis is one of the most challenging parts of the writing process, so do not expect to perfect it on the first few tries.  Successful writers revise their thesis statements again and again.

A successful thesis statement:

• makes an historical argument
• takes a position that requires defending
• is historically specific
• is focused and precise
• answers the question, “so what?”

How to write a thesis statement:

Suppose you are taking an early American history class and your professor has distributed the following essay prompt:

“Historians have debated the American Revolution’s effect on women.  Some argue that the Revolution had a positive effect because it increased women’s authority in the family.  Others argue that it had a negative effect because it excluded women from politics.  Still others argue that the Revolution changed very little for women, as they remained ensconced in the home.  Write a paper in which you pose your own answer to the question of whether the American Revolution had a positive, negative, or limited effect on women.”

Using this prompt, we will look at both weak and strong thesis statements to see how successful thesis statements work.

While this thesis does take a position, it is problematic because it simply restates the prompt.  It needs to be more specific about how  the Revolution had a limited effect on women and  why it mattered that women remained in the home.

Revised Thesis:  The Revolution wrought little political change in the lives of women because they did not gain the right to vote or run for office.  Instead, women remained firmly in the home, just as they had before the war, making their day-to-day lives look much the same.

This revision is an improvement over the first attempt because it states what standards the writer is using to measure change (the right to vote and run for office) and it shows why women remaining in the home serves as evidence of limited change (because their day-to-day lives looked the same before and after the war).  However, it still relies too heavily on the information given in the prompt, simply saying that women remained in the home.  It needs to make an argument about some element of the war’s limited effect on women.  This thesis requires further revision.

Strong Thesis: While the Revolution presented women unprecedented opportunities to participate in protest movements and manage their family’s farms and businesses, it ultimately did not offer lasting political change, excluding women from the right to vote and serve in office.

Few would argue with the idea that war brings upheaval.  Your thesis needs to be debatable:  it needs to make a claim against which someone could argue.  Your job throughout the paper is to provide evidence in support of your own case.  Here is a revised version:

Strong Thesis: The Revolution caused particular upheaval in the lives of women.  With men away at war, women took on full responsibility for running households, farms, and businesses.  As a result of their increased involvement during the war, many women were reluctant to give up their new-found responsibilities after the fighting ended.

Sexism is a vague word that can mean different things in different times and places.  In order to answer the question and make a compelling argument, this thesis needs to explain exactly what  attitudes toward women were in early America, and  how those attitudes negatively affected women in the Revolutionary period.

Strong Thesis: The Revolution had a negative impact on women because of the belief that women lacked the rational faculties of men. In a nation that was to be guided by reasonable republican citizens, women were imagined to have no place in politics and were thus firmly relegated to the home.

This thesis addresses too large of a topic for an undergraduate paper.  The terms “social,” “political,” and “economic” are too broad and vague for the writer to analyze them thoroughly in a limited number of pages.  The thesis might focus on one of those concepts, or it might narrow the emphasis to some specific features of social, political, and economic change.

Strong Thesis: The Revolution paved the way for important political changes for women.  As “Republican Mothers,” women contributed to the polity by raising future citizens and nurturing virtuous husbands.  Consequently, women played a far more important role in the new nation’s politics than they had under British rule.

This thesis is off to a strong start, but it needs to go one step further by telling the reader why changes in these three areas mattered.  How did the lives of women improve because of developments in education, law, and economics?  What were women able to do with these advantages?  Obviously the rest of the paper will answer these questions, but the thesis statement needs to give some indication of why these particular changes mattered.

Strong Thesis: The Revolution had a positive impact on women because it ushered in improvements in female education, legal standing, and economic opportunity.  Progress in these three areas gave women the tools they needed to carve out lives beyond the home, laying the foundation for the cohesive feminist movement that would emerge in the mid-nineteenth century.

Thesis Checklist

When revising your thesis, check it against the following guidelines:

• Does my thesis make an historical argument?
• Does my thesis take a position that requires defending?
• Is my thesis historically specific?
• Is my thesis focused and precise?
• Does my thesis answer the question, “so what?”

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• International Circus Hall of Fame - History of the Circus
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• circus - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
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circus , an entertainment or spectacle usually consisting of trained animal acts and exhibitions of human skill and daring. The word has the same root as circle and circumference , recalling the distinctive environment in which such entertainment is presented—the ring, a circular performance area usually bounded by a short fence (or “curb”). The ring may be enclosed in an arena, in a building designed for circus performances, or in a tent, and it is generally surrounded by tiers of seats for spectators.

Variations to this definition exist, however, and any attempt at a strict, all-inclusive definition reduces the term’s application to a particular nationality, generation, or proprietorship. Some circuses do not use trained animals, for example, such as the circuses of China and Africa, which feature acrobatic acts similar to those elsewhere, albeit with traditions rooted in religion and folklore. At various times circuses have offered supplementary attractions such as street parades, menageries , sideshows, pantomimes, and theatrical presentations. A number of circuses, especially in Europe, have been stationary, occupying permanent, often elegant buildings in larger cities. Others have traveled extensively—originally by horse and wagon and then by railroad, boat, motor vehicle, or even airplane—and exhibited in tents, theatres, and, beginning in the 1960s, huge enclosed sports arenas. Many circus companies, particularly in the United States , exhibit simultaneously in three or more rings, with the building or tent taking on a rectangular or elliptical shape; others retain the one-ring format. Some organizations, such as the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus , could point to a history extending back a century or more; other circuses, such as those sponsored by fraternal organizations (e.g., the Shriners), existed for less than a single season or for only one engagement. Through all the above, however, there runs a common thread: the ring, by which spectators readily recognize the entertainment known as “circus.”

Early history

The circus is of comparatively recent origin, yet certain elements can be traced back to ancient Rome . The great Roman amphitheatres —called circuses after the Latin word for “circle”—were most often devoted to gladiatorial combats, chariot races, the slaughter of animals, mock battles, and other blood sports. The most spectacular of these arenas, the Circus Maximus , was in operation for more than 1,000 years. It would seem on the surface that these exhibitions of carnage had little in common with modern circuses, yet it is from the early Roman circuses that traditions such as trained animals and the preshow parade derive.

Elsewhere, ancient peoples performed other acts associated with the modern circus. Acrobatics, balancing acts, and juggling are probably as old as humankind itself, with records of such acts being performed in Egypt as early as 2500 bce . The Greeks practiced ropedancing; early African civilizations engaged in siricasi (a combination of folkloric dances and acrobatics); and the ancient Chinese juggled and performed acrobatic acts for members of the imperial court. Clowns have existed in nearly every period and civilization, both as characters in farces and as individual performers.

For centuries, however, there were no attempts to organize such acts into a distinct entertainment; rather, individuals and small troupes of performers with specialized talents wandered through Europe, Africa, and Asia. Such roving entertainers appeared wherever groups of people gathered: in nobles’ halls, at community celebrations, and at marketplaces. In the 9th century King Alfred the Great of England was said to have been entertained by a wild beast show, and in the 11th century William the Conqueror brought performing troupes of ropedancers, tumblers, and contortionists to England from France.

Fairs played an important role in developing trade throughout Europe from the 7th century until the late medieval period, at which point more-regular channels of marketing were standardized. Fairs then became a place less for trading than for entertainment, providing a showcase for acrobatics , feats of skill, trained animals, and other elements later associated with the circus. By the late 18th century, however, they were regarded as unsavory affairs, as they had become gathering places for pickpockets, thieves, and vagrants.

An interdisciplinary debate on project perspectives

• Research article
• Open access
• Published: 19 April 2022

Circus is a performance but it is also a building—memory of circus buildings in Europe

• Marija Divac   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-6867-3557 1 ,
• Milena Krklješ 2 &
• Sara Milošević 1  

City, Territory and Architecture volume  9 , Article number:  9 ( 2022 ) Cite this article

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Circus spectacle, its architectural concept and its content, has changed throughout the centuries, following social events and cultural frameworks of time periods. In this research paper, we investigate the history of circus in Europe which occurred in between the eighteenth century and today’s twenty-first century. The evolution of circus gradually took place and could be followed through the modifications in forms of the buildings in different cities of the continent. Firstly, we research their stationary architecture which establishment is just over in this period. Even though the performance is still changing and modifying, it is questionable if the stationary circuses achieved in adjusting and transform for the purposes of modern society or, on the other hand, they are reorganized in their function and are becoming something completely different.

