The Prince's Club was a socially exclusive gentlemen's multisports club in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England. The original 'Prince's Club' was founded in 1853 in Chelsea by George and James Prince and its main sports were rackets and

real tennis Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called "the sport of kings" – is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of tennis (also called "lawn tennis") is derived. It is also known as court tennis in the United Sta ...

Cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

croquet Croquet ( or ) is a sport which involves hitting wooden, plastic, or composite balls with a mallet through hoops (often called Wicket, "wickets" in the United States) embedded in a grass playing court. Variations In all forms of croquet, in ...

and

lawn tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

were also played. After most of its ground was lost to building developments it closed in 1887. Its successor, the 'New Prince's Club', located in

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End. ...

, opened in 1888 and kept its focus on rackets and real tennis, but no longer had any outdoor sports. In 1896 the

Prince's Skating Club Prince's Skating Club was an ice rink in the Knightsbridge area of London, England. It saw a number of firsts for ice hockey in Britain and Europe. The rink was opened on Montpelier Square on 7 November 1896 by the Prince's Sporting Club. I ...

was opened. The Prince's Club was in operation until the 1940s.

Original Prince's Club

The original "Prince's Club" was founded in 1853 by George and James Prince, owners of a wine and cigar shop in

Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George IV of the United Kingdom, George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash (architect), J ...

, and it opened in 1854. Located on Henry Holland's Pavilion estate, between the current Lennox Gardens,

Cadogan Square Cadogan Square () is a residential square in Knightsbridge, London, that was named after Earl Cadogan. Whilst it is mainly a residential area, some of the properties are used for diplomatic and educational purposes (notably Sussex House School ...

and

Hans Place Hans Place (usually pronounced ) is a garden square in the Knightsbridge district of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, central London, London, immediately south of Harrods in SW postcode area, SW1. It is named after Sir Hans Sloane, ...

, an area covering about 13 acres, it was originally a members-only gentlemen's rackets and

club. Gentlemen wishing to join the club had to be proposed and seconded by two of its members. The members were allowed to introduce two friends, who were charged double the rate if they played. Another club rule stated that "no hazard, dice, or game of chance be allowed in this Club". In 1864 the club was incorporated as Prince's Racquets & Tennis Club Company Ltd. The club's main rackets court, which became known as the Prince's Match Court, set the standard dimensions (60 x 30 ft) and was the location of the most important matches of the time. Another six rackets courts were later added around the main court with varying sizes, some built wider for doubles matches. The University racket matches between

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

were held at the club from 1858 onwards and an annual competition for the Public Schools Championship was added in 1868 with Eton,

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Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

and Charterhouse competing in the first edition. In April 1860, the club opened a "very handsome and commodious"

Turkish bath A hammam (), also often called a Turkish bath by Westerners, is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited from the model ...

"realising the Roman process of a gymnasium, or ''philisterium'', in conjunction with the bath". Prince's Club was the first club to install such a bath, just weeks after London's first. In 1871 the Prince's Cricket Ground was added, laid out on the site of Cattleugh's nursery gardens, as well as a

lawn, followed by

and lastly a roller-skating rink which was used in the winter for ice skating. The

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

ground was used by the

Middlesex County Cricket Club Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Middlesex which has effectively been subsumed within the ceremonial ...

for their

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

matches between 1872 and 1876 before moving to

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

. The cricket ground was also used by

South of England Southern England, also known as the South of England or the South, is a sub-national part of England. Officially, it is made up of the southern, south-western and part of the eastern parts of England, consisting of the statistical regions of ...

and Gentlemen of the South. Several

Gentlemen v Players Gentlemen v Players was a long-running series of cricket matches that began in July 1806 and was abolished in January 1963. It was a match between a team consisting of amateurs (the Gentlemen) and a team consisting of professionals (the Players ...

fixtures were played there, the first taking place in 1873. In 1878 the touring Australian team played two matches on the ground. The club's heyday was in the early 1870s; it had over 1,000 members in 1873. The Prince's Club was one of the earliest lawn tennis locations after the sport was introduced in the mid-1870s. The club had two lawn tennis courts and organised open and handicap events. When the

Marylebone Cricket Club The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...

(MCC), in its capacity as the governing body for rackets and real tennis, issued the first unified rules for lawn tennis on 29 May 1875 they were not universally adhered to and the Prince's Club, among others, stuck to playing on rectangular courts instead of the prescribed hourglass-shaped courts. It held an

open tournament Open or OPEN may refer to: Music * Open (band), Australian pop/rock band * The Open (band), English indie rock band * ''Open'' (Blues Image album), 1969 * ''Open'' (Gerd Dudek, Buschi Niebergall, and Edward Vesala album), 1979 * ''Open'' (Got ...

in 1881 which leading players

Ernest Renshaw Ernest James Renshaw (3 January 1861 – 2 September 1899) was a British tennis player who was active in the late 19th century. Together with his twin brother William Renshaw, Ernest won the men's doubles at Wimbledon five times. He also won t ...

William Renshaw William Charles Renshaw (3 January 1861 – 12 August 1904) was a British tennis player active during the late 19th century, who was ranked world No. 1. He won twelve Wimbledon titles: seven in singles and five in doubles. A right-hander, R ...

and

Herbert Lawford Herbert Fortescue Lawford (15 May 1851 – 20 April 1925) was a former World number 1 male tennis player rankings, world No. 1 tennis player from Scotland who won the Men's Singles championship at The Championships, Wimbledon, Wimbledon in 1887 ...

competed. William Renshaw won the tournament while his brother Ernest won the handicap event. The following year, 1882, Ernest Renshaw won the open tournament. From 1881 through 1883 the club was the location of the varsity lawn tennis matches. On 31 July 1883 a match was played at Prince's between the Liberal government and the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

opposition, including

Lord George Hamilton Lord George Francis Hamilton (17 December 1845 – 22 September 1927) was a British Conservative Party politician of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who served as First Lord of the Admiralty and Secretary of State for India. Background ...

