The Hambledon Club was a social club that is famous for its organisation of 18th century

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

matches. By the late 1770s it was the foremost cricket club in England.

Foundation

The origin of the club, based near Hambledon in rural

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, is unclear but it had certainly been founded by 1768. Its basis was a local parish

team that was in existence before 1750 and achieved prominence in 1756 when it played a series of three matches versus

Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames estuary, is Thurrock in ...

, which had itself been a major club for at least 30 years. At this time, the parish team was sometimes referred to as "Squire Land's Club", after Squire Thomas Land who was apparently the main organiser of cricket teams in the village before the foundation of the club proper.

Thomas Land

Thomas Land (1714–18 June 1791) seems to have withdrawn from the scene in about 1764. It is believed the Hambledon Club proper was formed not long afterwards. Land was interested in hunting and maintained a pack of hounds that earned him recognition as "one of the most celebrated fox-hunters in Great-Britain". Land is mentioned in the ''Hambledon Club Song'' written by Reverend Reynell Cotton in 1767. Apparently, Cotton was not too concerned about Land having left the club: :::::''Then why should we fear either Sackville or Mann,'' :::::''Or repine at the loss of both Bayton and Land?''

Growth

From the mid-1760s, Hambledon's stature grew till by the late 1770s it was the foremost cricket club in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. In spite of its relative remoteness, it had developed into a private club of noblemen and country gentry, for whom one of cricket's attractions was the opportunity it offered for betting. Although some of these occasionally played in matches, professional players were mainly employed. The club produced several famous players including John Small, Thomas Brett,

Richard Nyren Richard Nyren (1734 – 1797) was an English professional cricketer who played first-class cricket during the heyday of the Hambledon Club. A genuine all-rounder and the earliest known left-hander of note, Nyren was the captain of Hampshire when ...

, David Harris,

Tom Taylor Tom Taylor (19 October 1817 – 12 July 1880) was an English dramatist, critic, biographer, public servant, and editor of ''Punch'' magazine. Taylor had a brief academic career, holding the professorship of English literature and language a ...

, Billy Beldham and Tom Walker. It was also the inspiration for the first significant cricket book: '' The Cricketers of My Time'' by

John Nyren John Nyren (15 December 1764 – 30 June 1837) was an English cricketer and author. Nyren made 16 known appearances in first-class cricket from 1787 to 1817. He achieved lasting fame as the author of '' The Cricketers of My Time'', which was fir ...

, the son of Richard Nyren.

County teams

The Hambledon Club was essentially social and, as it was multi-functional, not really a cricket club as such. Rather it is seen as an organiser of matches. Arguments have taken place among historians about whether its teams should be termed

or Hambledon. A study of the sources indicates that the nomenclature changed frequently and both terms were applicable.Mote. On 24 June 1772, a Hampshire XI won by 53 runs against an England XI at

Broadhalfpenny Down Broadhalfpenny Down (pronounced /ˌbrɔ:dˈheɪpniː/; '' brawd-HAYP-nee'') is a historic cricket ground in Hambledon, Hampshire. It is known as the "Cradle of Cricket" because it was the home venue in the 18th century of the Hambledon Club, ...

in Hambledon. This is recognised by some authorities as cricket's inaugural first-class match and is the first one in ESPN's Cricinfo database. The subject is complicated by a reference to the Kent ''versus'' Hampshire & Sussex match at

Guildford Bason Guildford Bason (or Basin) is a former cricket ground on Merrow Down, on the outskirts of Guildford, Surrey. Cricket was played on the ground between 1730 and 1786. According to the source, "Hampshire & Sussex" was synonymous with "Hambledon Club".

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

cricket was not very prominent during the Hambledon period and this could have been because Hambledon operated a team effectively representing two counties. Certainly there were Sussex connections at Hambledon such as

John Bayton John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

, William Barber and

Noah Mann Noah Mann (15 November 1756 at Northchapel, Sussex – December 1789 at Northchapel) was a famous English cricketer who played for the Hambledon Club. The outstanding Hambledon all-rounder Noah Mann made his first-class debut in 1777. He made 5 ...