Introduction

The circus has been undeservedly accepted throughout history as a “lower” art, as a performance for the broad masses of all profiles (Yu 2010 ). That is, the circus has often been said and is still considered to be a worthless way of entertainment that does not require special knowledge, education and culture from the observer.

On the contrary, it represents a complex set of everything that is considered to be art. The circus represents an original synthesis of many kinds of art: architecture, theater, music, dance, literature, painting, applied arts and all this is accompanied by a circus challenge, as an expression of the surprising possibilities of the human body and spirit (Dedushka 2016 ).

When using the term circus, one first thinks of its performing form, which we could describe as a stage form of an art spectacle. There are various writings about the spectacle itself and its performances. Much less consideration is given to the interpretation of the term circus as a space, namely, as a place for a performance. Circus space can be described by a concrete physical space, i.e. it can be a stationary facility built of solid material, which will be mostly discussed in this paper. On the other hand, circus space can be of a transitional shape, a prefabricated building, better known as a circus tent. The third form of circus space is of the outdoor, least specified type, and today these performances are popularly called street performances (although most of them are actually circus performances). This space shape can be existing as an urban tissue, respectively, squares or streets.

If we want to understand the architecture through history we would come to those artifacts which are saved and which resisted the ravages of time—architectural creations made of solid material. Worldwide, nomadic people, like Mongols, Indians, Bedouins, created their mobile space structures (yurts, wigwams). Today, tent constructions are covered with tarpaulin and are used for the purpose of temporary camping in the nature, for having grand manifestation in the open but also for performing circus acrobatics.

The complexity of research of circus facilities include the circus tents, too, but this paper will focus on stationary facilities because the mobile architecture of tents demands different approach, other methods of researches and different comparisons which would exceed the frames of one paper only.

A circus building should have a circular stage for the performing of acrobats, surrounded by grandstands for the audience situated circularly, bordering the scene from all sides. This is the main difference comparing to other cultural buildings where the stage space is mostly rectangular and placed at one end, not in the central place of the hall. For staging circus disciplines, the space should have width and height. Accordingly, the specific objects have been built for this kind of artistic spectacle in Europe throughout the history.

Research methodology

The complexity of researching circus buildings throughout history requires the application of different research methods. The development of the circus, both performance and its building architecture, was influenced by historical and political changes. To study these influences, which were present within the construction of circus facilities, the method of researching historical material was applied. The chronological monitoring of these events observes the topicality of the circus spectacle in different periods and the changes that had an impact on the current state of the circus.

A chronological and comprehensive view of the development of the circus, from its inception to the present day, has been presented through periods that have been mostly researched separately by certain authors.

Dominique Jando dealt with the history of circuses the most. In his book he described the most famous circuses in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries, with a greater emphasis on the western part of Europe. He is also the founder of the Circopedia website—The Free Encyclopedia of the International Circus, which contains parts from this book, but is constantly updated with new information from the history of circus art, performance, but also architecture.

The history of circuses in the eastern part of Europe has been largely researched by Russian authors. As the expansion of this art here took place with the emergence of the Soviet Union, so many books on this topic have been written since then. A small number of books for this paper were taken from the Russian Center of Science and Culture in Belgrade, but they can probably be found in certain libraries in the countries that were part of the USSR (primarily in Russia). In this research, the book "Soviet Circus on Five Continents" ("Sovetsky cirk na piati kontinentah") by Bardian Feodosiy Georgievich was used the most. In Russia, there are also sites that follow the history, but also contemporary events on the circus scene, and one of them is "In the world of circus and stage" ("V mire cirka i estrady", http://www.ruscircus.ru/history/history ).

In recent history, in the twenty-first century, despite the declining popularity of the circus spectacle, doctoral dissertations are still being written that follow the circus, mainly from the aspect of its performance. In the doctoral dissertation "Why circus works: how the values and structures of the circus make it a significant developmental experience for young people" by Bolton Reginald, a detailed description of the performance and role of the modern circus can be found. In their scientific researches, Mariana Sorvina and Olga Pataeva observed a traditional circus in Russia and, in fact, they were engaged in describing the performance that is still shown in the eastern part of Europe.

Throughout the relevant literature, most information about circus performance could be found in previous researches, and architecture is mostly an accompanying segment to which not enough attention is paid. The main problem is the connection of the eastern and western part of Europe into one whole e.g. interactiv relation betveen traditional and modern, because the circus performance and, therefore, its architecture, differ to a certain extent.

By chronological monitoring of literature and previously described events, the topicality and changes of the circus performance and the circus building in different time periods are observed. This method results in the establishment of a new set of criteria used for comparative analysis, expressed through a tabular presentation.

The research methodology was based on the following steps:

Territorial distribution —determining the territorial distribution of manifestations on the map of Europe;

Performance manifestation —it is given through a historical presentation of the social environment in which the circus spectacle takes place with the analyses of the performance, depending on the manifestation in given period;

Stationary buildings —description and analysis of characteristic structures;

Comparison —comparison of characteristic attributes, given in tabular form.

In this paper we will analyze in details the criteria and the sub-criteria which are separated as the most important for observing the changes arose on circus buildings and performances.

Territorial distribution

As the space frame of the research in this paper is European continent, we must take in consideration the widespread of stationary circus buildings on its territory. On the Fig.  1 we can see the maps of Europe during four different centuries and the existence of these buildings in that time frame.

Source: Maps with circus facilities through centuries—the work of authors

Territorial distribution of the circus facilities through centuries.

In the eighteenth century, there were only two cities on the whole continent where the buildings for the circus purpose were formed. These, at the beginning, only enclosed parts of plots which became buildings later, existed only in London and Paris.

This spectacle was just appearing and there is no information in the literature if the government in power had any influence on it. No matter that the circus grew from military circles, the assumption is that the circus itself still had not attracted special attention. The first spaces and buildings for circus performance were private property.

In the following nineteenth century, stationary circuses continued to be built. During that period, the buildings slowly started to be built across the whole continent (Sitte 1889 ). Their number was becoming bigger and bigger, specially spreading towards the Imperial Russia.

This was the century when in some countries in Europe some regimes, the structures of power, started to partially influence the work of circus. In the western part of Europe, especially in France, some rulers participated by financial supporting for creating circus facilities. The example of such building, for instance, was the Cirque Olympique in Paris, which was destroyed in fire in 1826 but it was rebuilt the following year due to the money for reconstruction given by King Charles X (Jando 1977 ). The relation between circus and political regimes in France is shown through the fact that, because of the restoration of French Empire in the fifties of the nineteenth century, the name of one of the circuses was changed in honor the ruler of that time, Napoleon III Bonaparte — Cirque Napoléon (Jando 1977 ).

In the Imperial Russia, the first wooden circus facilities were shown during the unstable regime of Nicholas I ( Nikoláy I Pávlovich ) (Markschiess-Van and Nowak 1976 ). In Petersburg, during the construction of the imperial lodge, the circus received the brilliant ring from the car himself (Circus History 2019 ).

The map of Europe with the display of stationary circuses in the twentieth century changed drastically. In the countries of origin (England, France, Germany…) the number of stationary buildings decreased, especially after the Second World War, when the focus was on total rebuilding and not that much on the reconstruction of the circus architecture.

By the arrival of the communists to the throne in the eastern part of Europe, circus facilities were built en masse. They had an influence on all spheres of art and culture. During the Second World War, regardless of all demolishing and suffer, circus buildings remained (Kolomiyts 2017 ). At the end of war, USSR started to donate significant financial resources for creating financial base for the survival and development of circus, especially in architecture (Bardian 1977 ). The spacious areas for building circuses were marked off but they did not interfere with the plan of the cities, moreover they matched and, at the same time, they stood out.

In the twenty-first century, new buildings have not been built, only the circuses from previous century remained. In the western part of Europe there were only three popular stationary circuses: in France, Germany and Spain. On the other part of the continent, the circus buildings remained in bigger number and they continued to work. There are stationary circuses in Hungary, Romania, Ukraine, Belarus and Latvia and in Russia where is the biggest number of them (over thirty).