Arthur Balfour Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour (; 25 July 184819 March 1930) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As Foreign Secretary ...

and Herbert Gladstone, which ended in two-all. Princes Club 1857

Since the second half of the 1870s areas of the club's ground were gradually repurposed for building activities, enabled by 'The Cadogan and Hans Place Improvement Act of 1874'. A road was built on the southern part of the ground in the winter of 1876–1877. Part of the northern ground at Hans Road was lost in 1877 and the two lawn tennis courts had to be relocated. In the winter of 1877–1878 additional parts of the ground were used for building projects. In the summer of 1886 only the main rackets court and one of the tennis courts were left, and when its lease expired and its last buildings were demolished in the fall of 1886 the club closed in 1887.

New Prince's Club

The "New Prince's Club", officially named the "Prince's Racquet and Tennis Club", was a socially exclusive club and sports centre for the

upper ten Upper ten thousand, or simply, ''The Upper Ten'', is a 19th-century phrase referring to the wealthiest 10,000 residents of New York City. The phrase was coined in 1844 by American poet and author Nathaniel Parker Willis. Soon, the term came to be ...

. It opened in 1888 in

in the former Humphreys' Hall mansions which had been extensively reconstructed after a fire in May 1885. The Prince's Club title had been obtained from the Prince brothers. The official opening took place on 18 May 1889 and was performed by Albert Edward, the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

who was received by Sir William Hart Dyke, the president of the club. To mark the occasion an exhibition real tennis match was played between

Alfred Lyttelton Alfred Lyttelton KC (7 February 1857 – 5 July 1913) was a British politician and sportsman from the Lyttelton family who excelled at both football and cricket. During his time at university he participated in Varsity Matches in five sport ...

and Charles Saunders. The club had two rackets and two real tennis courts but no longer provided any outdoor sports facilities. The new club also had two bowling alleys and several baths, including an "elegantly constructed" Turkish bath decorated by the Sicilian artist Emilio Marolda assisted by a number of Italian artists. There was also a Russian vapour bath, a sitz bath, a needle shower, and hot and cold water baths. The plunge pool was lined with blue mosaic finished with a brass capping and, for use by the Prince of Wales, there was a private bath constructed "entirely of marble". The fittings were supplied by John Smeaton, Son, & Co who specialised in furnishing the better class Turkish baths of the day. The University racket matches as well as the Public Schools Championships moved to the newly created

Queen's Club The Queen's Club is a private sporting club in Barons Court, West Kensington, London, England. The club hosts the annual Queen's Club Championships grass court lawn tennis tournament (currently known as the "HSBC Championships" for spo ...

which took over the role of premier rackets facility from the Prince's Club. Prince's did introduce a rackets competition between officers of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

and the

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

which was played from 1919 onward. Many

championship challenges were played at Prince's,

Pierre Etchebaster Pierre Etchebaster (8 December 1893 – 24 March 1980) was a French real tennis player, (in French ''jeu de paume''), the original racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis is descended. Life Born in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France, a Bas ...

won the world championship here from

Fred Covey Geoffrey Frederick Covey (1881-1957) was world champion from 1912 to 1914 and from 1916 until 1928 at real tennis, the original racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis (which has usurped the name "tennis"), is descended. Biograph ...

in 1928, having failed to do so in 1927. Notable

professionals at Prince's include Henry Johns from c. 1926 to 1935.

Prince's Skating Club

In November 1896 at nearby Montpelier Square the

was founded, which hosted Prince's Ice Hockey Club. In March 1900, the rink hosted the first Ice Hockey Varsity Match, won 7–6 by Oxford. The skating club was sold in 1903 to the

Duchess of Bedford {{Notability, date=September 2022 Duchess of Bedford is a title given to the wife of the Duke of Bedford, an extant title in the peerage of England which was first created in 1414. Duchesses of Bedford

;1st creation (1414) *Anne of Burgundy ( ...

. The ice rink was the location of the figure skating events of the 1908 Summer Olympics held in October that year. From the beginning of the 20th century the club hosted of a number of exhibitions and bazaars. On 13–25 May 1909 it was the venue of the 'Women's Exhibition', a fundraising event organised by the

Women's Social and Political Union The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom founded in 1903. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership and p ...

(WSPU) in support of the

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

movement. The ice rink closed in 1917.

Prince's Club during Second World War

The Prince's Club ceased its activities during World War II when the clubhouse was requisitioned by the War Office. In mid-1940 after the Fall of France the Prince's Club became No 1 Army Postal Distribution Centre (No 1 APDC) run by the Royal Engineers (Postal Section). It was one of six Army Postal Distribution Centres established in Bristol, Shrewsbury, Leeds, Edinburgh and Belfast to provide a secure means of circulating mail for the 'Home Forces' organisation. The Home Postal Depot, Royal Engineers moved from Sutton Coldfield to take over the premises in 1948 and remained its occupiers until the building was torn down ca. 1952 to make way for the Mercury House flats.

Notes

References

{{Reflist, 40em

Sources

Social history: Social and cultural activities
''A History of the County of Middlesex, Volume 12: Chelsea'' (2004), pp. 166–176.