The classification "Bulldog" was first used around 1568 and might have been applied to other various ancestors of modern bulldog breeds before being associated widely with the breed we recognize today. Bulldog's origins were in the British Isles. The name "bull" came from the early use of the dogs in the sport of bull baiting. The earliest Bulldogs were  ferocious, savage and courageous and some were insensitive to pain. In 1835 dog fighting as a sport became illegal in England. After this time, the English Bulldog became useless to most and many thought the days of the bulldog was numbered. The breed survived because there were dog lovers who felt deep disappointment at the thought of the breed disappearing, and so they began the task of preserving it. While preserving the breed they bred out and eliminated the undesirable fierce characteristics and strived to preserve and improve the better qualities. Over a few generations, the English Bulldog became one of the finest physical specimens with more gentle qualities.

It has been theorized that bulldogs were bred in England as a cross between the Mastiff and the Pug, though this claim has been debated. Since the pug did not arrive in Europe until the late 16th century, it is unlikely that the breed is an original ancestor of the Bulldog. The Bulldog and the Mastiff are widely thought to have common ancestry in the ancient Pugnaces Britanniae of Great Britain.

In time, the original Old English Bulldog was crossed with the pug. The outcome was a shorter, stockier dog with a brachycephalic skull. Though today's Bulldog looks rugged, he cannot perform the duties he was originally created for, as he can no longer perform the grueling tasks of running and being thrown from a bull, and cannot latch on to another animal with such a short muzzle as he has today.

 The oldest single bulldog breed specialty club is The Bulldog Club (England), which was formed in 1878. Members of this club met routinely at the Blue Post pub on Oxford Street in London. It was during these sessions that they wrote the first standard of perfection for the breed.

At the turn of the 20th century, Ch. Rodney Stone became the first Bulldog to command a price of $5000 when he was bought by controversial Irish-American political figure Richard Croker.

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