John Loraine Baldwin Vanity Fair 5 September 1895

John Loraine Baldwin (1 June 1809 – 25 November 1896) was a prominent English cricket enthusiast who was a co-founder of the

I Zingari I Zingari (from dialectalized Italian , meaning "the Gypsies"; corresponding to standard Italian ') are English and Australian amateur cricket clubs, founded in 1845 and 1888 respectively. It is the oldest and perhaps the most famous of the 'wa ...

nomadic cricket club.

Early life and education

He was born near Halifax,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

,Ivor Waters, ''Chepstow Scrapbook'', Moss Rose Press, 1986, , p.76 only son- he had nine sisters- of Lieutenant-Colonel John Baldwin of the 9th Dragoons, and Eliza, daughter of Rev. Lambton Loraine, rector of

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

, and

Nailstone Nailstone is a village and civil parish in the Hinckley and Bosworth district of Leicestershire, England, situated to the west of Leicester and north-east of Market Bosworth. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 521, ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

by his wife Isabella, daughter of Sir Lancelot Allgood, of

Nunwick Hall Nunwick Hall is a privately owned 18th-century country house near Simonburn, Northumberland in North East England. The estate has been the home of the Allgood family since the 17th century. The house is a Grade II* listed building but is not open ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

. Rev. Lambton Loraine was third son of Sir Charles Loraine, 3rd Baronet, of Kirk Harle, Northumberland, by Margaret, daughter of Ralph Lambton, of Lambton Hall,

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

, of the family of the Earls of Durham. Baldwin was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

where he developed interests in cricket and dramatics.

Career

He was a sports and games rules enthusiast, and one of the founders of I Zingari on 4 July 1845. He was also the writer of the first standardized rules for badminton in 1868, while on a visit to

Badminton House Badminton House is a large country house and Grade I Listed Building in Badminton, Gloucestershire, England, which has been the principal seat of the Dukes of Beaufort since the late 17th century. The house, which has given its name to th ...

, and editor of "The Laws of Short

Whist Whist is a classic English trick-taking card game which was widely played in the 18th and 19th centuries. Although the rules are simple, there is scope for strategic play. History Whist is a descendant of the 16th-century game of ''trump'' ...

" of 1864. He was Warden of

Tintern Abbey Tintern Abbey ( cy, Abaty Tyndyrn ) was founded on 9 May 1131 by Walter de Clare, Lord of Chepstow. It is situated adjacent to the village of Tintern in Monmouthshire, on the Welsh bank of the River Wye, which at this location forms the bor ...

in 1873. In 1870, Baldwin "devoted his time to a careful study of the game of Bésique", producing a volume on its rules and "a system ... by which all players should regulate their game".

Personal life

On 31 July, 1873, Baldwin married Elizabeth, daughter of Rev. Algernon Peyton, rector of

Doddington, Cambridgeshire __NOTOC__ Doddington is a village and civil parish lying just off the A141 in the Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, approximately half way () between Chatteris (to the south) and March (to the north) History St Mary's Church, Doddington is a G ...

, younger son of the politician Sir Henry Peyton, 1st Baronet and brother of the politician

Sir Henry Peyton, 2nd Baronet Sir Henry Peyton, 2nd Baronet (1779–1854), of Doddington, Cambridgeshire, Doddington, Cambridgeshire and Swift's House, Bicester, Oxfordshire was an English politician. He was the eldest son of Sir Henry Peyton, 1st Baronet of Doddington, who ...

. Elizabeth was widow of Royal Naval commander Lord Francis John Russell (1809-1861), son of

John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford, (6 July 1766 – 20 October 1839), known as Lord John Russell until 1802, was a British Whig politician who notably served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in the Ministry of All the Talents. He was the fathe ...

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the Kingdo ...

and half-brother of

John Russell, 1st Earl Russell John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known by his courtesy title Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and a ...

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern pr ...

from 1846 to 1852 and from 1865 to 1866. Baldwin died at his home, St Anne's House in

Tintern Tintern ( cy, Tyndyrn) is a village in the community (Wales), community of Wye Valley (community), Wye Valley, on the west bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, Wales, close to the border with England, about north of Chepstow. It is popular w ...

in 1896. A 'grand tomb' commemorates Baldwin in the churchyard of St Michaels, Tintern.Wye Valley Churchyards leaflet mentioning Baldwin's 'grand tomb' at gwentwildlife.org
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References

External links

The Laws of Short Whist
1865 edition at Google Books

English cricketers 1809 births 1896 deaths Cricketers from Halifax, West Yorkshire {{England-cricket-bio-1800s-stub