The buildings remained on the same places in the cities but the cities themselves continued to expand. The disposition of circus stationary buildings is in the city centers now.

Nowadays, there is not a developed policy of development of circus on the territory of Germany. Circus communities are left behind to the private management which distances them from the state system of financing and, in that way, it leads the circus art into the struggle for survival (Schneider 2016 ). The long-standing, as well as, current lack of state involvement has negative manifestation, firstly on art and performance of circus shows and, at the same time, on circus architecture which barely exists in this country.

The French government had no interest in circus spectacle in the previous century—the circus`s public—sphere issues were being primarily handled by the Ministry of Agriculture due to their use of animals. Nevertheless, the establishment of national circus school in 1974 changed the situation. Since 2000`s the state support has drastically increased in this country and the political model has spread over the territory of European Union and the circus is currently in the process of becoming acknowledged as a legally—recognized art form, a status that the other art forms have enjoyed for years and years some for centuries. The circus has to become equal to other branches of art. Unfortunately, the story about the circus stationary architecture has remained without any changes but brighter future can be expected. (Guy 2021 ).

In the eastern part of Europe, there has been, and still is, a satisfying situation. Today`s government of Russia supports the circus art as well as the other forms of art such as opera and ballet but restricts financial means and gives opportunities for several annual reconstructions of circus facilities. There are a lot of these gigantic buildings in the country but, as the time passes, it is obvious that their maintaining is more complex and demanding and there is a need for big financial support (Rosgoscirk 2019 ).

Circus architecture began on the far west of Europe and gradually spread towards the eastern part of the continent; during time, it stayed based in the east while in the western part it began to disappear. Looking at these four maps we can notice the distribution of circus facilities in different time periods.

These changes in the history of circus spectacle and, at the same time in architecture can be treated as a turbulent curve, too. The changes of the developing types of circus facilities between eastern and western parts of Europe could be followed on the Fig.  2 . These two attachments show the different treating towards the importance of circus spectacle and its architecture in these parts of Europe through the centuries. The turnover happened in the twentieth century after which it could be noticed that in the eastern part of Europe there were still circus buildings in great number while in the western part that number was decreasing.

Source: Curves with circus facilities through centuries—the work of authors

Development of Circus Buildings in Western and Eastern Part of Europe through Centuries.

On the Fig.  3 , it could be noticed, through centuries, the influence of ruling systems on circus. That influence is mostly based on their financial support for maintaining of the circus architecture. When these two Curves are compared, it is noticeable that in the eastern part of Europe the state authorities influenced on the existence of circus stationary buildings e.g. their directing of economy created the rules of developing of circus architecture. The situation in the western part of Europe is different—there is the influence of the authorities in certain countries but not as much as in the east. Hitler used the circus spectacle as mean of propaganda but he did not do much for creating stationary circus architecture. According to Debord: “The language of the spectacle consists of the signs of the organization in power …” (Debord 2003 ) and, without no doubt, the circus was used for political purposes in whole Europe but not everywhere did the state authority influenced on beginning and development of circus architecture.

Source: Political influence and financial support for circus facilities—the work of authors

Political influence and financial support for circus facilities.

At first, kings and tsars in the nineteenth century tried, through financial support to circus facilities, to enable more frequent circus performances which turn public attention from state`s problems but, in fact, there were little success in realization of these ideas.

In the twentieth century the influences of this kind was significantly bigger, especially in the countries where the state authority was in extreme boom, not only on the level of one country but in the whole Europe. Circus performances manifested, to large degree, the ideas of ruling structures in the period of the Second World War.

In the twenty-first century, the political situation in Europe is much calmer. There is no need for expanding and propaganda of new ideas through this spectacle by the ruling structures. State financial help in the western part of Europe is still insufficient but it exists. It is directed to preserving the spectacle but not to creating stationary architecture. In the eastern part of Europe there is a great number of circus facilities from the previous century but in Russia it is possible to reconstruct only few circuses annually. In other, previously socialistic countries, it is also less favorable situation for circus architecture but with minimum investing, it survives (Fig.  4 ).

Source: Political influence through circus performance as a propaganda mean—the work of authors

Political influence through circus performance as a propaganda mean.

Stationary circus buildings

In this part of the paper we research the architectural elements of stationary circus buildings from the eighteenth to twenty-first century. For each century, there are two tables with the description of criteria and sub-criteria in most circuses from that period. First table represents the performance space and its sub-criteria shows perhaps the most important parts of circus building and these are stage area and audience capacity. The stage area implies the shape and the size of the stage. The audience capacity is directly connected to the size of the building (Giedion 1954 ). It is important to notice what the capacities through centuries were—the stage was adjusted and enabled more spectacular circus performances and it influenced the increase or decrease of the number of audience. In the second table, the focus is on the basic elements of circus building appearance which are defined by sub-criteria: the base shape, material and roof construction. The type of constructing and forming of architectural style which was dominant in certain period for circus buildings could be recognized.

Forming the first spaces for performing circus acrobatics was connected to the end of the eighteenth century. Then there were only enclosed open spaces but, during certain time, they overcame into covered wooden buildings for the spectacle.

From his acrobatics, Philip Astley made money to buy a piece of land in 1769 in London, Halfpenny Patch , that he first used to show this spectacle. At first, the space was only fenced with rope (Table 5 ).

After a year, Astley’s small troop managed to buy the adjacent plot where the first riding area was built (in sources it is most commonly called Ashley’s Amphitheater ). It was surrounded by grandstands and the stage space itself was not protected from the weather. The entrance was a wooden two-story building with drawings of acrobatic scenes on horses. There were lodges in the building for a privileged audience. Two wings were soon added, where there were stables for horses on the ground floor and additional lodges for visitors on the first floor. The stage space was almost thirteen meters in diameter and covered with sawdust. From 1772 the building also served to organize riding classes of the first Riding School in the morning while the time for performances was from 5 p. m.

As the first competition to Astley, one of his acrobats, Charles Hughes , opened his Riding school nearby ( Hughes’ Riding School ). In 1779 Astley’s building was turned into, as it was then called, Astley’s Amphitheater Riding House . The wooden building got a dome under which performances could take place regardless the weather. After it had been burned down in fire, it was rebuilt in 1795 and given the name Royal Amphitheater .

Astley’s success opened up opportunities for him in France as well. In 1783 he and his son John opened the Amphitheatre Anglais des Sieurs Astley , pere et fils as the first Parisian circus. It was a wooden building lit by candelabra so that performances could take place in the later hours as well. Later John Astley began to run this Amphitheater on his own, but he was stopped by the war between England and France. During the war, in the Paris Amphitheater, performances were shown by the troop of Antonio Franconi which the Astleys had previously included in their business. The Astleys managed to run both circuses, in England and France, and also organized tours throughout England (Table 6 ).

In the meantime, Charles Hughes , together with Charles Dibdin , founded an institution in 1782 called the Equestrian and Philharmonic Academy ( Hughes ’ Royal Circus ). He is best known for being the first to replace Astley’s term amphitheater with the word circus (Jando 1977 ).

Most of these circus troops toured Russia and other European countries. But the appearance of the circus in Russia is associated with the time of Tsar Peter the Great , when foreign, mostly smaller Italian troops visited Russia (Grigoreva 2019 ). However, in this century there was no circus facility in Russia until the thirties of the next century (Fig.  8 ).

Source: 1 Royal Amphitheatre (London)— http://www.circopedia.org/File:Astley%27s_Bandwagon.jpg . 2 Astley’s Amphitheatre (London)— http://www.circopedia.org/File:Astley%27s_Riding_School.jpg

Stationary circus buildings in the eighteenth century.

The nineteenth century is associated with the emergence of a large number of circus troops in different parts of Europe and at the same time, with the emergence of an increasing number of buildings made of wood and later of stone. Some actors stood out; they made their own circus troops and were credited with the emergence of circus architecture.

The emergence of stationary facilities in this area speaks of the great interest of the audience in the circus spectacle. The number of spectators increased as evidenced by the seats for the audience in the facilities—between one thousand two hundred and six thousand seats. However, traveling troops existed in many other countries (they were the most popular in Italy and the Czech Republic).

