Tennis History:
Real Tennis as it is called in Britain, Royal Tennis as it is called in Australia, Court Tennis as it is called in the States, Jeu de Paume as it is called in France or Tennis as it is properly known, is the oldest of all the racket games, and unlike most of the others, such as squash or lawn tennis, it is a product of evolution rather than pure invention.
The game started to form into something recognizable in the 11th century. Gradually, as monks traveled to other monasteries, the more enjoyable rules were more generally adopted, the more bizarre rules abandoned and people started to add features to their courtyards that improved the pastime, and demolish or modify others that detracted from it.
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There are, of course, many other theories on the history of tennis. Roger Morgan's book 'Tennis, The development of the European ball game' is another source of information and conflicts with the above theories. Morgan also says that the origins were from a ball game played in the streets during the Middle Ages, which is a nice idea, but as the streets were also used as sewers, I don't think it would have been much fun, so I shall stick to the more romantic 'monasteries' theory for the time being.
The Equipment - Originally the game was played with the bare hand, later with a glove, and then someone had the bright idea of attaching cord or tendons to the fingers. The ball although similar in appearance to a lawn tennis ball is made with a core of cork, covered in cloth, tightly bound in string and covered in felt. This method has been used throughout history, although other substances such as hair or wool were used for the centre, and the balls were a good deal lighter, before the advent of the racket.
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The modern version of the game is virtually indistinguishable from the 16th century version, indeed the actual court that Charles I built at Hampton Court in 1625 is still used for championship play today. The 16th and 17th centuries were a golden age for Real Tennis; it was played by the nobility throughout England and France. It is even recorded that a court was built on a 2,000 ton French ship in the 16th century. The court at Versailles was built in 1686 at a cost of 45,403 Francs. By the 1700's the game had began to decline. The court at Versailles is now a museum (see image). By 1800, partly due to the Revolution the game in France was practically non existent.
In England in the Tudor and Stuart periods tennis flourished, Henry VII loved the game and his successor Henry VIII was an accomplished player and had the original court at Hampton Court Palace built. James I lost his life due to Real Tennis, as he tried to evade his assassins by hiding down the drains his path was blocked by Real Tennis balls! Charles I and Charles II both enjoyed the game and tennis thrived during this period, apart from some awkwardness between their reigns. Sadly this court was used for only 37 years, but the building still survives as the Bath Industrial Heritage Centre.
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In the mid 19th century there was a revival of the game and a flurry of court construction, primarily as additions to estates; most of the courts in use today are products of this period. The First World War cast a deep shadow over the game from which it has only just began to emerge. The Dutch Real Tennis Association has hopes to build a Real Tennis court in The Hague. Apparently the court, which was built around the 1790's, is now a gym. There are a small group of devotees keen to get the court going again; including Prince Nicholas Gallitzin.