Broadhalfpenny Down to Windmill Down

In 1782 the club moved from its original ground at

to Windmill Down, about half a mile away towards the village of Hambledon. The

Bat and Ball Inn The Bat & Ball Inn is a historic eighteenth-century pub near Clanfield, Hampshire, England. The earliest widely accepted written rules for the game of cricket were drafted at the pub. History The pub is situated opposite the Broadhalfpenny Down ...

had been requisitioned as a munitions dump by the military, and Windmill Down provided as an alternative. However, after a couple of seasons playing on the steep sloping and highly exposed new ground the club agitated for a move to a more suitable location and Ridge Meadow was purchased as a permanent replacement. Ridge Meadow is still the home of Hambledon C.C. today.

Hambledon to Marylebone

Hambledon's great days ended in the 1780s with a shift in focus from the rural counties of

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and

to metropolitan

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

where

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...

was established as the home of the new

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

in 1787. However, for the decade up to 1793, Hambledon remained a meeting place for like-minded Royal Navy Officers such as Captains

Erasmus Gower Admiral Sir Erasmus Gower (3 December 1742 – 21 June 1814) was a Welsh naval officer and colonial governor. Naval career Gower, aged 13, joined the Royal Navy in 1755 under the patronage of his uncle, Captain John Donkley. He was present at ...

Robert Calder Admiral Sir Robert Calder, 1st Baronet, (2 July 174531 August 1818) was a British naval officer who served in the Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. For much of his career ...

Charles Powell Hamilton Admiral Charles Powell Hamilton (26 December 1747 – 12 March 1825) was an officer of the Royal Navy, who saw service during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of ...

, Mark Robinson, Sir Hyde Parker and

Robert Linzee Admiral Robert Linzee (1739 – 4 October 1804) was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Linzee entered the navy and was promoted to lieutenant during ...

. In May 1791

Lord Hugh Seymour Vice-Admiral Lord Hugh Seymour (29 April 1759 – 11 September 1801) was a senior British Royal Navy officer of the late 18th century who was the fifth son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, and became known for being both a ...

became president of the club but soon afterwards these officers all returned to sea. Membership declined during the 1790s. On 29 August 1796, fifteen people attended a meeting and amongst them, according to the official minutes, was "Mr Thos Pain, Authour of the rights of Man"! It was certainly a joke for

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

was then in France, having left England in 1792 shortly before being convicted of seditious libel in absentia. The last meeting was held on 21 September 1796 where the minutes read only that "No Gentlemen were present".

Toast

The club had a famous round of six toasts: :6. The Queen's mother :5. Her (His) Majesty the Queen (King) :4. The Hambledon Club :3. Cricket :2. The Immortal Memory of Madge :1. The President. "Madge" is a "what", not a "who", a common crude contemporary reference to the

vagina In mammals, the vagina is the elastic, muscular part of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vestibule to the cervix. The outer vaginal opening is normally partly covered by a thin layer of mucosal tissue called the hymen ...

New beginning

A bowler for Broadhalfpenny Brigands on the Down today

A description of the revival and, indeed, the whole history of the Hambledon Club can be read in ''The Glory Days of Cricket'' by

Ashley Mote Ashley Mote (25 January 1936 – 30 March 2020) was a former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South East England from 2004 to 2009. Elected representing the UK Independence Party, he became a non-inscrit one month into his term after ...

. The original ground is at

, opposite the

, in Hyden Farm Lane, near Clanfield, where now the Broadhalfpenny Brigands Cricket Club play. The current Hambledon Cricket Club ground is nearer Hambledon village at Ridge Meadow, just off the road to Broadhalfpenny Down, about half a mile from the village. On Saturday 8 September 2007 the clubhouse was burnt to the ground.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hambledon Club English club cricket teams Former senior cricket clubs English cricket teams in the 18th century Sports clubs established in the 1760s Cricket in Hampshire