Hambledon

image_print

Introduction

Any study of Eighteenth Century cricket very soon has to address the history of Hambledon Cricket. The monument on the boundary of Broadhalfpenny Down towers over the period like the Colossus once dominated the harbour at Rhodes.

The writings of John Nyren about the cricketers who played there are very likely the most important ever produced about the game, not merely recording the events, but capturing and romanticising the game in a way that has affected how its supporters still see it. More prosaically, Hambledon cricket was where professional cricketers came to dominate the elite game and showed that playing the game was not merely a form of recreation, it could also be the path to fame and fortune. For the spectators, it provided great occasions, the appeal being a combination of financial interest for the gamblers, food and drink for masses and a celebration of local success for the supporters.

Many early cricket histories set out an intention of demythologizeing Hambledon but end up by saying just how important the club was. So let us deal with one misconception at the outset. Hambledon was not the “Cradle of Cricket”; by the time cricket started at Broadhalfpenny, that ship had already sailed – cricket had outgrown its infancy around one hundred and fifty years earlier, maybe even more. If a life journey is the appropriate metaphor, perhaps Hambledon was where the game came of age, where it revealed its potential to create a contest featuring multiple skills, revealing personality as well as athletic prowess and carrying within it an endless capacity for drama and spectacle. We will see.

The Hambledon Club

One of the most startling sentences I read in my research for this site came the Rowland Bowen: “…the Hambledon Club never played an eleven-a-side game in all its existence, and may well never have played any other kind of game”. Now, Bowen is among cricket historians, the great iconoclast, then one takes the most comprehensive delight in shattering the widely-proclaimed tenants of faith of the establishment, but surely this is going a bit far? Well it is really, but it is important to know what he meant. There was something called the Hambledon Club, which did not include players among their members and who arranged matches, often, but by no means always in its own name and contracted with players to perform for them. Essentially though, I think Bowen’s statement is nonsense – it is like saying that Manchester United never play any matches because the players do not own the club; the Hambledon arrangement then is the way professional clubs work. Bearing this in mind, games featuring Hambledon can be allocated to three categories:

  • Village matches, featuring local players, not under the aegis of the Hambledon Club. This would have been the case in the days before the Club was formed. There were also rare occasions in later years when the team was named as Hambledon Parish or Hambledon Town when only local players would be selected.
  • Games organised by the Hambledon Club using the Hambledon name.
  • Games organised by the Hambledon Club on behalf of the County of Hampshire or other broad geographical area.

The question of whether games are Hambledon or Hampshire is one disputed by historians, but not one that I propose to spend much time on. I regard the distinction are largely superficial, it being more important to be aware that all matches were to some extent, one-off with players being drafted in to make the occasion as attractive as possible for potential spectators and gamblers. W However the teams were named, the process of fielding the sides for great games always followed the same pattern. Or so it seems to me.

Add to that there is the complication of location – Broadhalfpenny Down is the most famous location, but Windmill Down was the main ground from 1783 onwards and Stoke Down, 12 miles away was many times used as a home ground for the period 1778-1782. And there were of course away fixtures as well, in the early days in Sussex and Kent but also, especially towards the end of the club’s life, in London itself. Let us now wind back again and see how all this developed.

The early years

The first record of a Hambledon game on the Down arises in 1756, coming from a passage in “The Oxford Gazette and Reading Mercury” which advertised the loss of a dog at a cricket match on Broad-Halfpenny Down. It seems that the match was Hambledon v Dartford one of a series of three matches, the last of which was at the Artillery Ground. Dartford however were an established side and the Artillery Ground a prestigious location, so it is certain that Hambledon were already a force in the game. Indeed a newspaper report on the Artillery game spoke of ‘the famous Hambledon gamesters’ so they were definitely known. When cricket started though and how it progressed in the days prior to that match is not known. Also several writers have made the point that though this is a Hambledon side, it is by no means certain that it is representing the Hambledon Club.

So when was The Club formed? Clues are sparce indeed, the most famous is that the then-aged William Beldham told Rev James Pycroft in 1859 “If you want to know, sir, the time the Hambledon Club was formed, I can tell you by this;—when we beat them in 1780, I heard Mr. Paulet say, ‘Here have I been thirty years raising our club, and are we to be beaten by a mere parish?’ so, there must have been a cricket club, that played every week regularly, as long ago as 1750.” This though, is problematic as Beldham is speaking from a distant memory. As it happens, most authorities think cricket would have started earlier, but the club itself would have been formed later.