The Astleys continued to work on founding several more circuses but two consecutive fires in the building led them to build a circus facility of solid material, mostly stone, in Paris in 1803. It was called the Royal Amphitheater of Arts. It was a building for three thousand visitors and reminded of the theaters of that time.

After this Astley’s facility, other buildings of solid material for the same purpose sprang up: the Cirque Olympique , its summer branch on the Cirque des Champs — Elysees which was later renamed the Cirque National , the Cirque d’Hiver , later renamed the Cirque Napoleon , the Nouveau Cirque , the Cirque Fernando , the Cirque Medrano (Jando 1977 ) and others. The names of the circuses changed with the change of owners but they were extremely famous and popular, each in its own time. In France, there were circuses, not only in Paris. Facilities were built and demolished throughout the century (Table 7 ).

After England and France, circus spectacles became popular in Europe due to German and Austrian artists. The first few circuses were made of wood. Christoph de Bach is known for opening the second stationary circus made of solid material in Europe, in 1808. It was located in Vienna and was called the Gymnastischer Zirkel . The building had a glass dome which was suitable for performances throughout the day and was intended for three thousand spectators.

In the middle of this century, the troop of the National Circus from Paris stayed in Berlin and due to its successful performance in the German capital, the first stationary circus was built there. After few years, Ernst Renz became the owner—a circus performer, who was very popular in showing different genres. During his lifetime he owned several circuses: in Wroclaw, Hamburg and Vienna and founded the first circus in Copenhagen (Table 8 ).

After Ernst , Paul Busch enjoyed great popularity. He built the first facility in 1884, for five thousand spectators. Later he became famous for several great stationary circuses in Hamburg, Vienna and Berlin (Jando 1977 ).

Influences from the west of Europe were most present in the countries that were part of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, i.e. today’s Slovenia and Croatia. For example, the first circus performers appeared in Ljubljana at the end of the eighteenth century (Kodrič and Mikec 1999 ) and the first troop visited Belgrade only in the middle of the nineteenth century (Djurić 1999 ). No existence of circus facilities made of solid material has been recorded on the Balkan Peninsula; all circus troops were foreign and plots were provided for their visits. In the beginning, prefabricated structures made of wood were set up. The tarpaulin constructions appeared only when troops began to change audiences more often than programs of performances.

In Russia, the first circus building appeared thanks to the troop of Astley’s pupils, led by the Frenchman Jacques Tourniaire . He built the first wooden circus in St. Petersburg in 1827. In 1844 the circus troop of Alessandro Guerra came to this city. He built first wooden and later stone circus. Later the circus was bought by the Imperial Theater Directorate and it became a state institution, receiving the name Imperial-Theater Circus on Teatralnaya Square . The building was opened in 1849; it was lit and could be heated well which was very important (Medvedev 1975 ; Fedorov 1988 ).

Carl Magnus Hine was one of the persons who connected the history of Eastern and Western Europe. He came from Germany and had his own circus in Berlin but achieved the greatest success in Russia. In 1866 he managed to build a wooden building in Saint Petersburg. In 1872 his troop became the part of Gaetanno Ciniselli’s troupe. He managed to make a stone construction of a circus in the former capital of Russia. The building was in a lavish style with rich decoration and its construction was completed in 1877. The building had a dome spanning fifty meters, which was a record for that time, and no bearing pillars were used. And then the circus became state property and as such it still operates today (Jando 1977 ).

Founders of the Russian circus were the brothers Akim, Dmitry and Peter Nikitiny . They began their careers as street circus performers and later became a famous travelling circus. They arrived in Moscow in 1886 where they bought a building on Tsvetnoy Boulevard, next to the Salomonsky Circus . For competitive reasons, they left Moscow and continued their work in other Russian cities. They primarily worked as a travelling circus but in some places they built wooden or stone circuses. They performed in Tbilisi, Baku, Astrakhan, Volgograd (former name Tsaritsyn), Saratov, Samara, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Ivanovo, Voznesensk, Kharkov (half of these cities are no longer part of Russia) (Fig.  9 ).

Source: 1 Circus Gimnasticus (Vienna)— http://www.circopedia.org/Gymnastischer_Zirkel . 2 Circus Ciniselli (St. Petersburg)— https://www.citywalls.ru/house23222.html . 3 Circus of Carl Magnus Hinné (St. Petersburg)— http://www.circus.spb.ru/

Stationary circus buildings in the nineteenth century.

Albert Salomonsky opened a stone circus with four thousand seats in Moscow in 1880 but before that he opened a wooden one in Odessa and was credited with opening a circus in Riga (now Lithuania).

In Russia, at the end of the nineteenth century, there were almost thirty circuses, mostly travelling, but there were also a lot of stationary circuses (Shner and Slavsky1973).

Things got complicated at the beginning of the First World War in 1914 when all the circuses were closed but after only a year they continued to work (Bardian 1977 ).

The twentieth century is characterized by distinguished buildings created before and after the wars, so this period could be observed in two parts: in the first period, until 1945, circus buildings were built more in the western part of Europe while the creations of buildings in the eastern part was more modest. After the First World War e.g. after the October Socialist Revolution, in the eastern part of Europe, there was an expansion and creation of numerous circus buildings which remained during the Second World War and after it. With the end of this war, a total turnover happened due to destruction of the circus buildings in the western part of Europe and most of them remained unrestored.

Travelling tents as prefabricated structures became popular in Europe. It was easier to change the audience than the program of the show. Circus giant tents from Germany were the most popular and accommodated up to ten thousand visitors.

There were a number of stationary circuses in the country, such as the aforementioned Krone Circus in Munich. However, troops from these facilities also owned tents which they toured with, mostly throughout Europe. They used their stationary circuses mainly in the winter, hosting other performers there as well.

In Dresden, the Sarrasani Circus was built from solid material in 1912. It was not particularly large, but was a facility with the most modern technology: it had a pool and a steel cage for performances with wild cats. As such, it existed until 1945.

Albert Schumann owned the largest number of circus buildings in Germany. He had facilities in Berlin, Vienna and Frankfurt. All circuses were founded at the very beginning of the century. The circus in Frankfurt existed until the end of the Second World War, while the other two circuses worked much shorter.

In Germany, after the end of the Second World War most stationary buildings were demolished, there were no circus giants left, but smaller tents continued to operate.

It is interesting that in England the circus was in its strongest crisis. The last circus facility was built in London in 1900. It was known as the London Hippodrome , but it changed its purpose in the next decade. It is considered that since then there have been no stationary circuses in this city (Jando 1977 ).

In the twenties of this century, the French capital had four facilities for circus performances: the Cirque de Paris , the Nouveau Cirque , the Cirque d’Hiver and the Cirque Medrano . The Nouveau Cirque was closed as early as 1926 and in the thirties of this century the same thing happened to the Cirque de Paris . The Cirque Medrano was run by the heirs of the previous owner until 1963, when it was taken over by the Bouglione brothers ( Firmin , Sampion , Emilien and Joseph ), and the name of the circus changed to the Cirque de Montmartre . Unfortunately, it was demolished in 1963. From 1934, the Cirque d’Hiver also belonged to the Bouglione family. It was reconstructed several times. In the fifties, the circus facility was largely used for filming movies and series (Bardian 1977 ). In France, there were also travelling troops but their popularity was not great (Table 9 ).

In Spain, travelling troops were popular although the first stationary circus in Madrid was established as early as the previous century. Its founder was Thomas Price after whom it was named— Price . It was damaged in the Spanish Civil War. However, the idea of a circus was revived with the construction of a new stationary circus in 1840 but it lasted only thirty years (El Circo Price 2019 ).

A new circus was born after the victory of the great October Socialist Revolution at the end of 1917. All circuses in Russia were nationalized (Markschiess-Van and Nowak 1976 ).

Before the Second World War, there were about fifty stationary circus facilities. They were built mostly of wood, according to standard designs and had no heating systems. It is interesting that during the war, despite much suffering and destruction, there were ninety-one circus companies in this country, which included sixty-eight stationary and eighteen travelling circuses (Ostrovsky 2015 ). Circus troops worked during the war and even demolished circus buildings were rebuilt in those years (Fig.  10 ).

