Background 1877 Wimbledon Championship

1 background

1.1 origins of lawn tennis
1.2 england croquet , lawn tennis club
1.3 rules of lawn tennis

background
origins of lawn tennis

a sphairistikè lawn tennis court designed major wingfield in 1874. hourglass shape retained in 1875 mcc rules replaced rectangular court in aeltc rules governed first wimbledon championship.

the origin of tennis lies in monastic cloisters in 12th-century france, ball struck palm of hand in game called jeu de paume. rackets introduced game in 16th century. original version of tennis, called real tennis , played indoors , popular among royalty , gentry, while crude outdoor version called longue paume played populace. prominence of game declined in 17th , 18th centuries, although there sporadic mentions of long tennis or field tennis version in second half of 18th century.

between 1858 , 1873 several people in victorian england experimented lawn version of tennis. major harry gem , augurio perera demonstrated game of pelota (spanish ball) , in 1872 created world s first lawn tennis club @ leamington spa. in february 1874 major clopton wingfield introduced version of lawn tennis, called sphairistikè; on patent application, described new , improved court playing ancient game of tennis , , rules published in eight-page booklet. wingfield credited popularising new game through energetic promotional efforts. sphairistikè court hourglass-shaped, wider @ baseline @ net. service made single side in lozenge shaped box situated in middle of court , had bounce beyond service line. in november 1874 wingfield published second, expanded edition of book of game, had 12 rules , featured larger court , lower net.

all england croquet , lawn tennis club

the england croquet club founded on 23 july 1868 6 gentlemen @ offices of field, weekly country , sports magazine. after yearlong search suitable ground of 4 acres of meadowland located between london , south western railway , worple road in wimbledon, outer suburb of london. club s committee decided on 24 september 1869 lease ground , paid £50 rental first year, fee increased £75 , £100, respectively, on following 2 years. increasing rent, coupled waning interest in sedate sport of croquet, causing club financial difficulties. in february 1875 decided introduce lawn tennis @ grounds capitalise on growing interest in new sport , generate additional revenue. proposal made henry jones, sports writer published extensively in field under nom de plume cavendish , had joined club in 1869. introduction of lawn tennis approved @ annual meeting , club s membership fee set @ 2 guineas cover both sports. @ cost of £25, 1 croquet lawn converted tennis court; after completion on 25 february 1875, dozen new club members joined. in 1876 4 more lawns, third of ground, handed on lawn tennis address increase in new members. committee member, george nicol, appointed deal exclusively lawn tennis affairs. lawn tennis had become popular on 14 april 1877 name of club formally changed, @ suggestion of founding member john h. hale, england croquet , lawn tennis club (aec&ltc).

rules of lawn tennis

on 3 march 1875 marylebone cricket club (mcc), in capacity governing body rackets , real tennis, convened meeting @ lord s cricket ground test various versions of lawn tennis aim standardise game s rules. wingfield present demonstrate sphairistikè, john h. hale, presented version called germains lawn tennis; there no record of either gem or perera being present showcase pelota. after meeting, mcc tennis committee tasked framing rules. on 29 may 1875 mcc issued laws of lawn tennis, first unified rules lawn tennis, adopted club on 24 june. these based on rules introduced wingfield in february 1874 , published in rule-booklet titled sphairistikè or lawn tennis. mcc adopted wingfield s hourglass-shaped court rackets method of scoring, in player first scores 15 points wins game , server ( hand-in ) able score. height of net set @ 5 ft (1.52 m) @ posts , 4 ft (1.22 m) in centre. various aspects of these rules, including characteristic court shape , method of scoring, subject of prolonged debate in press. mcc rules not universally adhered following publication and, among others, prince s club in london stuck playing on rectangular courts.

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