| The Godwinns | |
|---|---|
 Henry O. Godwinn during his time in the Godwinns | |
| Stable | |
| Name(s) | The Godwinns Southern Justice Tex Slazenger and Shanghai Pierce |
| Billed from | "Bitters,Arkansas" |
| Former member(s) | Henry O. Godwinn / Shanghai Pierce / Mark Canterbury Phineas I. Godwinn / Tex Slazenger / Dennis Knight |
| Debut | 1991 |
| Disbanded | 1998 |
TheGodwinns were aprofessional wrestlingtag team that are best known for their time in theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1996 until 1997.
The members of the team wereHenry O. Godwinn (HOG) andPhineas I. Godwinn (PIG). The team has also wrestled inWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW),United States Wrestling Association (USWA), andDeep South Wrestling (DSW). In the WWF, the members of the team were portrayed as a family ofArkansashillbilly pig farmers.[1] In WCW, they went by the names Tex Slazenger and Shanghai Pierce and wore masks.[2]
In the WWF, the group debuted on January 22, 1996 in a victory againstThe Bodydonnas (Skip &Zip).[3] The Godwinns entered a tag team tournament for the then-vacantWWF Tag Team Championships. They faced the Bodydonnas in the finals atWrestleMania XII but lost.[4] They feuded with the Bodydonnas over the championships and their valetSunny. The Godwinns ended up defeating the Bodydonnas at a house show on May 19, 1996 to win the WWF Tag Team Championships.[5] They would lose the championships toThe Smoking Gunns (Billy andBart Gunn) atIn Your House: Beware of Dog.[6]
After Henry got injured, the team would return asheels. They also replaced their managerHillbilly Jim with theirUncle Cletus.[7] AtBadd Blood: In Your House, the Godwinns defeatedThe Headbangers (Thrasher andMosh) to become two-time WWF Tag Team Champions.[8] They lost the championships to theLegion of Doom (Animal andHawk) on the October 13 episode ofRaw is War. After the match, they attacked Uncle Cletus.[9]
After the loss, the team had a gimmick change. They changed their name to Southern Justice, started using their real names and became backup forJeff Jarrett. This was short-lived as Canterbury injured his neck. He got surgery and spinal fusion but decided to retire from professional wrestling afterwards. Knight was renamed as Mideon.[10]