Source: 1 1926— http://www.gorlib.ru/izhevsk/kult/cirk.php . 2 1943— https://www.etoretro.ru/pic107612.htm . 3 2003 — https://www.etoretro.ru/pic107612.htm

Stationary circus buildings in Izhevsk City, Russia, with opening years.

After the end of the Second World War, the emphasis was on reconstruction (Corbusier 1986 ), so new circus facilities of higher quality materials were built. Within twenty years about forty circuses were built, all with about two thousand seats and the most modern equipment. Each circus had a hotel for actors (Bardian 1977 ) (Table 10 ).

Due to the great need to show performances and to build quickly, appropriate projects were made (there were several standardized projects by which circuses were built in different cities).

After the end of all military conflicts, the circus began to prosper in other socialist countries as well. Stationary circuses were built in Budapest, Bucharest, Sofia, Warsaw and some other cities (Shner and Slavsky 1973 ).

By 1945, Hungary had one built circus and three travelling tents. During the reconstruction after the war, the circus building was restored and was active until 1966 when it was demolished. A new circus with a capacity of over one thousand eight hundred seats was founded in the same place in 1971.

Two wooden circuses were built in Bulgaria after the First World War, one in Sofia and the other in Plovdiv, and there were several travelling troops. The solid material building, the Sofia State Circus , was built in 1962 The facade was made of glass, as in most socialist countries, while the roof structure was made of metal. Unfortunately, it burned down in 1983.

In Romania, a stone building with three thousand five hundred seats for the audience was built. During the reconstruction of the entire area where the circus was located, it was demolished in the thirties of the twentieth century. There were travelling tents in the country but a new stationary facility was built in 1960. It was original in its architecture, with a roof parabolic corrugated shell. The names changed: the Circul de Stat , the Circului Globus and now the Circul Metropolitan Bucuresti (Bardian 1977 ; Fővárosi Nagycirkusz 2019 ; Nemţeanu et al. 2019 ).

Among all socialist states, only Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia did not have stationary circus facilities, but this did not stop the development of this art in these countries.

In the Czech Republic, the biggest and the most famous was the Circus Humberto , which is known for accomodating about three thousand visitors (Jando 1977 ).

In Yugoslavia, the Artističko preduzeće—Cirkus had the first performances in 1948. Its tent accommodated about two thousand spectators. It was later renamed Adria . (Djurić 1999 ) (Fig.  11 ).

Stationary circus buildings in the twentieth century. Source: 1 Cirque Medrano (Paris)— http://www.circopedia.org/File:Cirque_Medrano.jpg . 2 Big Moscow Circus on Vernadskogo Prospekt (Moscow)— https://pastvu.com/p/149758 . 3 Circus Sarrasani (Dresden)— http://www.circopedia.org/File:Circus_Sarrasani_1912.jpg . 4 Sofia National Circus (Sofia)— https://ivibitesphotography.wordpress.com/2014/11/25/lost-bulgaria-in-photos-from-1960-1970/

The twenty-first century does not bring new circus architecture. Construction of new facilities has been stopped. The number of stationary circus facilities in Europe in this century has even decreased but some facilities have survived to this day. This is the century of adapting old circus buildings to the new age. Nowadays more attention is paid to the preservation, reconstruction and restoration of existing facilities, although there are still travelling tents.

In the twenty-first century, more stationary circuses were kept in the eastern part of Europe. In the western part of Europe these buildings have been given other purposes. Countries, where there are still circus facilities made of solid material, are those countries where the circus was most popular, such as France and Germany, but also Spain. In the eastern part of Europe, the situation is much more favorable. In Russia alone there is a large number of stationary circuses, as many as thirty-eight (Rosgoscirk 2019 ). In other neighboring countries, which used to be parts of the USSR, a slightly smaller number of stationary circuses have also survived. The situation is similar in Hungary and Romania, where the circus tradition is still partially preserved (Table 11 ).

However, there is a large number of facilities that have preserved the circus function but due to the need to be adapted to modern requirements, they are reconstructed and given more modern technical equipment for showing circus performances. The most important things today for the functioning of the whole circus building are the system of ventilation and the system of safety measures which include cameras, too. According to the number of such facilities, the countries of the former Soviet Union are in the lead.

Nowadays, there are circus facilities that get new contents which make these facilities multifunctional. This is, for example, the Teatro Circo Price in Madrid. The old building was closed and it was planned to renovate it but it did not happen. Instead, the reconstruction of the former textile factory for circus purposes began in 1999. The circus started working only in 2007 and it contains both modern elements and those based on tradition. The building has a circular and side scene. If the show takes place on the side stage, the circular stage is filled with rows of seats. This allows the stage space to be used for different types of art. The facility also has several multipurpose rooms that can be used for exhibitions, workshops and similar activities (Teatro Circo Price 2019 ). The Krone Circus in Germany and the Bouglione Cirque d’Hiver in France can also be classified as multifunctional facilities (Table 12 ).

A special category consists of buildings that were built as circuses and now have a different purpose. Although their purpose has been changed, the spirit of the circus is still present in them. Such a facility can be found in Denmark. Copenhagen preserves a circus building, but since 2003 it has hosted entertainment programs with dinner, i.e. the building has the character of a restaurant. Grandstands have been adapted for setting tables, namely, instead of seats, wide terraces have been placed and instead of stables in the basement, kitchens have been made. The stage space has been changed, three side stages have been made and a much smaller circular stage has been set up in the central part. The main purpose of the building is to be a restaurant but an entertainment program is shown as well: cabaret, dance, comedy and sometimes even circus-like acrobatics (Circus building 2019 ; Wallmans 2019 ). The situation is similar in Amsterdam (now the Royal Theater Carré ) and in the Hague ( Circustheater Den Haag ), where circus performances are no longer held (Figs.  12 and 13 ).

Source: 1 Teatro Circo Price (Madrid)— https://www.francescopinton.es/proyectos/teatro-circo-price/ . 2 Samara Circus Reconstruction Project (Samara)— https://sgpress.ru/news/124143 . 3 Cirque d’Hiver (Paris) - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cirque_d%27hiver,_Paris_11e,_Southwest_view_20140316_1.jpg . 4 Dnipropetrovsk State Circus (Dnipro)— https://dnipro.depo.ua/rus/dnipro/yak-u-dnipri-40-rokiv-tomu-ponad-tisyacha-lyudey-buduvali-tsirk-201909201031898

Stationary circus buildings in the twenty-first century.

Source: 1 Astley’s Amphitheatre (London) – http://www.circopedia.org/SHORT_HISTORY_OF_THE_CIRCUS . 2 Royal Amphitheatre (London)— http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/r/researching-theatre-and-performance/ . 3 Royal Amphitheatre of Arts (Paris)— https://historianet.nl/cultuur/wie-richtte-het-eerste-circus-op . 4 Circus Ciniselli (St. Petersburg) — http://opeterburge.ru/sight/zdanie-tsirka.html . 5 Cirque d’Hiver (Paris)— http://www.circopedia.org/File:Cirque_d%27Hiver_(c.1925).jpeg . 6 Circul de Stat in Bucuresti (Bucharest)— https://arhiva.uniuneaarhitectilor.ro/a-2718/circul-de-stat-vedere-de-ansamblu . 7 Teatro Circo Price (Madrid)— https://www.francescopinton.es/proyectos/teatro-circo-price/ . 8 Omsk Circus (Omsk, Russia)— https://ponominalu.ru/venue/omskiy-gosudarstvennyy-cirk

Timeline summary of relations between stationary buildings appearance and architecture elements.

Results and discussion

The established methodology of research of chronological material on the territory of Europe, created a set of criteria relevant for the analysis of circus buildings and performances that, in most periods, took place in the buildings for that purpose.

The results of the research are defined criteria with sub-criteria, as well as their comparative analysis in the observed periods.

It can be concluded that the appearance of these buildings is interesting not only in terms of form, taking into account the architecture and construction of buildings, but also in terms of changes that occurred in the manifestation of performance, which are directly related to the social and political circumstances of their time (as shown in Table 13 ).

The established set of criteria consists of:

Criterion 1. Performance —refers to the way a circus spectacle is performed.

