How did the circus begin?
The Romans were the first to use the word ‘circus’ in the first century B.C. The large open area was called ‘The Circus Maximus’. Here the main attraction was a chariot race. The drivers wore helmets and were wrapped in lengths of bright coloured flowing clothes. The ground was so large as to accommodate around 1, 50,000 people. In those days Rome had other kinds of entertainments also. Jugglers, acrobats, rope-walkers and animal-trainers also entertained people in many ways.
Eventually all those feats became part of what we call ‘circus’ today.
After the fall of the Roman Empire, circus went into oblivion for many centuries. The first modern circus came into being in England in 1768, when Philip Astley turned into a trick rider, and he traced the first ring. The name circus was first used in 1782 when the Royal Circus was set up by Charles Hughes. Many showmen found a new outlet in the circus, as did the rope dancers, acrobats, jugglers and others, where it could be seen clearly that nothing was faked. Hence they got much popularity. In the first half of the 19th century many circus sprang up even in the United States.
Circus is a popular means of entertainment today. It is universally loved by the young and the old. In the modern circus we see many amazing feats like rope-walking, wire-cycling, fire-eating, weightlifting, trapeze and innumerable animal and bird games. Jugglers, acrobats and clowns join in to add to the entertainment.
The world’s largest permanent circus is Circus Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A. This was opened on 18 October, 1968. It covers an area of 11,984 sq. mts. The largest travelling circus is the Gold Unit of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. It was used for a show at Sapporo, Japan on 1 July 1988. The largest circus crowd comprised of 52,385 people who attended the performance of “The Greatest Show on Earth” in New Orleans, USA on 14 September, 1975.
