Charles Duane Williams (August 11, 1860 – April 15, 1912) was an American lawyer who was fundamental in founding the

International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there a ...

. He died in the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic''.

Biography

Williams, originally from

Radnor, Pennsylvania Radnor is a community located approximately 13 miles west of Philadelphia, in the Main Line suburbs. It straddles Montgomery and Delaware Counties, Pennsylvania. The community was named after Radnor, in Wales. Radnor is home to Cabrini Universi ...

, spent most of his life in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Williams is generally regarded the main driving force behind the foundation of the

in 1913. There are two versions of what he actually did. According to one version, he addressed the president of the Swiss Lawn Tennis Federation, Charles Barde, whom he told of his idea to found an international umbrella association for

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

. Barde then told this to the president of the French tennis organization, Henry Wallet. According to another version, Williams wrote a letter to Wallet directly in October 1911, proposing to hold an international tennis tournament at Paris (the

French Championships The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...

were only open to players from French clubs at that time). As the

Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...

were seen as the world championships on grass courts, he proposed to introduce a world championships on clay. Williams' letter led to the introduction of the

World Hard Court Championships World Hard Court Championships was an annual major tennis tournament sanctioned by the International Lawn Tennis Federation and held from 1912 to 1923. It was principally held in Paris, on clay courts of the Stade Français in the Paris suburb of ...

at Paris in 1912. The tournament's organizing committee consisting of delegates from several countries later evolved the International Lawn Tennis Federation, which was founded on March 1, 1913 at Paris. In April 1912, Williams planned to return to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

along with his son, R. Norris Williams ("Dick"), a famous tennis player, in order to visit his wife, Lydia Biddle Williams-White. Both men boarded the RMS ''Titanic'' at

Cherbourg Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...

, as first class passengers. After the ship hit an iceberg and was sinking, father and son jumped into the water. While Dick was able to save himself, his father was killed by the first

funnel A funnel is a tube or pipe that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, used for guiding liquid or powder into a small opening. Funnels are usually made of stainless steel, aluminium, glass, or plastic. The material used in its construct ...

falling from the ship.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Duane 1860 births 1912 deaths Deaths on the RMS Titanic People from Radnor Township, Pennsylvania History of tennis 19th-century American lawyers