Sub-criterion 1.1. Participants— differences are noticed in the presence of the artists. Although it is believed that animals are an integral part of the circus, they are still excluded in recent times in the modern circus. The question is whether the display of various human skills will prevail, while animals are already vanishing from the circus (in some places).

Sub-criterion 1.2. Manifestations— Circus performances consisted of several different circus acts over the centuries. Their number depended on the show itself and the time in which it was shown. The eighteenth century was the beginning of circus performances so there were only few circus acts but in the nineteenth century the number of acts gradually became bigger and more developed. In the twentieth century, eight types of acts were defined. The new age brought more diversity and combining of more artistic directions with circus acrobatics.

Criterion 2. Stationary circus buildings— consist of two sub-criteria which were taken in consideration under the assumption that they are the best for defining circus buildings: the first shows the space for performance and the second are basic characteristics of building appearance.

Sub-criterion 2.1. Performance space:

2.1.1. Stage space —depended on the circus performance. In the eighteenth century the size of the stage was determined by the circular moving of horses, which has stayed to the present day. It was easier for both animals and people always to come to a recognizable space, without too much need to adapt when they go on tours and change facilities. In the recent times, auxiliary side scenes have also appeared in some facilities, and the development of technology has enabled the launch of platforms.

2.1.2. Capacity —the number of seats for the audience is probably one of the most important characteristics for buildings with stage performances. Since the start, e.g. from the eighteenth century, the number has increased. Constructing new buildings had the aim to make the number of seats for audience adequate and more profitable in certain periods. Through centuries, the society present in the audience changed and that was also the reason which influenced on this parameter. In the twenty-first century there is no more increase because the interest of audience is insignificant.

Sub-criterion 2.2. Appearance of the building ( the shape of the base, materialization and roof construction are observed) —it depended a lot on the period in which the building was built, but it also depended on the previous characteristics (criteria and sub-criteria). The type of performance influenced on the stage area, and the placement of the audience around it influenced the overall design of the building. The bases of the circus buildings were mostly circular, due to the centrally oriented already circular scene, even the polygonal bases were of more regular shapes with approximate same dimensions on all sides. At first, in the eighteenth century, uncovered wooden buildings were built, and over time they were replaced by solid and modern materials. The need for covering and forming the dome was also influenced by new technologies, from lighting and sound to new props in circus performances. Circus stationary buildings are all covered these days and their domes are different by appearance e.g. the geometrical complexity.

Conclusions

Throughout history, the circus has undergone certain changes. The prevalence of circus facilities was greatly influenced by the political system in the eastern part of Europe, where these stationary facilities have remained to the greatest extent today. In the western part of Europe, the circus spectacle was used more as a kind of propaganda against the people, but insufficient financial aid may have contributed to the fact that stationary circuses were not maintained and preserved here today.

This survey started under the assumption that the chosen criteria and sub-criteria had great influence on overall shaping of circus buildings. However, even though the circus facilities were built for the performance itself, it did not impact too much on shaping of the building on the whole. The changes during centuries, in the domain of manifest of performance and its participants, did not affect on different appearance and the size of main stage area.

Nevertheless, overall building appearance depended on few researched criteria and sub-criteria. Unchangeable, circular stage area was surrounded by rows of grandstands with the increased capacity changeable through the centuries which determined the size and the base shape in the period in which the circus was built. The increase of the size of this facilities stopped, firstly, due to not building new circus facilities, and secondly, because of reconstructions of the facilities and their adjustment to the modern age. In the twenty-first century, there are new purposes of these buildings. It means that the existing base shapes and forms of circus buildings can easily be adjusted and used, not only for circus performances, but also for the new additional functions.

The changes of material and roof construction of circus buildings depended on the century of construction and partly on the territory (region) in which these buildings were made. These two sub-criteria mostly determined the architectural style of circus buildings, which is not changing anymore, and thanks to them, these buildings represent the monuments of their time.

The circus remained in the culture of Russia but in the western part of Europe it was gradually losing its primary importance. The number of circus facilities was more present in the eastern part of Europe where still exists the need for the stationary circuses to be preserved and stay active with the same purpose in this modern time. The greater loss was obvious in the countries in the western part of Europe where circus suffered from bigger changes in the form of performing and in architecture.

Despite not being considered everywhere as sufficiently “high-level” enough everywhere to be ranked among other art forms, the circus proves something quite the opposite through its architecture. Circus facilities are not inconspicuous, these are large buildings and their construction and maintenance are demanding. As the circus has adapted and changed over time, so as the space for showing performances has undergone certain changes. The diversity of the development of the circus spectacle depended on the audience that watched it, but also, to a large extent, on the state organization of each country. The analysis of each century individually results in the final research where all the changes are shown, which is accompanied by the analysis of construction of facilities for its purpose. Importantly, the circus exist in the twenty-first century, but it is partly changing and adapting to the new age.

In the areas where stationary circuses emerged in the eighteenth century, these buildings are slowly going into oblivion and becoming something else and in the areas where the first circus buildings were created in the nineteenth century, the circus performance stayed on the high level and their architecture is preserved and maintained for the generations to come.

For the future research, it would be important to compare the existence and development of these buildings on other continents e.g. America, Australia and Asia.

It is hard to answer to the first question, if the stationary circuses achieved in adjusting and transform for the purposes of modern society or, on the other hand, they are reorganized and are becoming something different. It depends on the part of Europe in question. In the eastern part there are still traditional circus performances and their buildings achieve to reconstruct and adapt to modern times. Oppositely, there is a fear that in the western part of Europe the need for circus performances to be held in stationary buildings is disappearing. These buildings are getting additional purposes and, together with them, circuses achieve to sustain in presence. However, there are buildings which changed the purpose and there are no circus performances in them anymore.

When we talk about the established criteria, it would be important to implement other architectural elements in the future research, for example, tent buildings which dominate in modern times. These buildings are significant because there is a complete change in existing of circus buildings which cease to exist as stationary buildings. Furthermore, the monumental value of the buildings remaining from previous periods and the way of their revitalization e.g. their reuse, should be researched.

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College of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Academy of Technical and Art Applied Studies, Vranjska Street 29/53, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia

Marija Divac & Sara Milošević

Department Architecture and Urban Planning, Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia

Milena Krklješ

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MD conceived of the presented idea. MD wrote the manuscript with support from MK and SM, MK and SM verified the research methodology. MK encouraged MD to investigate circus performances chronologically and supervised the findings of this work. SM contributed to the design and implementation of the research and to the analysis of the results. MD originally made all diagrams and tables that this research resulted. All authors discussed the results and contributed to the final manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Marija Divac— Academy of Technical and Art Applied Studies—Department: College of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Belgrade, Serbia. Teaching Assistant at the College of Civil Engineering and Geodesy in Belgrade at the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering. She completed her Bachelor and Master's academic studies at the Faculty of Architecture, University of Belgrade. She enrolled in PhD studies in 2015, at the Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Department of Architecture and Urban Planning. Participant of several national and international conferences.

Prof. dr Milena Krklješ— Faculty of Technical Sciences, Novi Sad, Serbia. Associate professor and chief of Bachelor studies of Architecture at the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning, Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad. She has been teaching, since 2003, through various courses in the field of architecture and urban design, landscape design, theory and critics in architecture. She is author or co-author of more than 70 scientific papers, published in national and international scientific journals, monographic chapters and presented at international and national scientific conferences.

Sara Milošević— Academy of Technical and Art Applied Studies—Department: College of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Belgrade, Serbia . Teaching Assistant at the College of Civil Engineering and Geodesy in Belgrade at the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering. She completed her Bachelor and Master's academic studies at the Faculty of Architecture, University of Belgrade. She enrolled in PhD studies in 2017, at the Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Department of Architecture and Urban Planning. Mentor of several student works exhibited at the International Urban Planners’ Exhibition in Serbia.

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Divac, M., Krklješ, M. & Milošević, S. Circus is a performance but it is also a building—memory of circus buildings in Europe. City Territ Archit 9 , 9 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40410-022-00156-3

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Come One, Come All: The Circus in the American Artistic and Cultural Tradition

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The history of the circus is parallel to the coming of age tale of America, in all its eccentricities, blights, embarrassments and wonders and this is among the reasons artists are enamored with it as a theme. Viewed through the lens of relevant historical examples and contemporary artistic works, it acts as a reminder of a place and time that will never exist again, but still lingers in pockets of American culture. It is irreverent, frivolous, oddly charming and often provokes self reflection and examination, much like the birth tale of America itself. As a social experience the circus is akin to opening a book and becoming part of the narrative itself, both written and visual.

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National amusement: Circus and culture in America, 1830–1920

Micah D Childress , Purdue University

More people attended the circus in the nineteenth-century than any other contemporary amusement. Circuses grew in number—from a handful of itinerant shows to nearly 100—and in size—from troupes of a dozen people in 1830 to an industry that employed thousands in 1920. “National Amusement: Circus and Culture in America, 1830-1920” follows the development of the circus, using this popular entertainment as a window into the changes in American society during the ninety-year span. The circus industry’s growing popularity represents a widespread acceptance of amusement, part of the larger revolution in leisure activities. The rise of the circus as the premier popular entertainment institution took roughly half a century, as the middle and religious classes waged a war of words against the tented amusement. This dissertation studies the circus’s interaction with the public, examining the battle over the control of popular culture. Circus employees, the men and women who put on the greatest show on earth, lived and worked in an environment filled with frightful train wrecks, dreadful falls, and mortal mishaps. Circus-folk formed a strong bond with one another, as they spent nearly every waking hour together. However, discrimination and segregation pervaded, as race and occupation led to the establishment of echelons among employees. Ownership and management successfully thwarted unionization, and seemed to control many aspects of their employees’ lives while they were ostensibly “off the clock.” Circuses presented patrons with exotic animals, fabulous performers, and exciting hippodrome races, but the exhibitions also contained timely commentary on the day’s leading issues. Clowns, especially through vocal performances, turned the circus ring into a forum for discussion over political topics. The big top featured the same political rancor as that in courtrooms, saloons, churches, and statehouses. Illuminating the intersection between politics and entertainment, these clown performances evidence the fact that the circus was not always a children’s entertainment. The circus also reflected and anticipated societal trends, especially those within big business. Taking advantage of advances in advertising, the circus capitalized on the medium’s power to capture the public’s attention. Circus proprietors, like their industrial counterparts, merged their operations, bought out competitors, and formed trusts designed to divide up the pool of patrons, thus limiting competition. Eventually, the biggest circuses grew so large and so tame that they ceased to hold the public’s attention as they once had, thus ending the golden era of circus operation.

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Module 4: Imperial Reforms and Colonial Protests (1763-1774)

Historical thesis statements, learning objectives.

• Recognize and create high-quality historical thesis statements

Some consider all writing a form of argument—or at least of persuasion. After all, even if you’re writing a letter or an informative essay, you’re implicitly trying to persuade your audience to care about what you’re saying. Your thesis statement represents the main idea—or point—about a topic or issue that you make in an argument. For example, let’s say that your topic is social media. A thesis statement about social media could look like one of the following sentences:

• Social media are hurting the communication skills of young Americans.
• Social media are useful tools for social movements.

A basic thesis sentence has two main parts: a claim  and support for that claim.

• The Immigration Act of 1965 effectively restructured the United States’ immigration policies in such a way that no group, minority or majority, was singled out by being discriminated against or given preferential treatment in terms of its ability to immigrate to America.

Identifying the Thesis Statement

A thesis consists of a specific topic and an angle on the topic. All of the other ideas in the text support and develop the thesis. The thesis statement is often found in the introduction, sometimes after an initial “hook” or interesting story; sometimes, however, the thesis is not explicitly stated until the end of an essay, and sometimes it is not stated at all. In those instances, there is an implied thesis statement. You can generally extract the thesis statement by looking for a few key sentences and ideas.

Most readers expect to see the point of your argument (the thesis statement) within the first few paragraphs. This does not mean that it has to be placed there every time. Some writers place it at the very end, slowly building up to it throughout their work, to explain a point after the fact. For history essays, most professors will expect to see a clearly discernible thesis sentence in the introduction. Note that many history papers also include a topic sentence, which clearly state what the paper is about

Thesis statements vary based on the rhetorical strategy of the essay, but thesis statements typically share the following characteristics:

• Presents the main idea
• Most often is one sentence
• Tells the reader what to expect
• Is a summary of the essay topic
• Usually worded to have an argumentative edge
• Written in the third person

This video explains thesis statements and gives a few clear examples of how a good thesis should both make a claim and forecast specific ways that the essay will support that claim.

You can view the  transcript for “Thesis Statement – Writing Tutorials, US History, Dr. Robert Scafe” here (opens in new window) .

Writing a Thesis Statement

A good basic structure for a thesis statement is “they say, I say.” What is the prevailing view, and how does your position differ from it? However, avoid limiting the scope of your writing with an either/or thesis under the assumption that your view must be strictly contrary to their view.

Following are some typical thesis statements:

• Although many readers believe Romeo and Juliet to be a tale about the ill fate of two star-crossed lovers, it can also be read as an allegory concerning a playwright and his audience.
• The “War on Drugs” has not only failed to reduce the frequency of drug-related crimes in America but actually enhanced the popular image of dope peddlers by romanticizing them as desperate rebels fighting for a cause.
• The bulk of modern copyright law was conceived in the age of commercial printing, long before the Internet made it so easy for the public to compose and distribute its own texts. Therefore, these laws should be reviewed and revised to better accommodate modern readers and writers.
• The usual moral justification for capital punishment is that it deters crime by frightening would-be criminals. However, the statistics tell a different story.
• If students really want to improve their writing, they must read often, practice writing, and receive quality feedback from their peers.
• Plato’s dialectical method has much to offer those engaged in online writing, which is far more conversational in nature than print.

Thesis Problems to Avoid

Although you have creative control over your thesis sentence, you still should try to avoid the following problems, not for stylistic reasons, but because they indicate a problem in the thinking that underlies the thesis sentence.

• Hospice workers need support. This is a thesis sentence; it has a topic (hospice workers) and an argument (need support). But the argument is very broad. When the argument in a thesis sentence is too broad, the writer may not have carefully thought through the specific support for the rest of the writing. A thesis argument that’s too broad makes it easy to fall into the trap of offering information that deviates from that argument.
• Hospice workers have a 55% turnover rate compared to the general health care population’s 25% turnover rate.  This sentence really isn’t a thesis sentence at all, because there’s no argument to support it. A narrow statistic, or a narrow statement of fact, doesn’t offer the writer’s own ideas or analysis about a topic.

Let’s see some examples of potential theses related to the following prompt:

• Bad thesis : The relationship between the American colonists and the British government changed after the French & Indian War.
• Better thesis : The relationship between the American colonists and the British government was strained following the Revolutionary war.
• Best thesis : Due to the heavy debt acquired by the British government during the French & Indian War, the British government increased efforts to tax the colonists, causing American opposition and resistance that strained the relationship between the colonists and the crown.

Practice identifying strong thesis statements in the following interactive.

Supporting Evidence for Thesis Statements

A thesis statement doesn’t mean much without supporting evidence. Oftentimes in a history class, you’ll be expected to defend your thesis, or your argument, using primary source documents. Sometimes these documents are provided to you, and sometimes you’ll need to go find evidence on your own. When the documents are provided for you and you are asked to answer questions about them, it is called a document-based question, or DBQ. You can think of a DBQ like a miniature research paper, where the research has been done for you. DBQs are often used on standardized tests, like this DBQ from the 2004 U.S. History AP exam , which asked students about the altered political, economic, and ideological relations between Britain and the colonies because of the French & Indian War. In this question, students were given 8 documents (A through H) and expected to use these documents to defend and support their argument. For example, here is a possible thesis statement for this essay:

• The French & Indian War altered the political, economic, and ideological relations between the colonists and the British government because it changed the nature of British rule over the colonies, sowed the seeds of discontent, and led to increased taxation from the British.

Now, to defend this thesis statement, you would add evidence from the documents. The thesis statement can also help structure your argument. With the thesis statement above, we could expect the essay to follow this general outline:

• Introduction—introduce how the French and Indian War altered political, economic, and ideological relations between the colonists and the British
• Show the changing map from Doc A and greater administrative responsibility and increased westward expansion
• Discuss Doc B, frustrations from the Iroquois Confederacy and encroachment onto Native lands
• Could also mention Doc F and the result in greater administrative costs
• Use Doc D and explain how a colonial soldier notices disparities between how they are treated when compared to the British
• Use General Washington’s sentiments in Doc C to discuss how these attitudes of reverence shifted after the war. Could mention how the war created leadership opportunities and gave military experience to colonists.
• Use Doc E to highlight how the sermon showed optimism about Britain ruling the colonies after the war
• Highlight some of the political, economic, and ideological differences related to increased taxation caused by the War
• Use Doc F, the British Order in Council Statement, to indicate the need for more funding to pay for the cost of war
• Explain Doc G, frustration from Benjamin Franklin about the Stamp Act and efforts to repeal it
• Use Doc H, the newspaper masthead saying “farewell to liberty”, to highlight the change in sentiments and colonial anger over the Stamp Act

As an example, to argue that the French & Indian War sowed the seeds of discontent, you could mention Document D, from a Massachusetts soldier diary, who wrote, “And we, being here within stone walls, are not likely to get liquors or clothes at this time of the year; and though we be Englishmen born, we are debarred [denied] Englishmen’s liberty.” This shows how colonists began to see their identity as Americans as distinct from those from the British mainland.

Remember, a strong thesis statement is one that supports the argument of your writing. It should have a clear purpose and objective, and although you may revise it as you write, it’s a good idea to start with a strong thesis statement the give your essay direction and organization. You can check the quality of your thesis statement by answering the following questions:

• If a specific prompt was provided, does the thesis statement answer the question prompt?
• Does the thesis statement make sense?
• Is the thesis statement historically accurate?
• Does the thesis statement provide clear and cohesive reasoning?
• Is the thesis supportable by evidence?

thesis statement : a statement of the topic of the piece of writing and the angle the writer has on that topic

• Thesis Statements. Provided by : Lumen Learning. Located at : https://courses.lumenlearning.com/englishcomp1/wp-admin/post.php?post=576&action=edit . License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Thesis Examples. Authored by : Cody Chun, Kieran O'Neil, Kylie Young, Julie Nelson Christoph. Provided by : The University of Puget Sound. Located at : https://soundwriting.pugetsound.edu/universal/thesis-dev-six-steps.html . Project : Sound Writing. License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Writing Practice: Building Thesis Statements. Provided by : The Bill of Rights Institute, OpenStax, and contributing authors. Located at : https://cnx.org/contents/[email protected]:L3kRHhAr@7/1-22-%F0%9F%93%9D-Writing-Practice-Building-Thesis-Statements . License : CC BY: Attribution . License Terms : Download for free at http://cnx.org/contents/[email protected].
• Thesis Statement - Writing Tutorials, US History, Dr. Robert Scafe. Provided by : OU Office of Digital Learning. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hjAk8JI0IY&t=310s . License : Other . License Terms : Standard YouTube License

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An exploratory analysis and creative interpretation of female performers in the traditional travelling circus

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This thesis explores the history of the modern circus, with a particular focus on discussing hidden female performers from traditional travelling circuses. Through conducting interviews and archival research, the information on the lives of the female performers in the circus separates into three areas: performance, gender, and lifestyle. These three areas create topics for the creative interpretation section of this project, forming a five-track EP, Our Circus, of original songs. By using the art form of music to celebrate the art of the female circus performer, a voice is given to those whose stories have not been heard as loudly as their opposite sex in modern circus history. This practice-based research allows information to reach both the academy and public domain, showing that creative research enhances social science research whilst projecting the stories of incredible women in the arts through music, creating a connection and awareness beyond academic fields and to the wider public.

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Expressive Therapiehttps://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/cgi/myaccount.cgis Capstone Theses

Using role method and therapeutic circus arts with adults to create a meaningful performance.

Sydney Schorr , Lesley University Follow

Date of Award

Spring 5-22-2021

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Degree name.

MA - Master of Arts

Expressive Therapies

Laura L. Wood

This capstone thesis explores the ways in which dramatherapeutic techniques, specifically Role Method (RM), can be used in conjunction with the field of Therapeutic Circus Arts (TCA). The literature reviews the topics of the history of circus, social circus, the current research on Therapeutic Circus Arts, and drama therapy with a concentration on the core processes, role theory, and Role Method. A one-time community engagement workshop project was developed based on Role Method and Therapeutic Circus Arts to guide adults with circus experience to create a meaningful performance designed for self-discovery. Results of the workshop are presented through this writer’s experience, further exhibited by arts-based research centering on the themes of self-discovery, vulnerability, and active witnessing. This thesis offers a bridging of two emerging fields and alternative uses for the application of Role Method. Further study could benefit from extending the workshop into multiple sessions to promote role exploration and self-growth.

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Schorr, Sydney, "Using Role Method and Therapeutic Circus Arts with Adults to Create a Meaningful Performance" (2021). Expressive Therapiehttps://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/cgi/myaccount.cgis Capstone Theses . 405. https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/expressive_theses/405

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Graduate Masters Theses

Beyond the big top: the legacy of john ringling and the american circus.

Casey L. Nemec , University of Massachusetts Boston Follow

Date of Award

Document type.

Open Access Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

First Advisor

Vincent J. Cannato

Second Advisor

Timothy Hacsi

Third Advisor

Roberta Wollons

Beyond the Big Top: The Legacy of John Ringling and the American Circus is a focused interpretation of the impact of the American circus post-Civil War through present day, most particularly that of circus impresario, corporate magnate, and philanthropist John Ringling, in what was once a quiet Florida fishing village named Sarasota. It is my observation that John Ringling, through moving the winter quarters of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey to Sarasota, investing in a sizable amount of real estate, and spearheading a campaign to bring a world-class art museum and school to the area, played a key role in shaping Florida tourism, diversity, expanding cultural awareness, and boosting the local economy. I have addressed the effects Ringling had on the region, as well as discuss how and why Ringling invested so heavily in Sarasota. The rise of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circus will also be discussed, and how Ringling planned to make contributions that would live on long after he did. Although the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus shuttered its wagon doors for good in 2017, Ringling ensured that he utilized his proceeds from the show, as well as other ventures, to finance endeavors that have allowed his memory and intentions to live well on into the 21st century.

Recommended Citation

Nemec, Casey L., "Beyond the Big Top: The Legacy of John Ringling and the American Circus" (2020). Graduate Masters Theses . 633. https://scholarworks.umb.edu/masters_theses/633

Since December 18, 2020

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Britain’s Violent Riots: What We Know

Officials had braced for more unrest on Wednesday, but the night’s anti-immigration protests were smaller, with counterprotesters dominating the streets instead.

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By Lynsey Chutel

After days of violent rioting set off by disinformation around a deadly stabbing rampage, the authorities in Britain had been bracing for more unrest on Wednesday. But by nightfall, large-scale anti-immigration demonstrations had not materialized, and only a few arrests had been made nationwide.

Instead, streets in cities across the country were filled with thousands of antiracism protesters, including in Liverpool, where by late evening, the counterdemonstration had taken on an almost celebratory tone.

Over the weekend, the anti-immigration protests, organized by far-right groups, had devolved into violence in more than a dozen towns and cities. And with messages on social media calling for wider protests and counterprotests on Wednesday, the British authorities were on high alert.

With tensions running high, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s cabinet held emergency meetings to discuss what has become the first crisis of his recently elected government. Some 6,000 specialist public-order police officers were mobilized nationwide to respond to any disorder, and the authorities in several cities and towns stepped up patrols.

Wednesday was not trouble-free, however.

In Bristol, the police said there was one arrest after a brick was thrown at a police vehicle and a bottle was thrown. In the southern city of Portsmouth, police officers dispersed a small group of anti-immigration protesters who had blocked a roadway. And in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where there have been at least four nights of unrest, disorder continued, and the police service said it would bring in additional officers.

But overall, many expressed relief that the fears of wide-scale violence had not been realized.

Here’s what we know about the turmoil in Britain.

Where arrests have been reported

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