The club’s founders are another matter that is not known with any certainty. Candidates include Rev Charles Powlett, Philip Dehany, Thomas Land (a minor cricket patron who lived locally), the club’s first treasurer, John Richards and a group of unnamed Westminster pupils from the 1740s. By 1767, the Club’s existence is, at last, certain1 and we have copies of the Club’s minutes from 1772.

Taking these known factors into accounts, we can speculate that the sequence of events in the early days of Hambledon Cricket may have been:

  • The locals started playing a few games and enthusiasm grew.
  • A golden generation of talent started to emerge. Good players became a winning team which led to more players through.
  • The early success attracted the interest of local gentry who wanted to be part of the success and to capitalise on it in some way. So they set up a social club which also employed the players, playing on their behalf and becoming professionals.
  • As the ambition of the club grew over the years so the catchment area of the players expanded and the quality of play rose.

This process however, was not one of uninterrupted success. John Nyren records “About the years 1769 and 1770, the Hambledon Club, having had a run of ill success, was on the eve of being dissolved. It had previously been supported by the most respectable gentlemen in that part of the country. They determined, however, once more to try their fortune, and on the 23rd September, 1771, having played the County of Surrey, at Laleham Burway, they beat them by one run. That seems to have been the turning point, the great days of Hambledon cricket were underway and essentially fall into two eras.

The Glory Days – the first era – 1772 – 1783

General

The first, can be thought of loosely as the Broadhalfpenny Down era and lasted about from around 1772 to 1783. Broadhalfpenny was the main ground for this period and teams were composed predominantly of men from the village or from a radius of around twelve miles of it. Most of them were from the middle ranks of village society – innkeepers, farmers, artisans and the like. They were prosperous enough to know the importance of respecting financial backers without being in awe of them.

Club days were generally on Tuesdays, the Hambledon Market day. Members would meet in the Bat and Ball, players would hold a practice game on the ground and hundreds of spectators would gather to see the action. Players would be paid in this period, but we do not know how much. It was probably around two or three shillings a game, plus travel expenses. These sums were not great, less than a normal days pay certainly.

In 1772, Hambledon enjoyed their first success against an England XI, when they won by 53 runs in what is often considered the first first-class match. They would go on to play England XIs 39 times in all, winning twenty three, drawing one and losing fifteen.

As noted above, the organisation of the club was in the hands of members, not players. in 1772 there were 25 of them and this rose to over 50 over the next twenty years. The members were generally for the upper echelons, and while they have occasionally played in a practice match, there numbers included none of the players listed above. We know from Nyren’s writing, as well as from the club minutes, that drink was a big element of the overall experience, both for spectators and players, and there were several marquees along the boundary.

Players

Based on Nyren, this is a select eleven composed of the players of this era:

PlayerOriginRoleCricket career
(approx)
Lifespan
John Small snrEmpshott, HampshireBat1764-17971737 – 1826
Peter StewartHambledonBat1764-17791730–1796
Tom Sueter HambledonWicket-keeper / batsman1764-17901750-1827
James AylwardWarnford, HampshireBat1773-17971741-1827
George LeerHambledonBat, long-stop fielder1770-17821748 – 1812
Richard Nyren captainSlindon, Sussex, moved to Hambledon c1762Left-handed batsman and bowler1769-17841734 – 1797
Edward ArburrowSlindon, SussexBat1770-17821747 – 1835
William HogsfleshSouthwick, HampshireBowler1768-17751744 -1818
William BarberWalberton, SussexBowler? – 17761734 –
William LambornNot knownSpin bowlers, with unique delivery1777 – 1781not known
Tom BrettCatherington, HampshireFast bowler1769 – 17781747-1809

The Glory Days – the second era – 1783 – 1791

General

Windmill Down was acquired as a ground in 1782 and, in some ways, the character of the club changed. The ground was private rather than public so crowds fell away. Players were less likely to be local, and the sides fielded became more of an all-star eleven. It may well be that our view of this era is distorted as Nyren writes less about it, but all-in-all it does seem a less romantic era.

What was happening elsewhere though is that the game in London was reasserting itself and offering opportunities for greater earnings for the very best players. A key development was the founding of the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1787 which was soon to assert itself as the main force in the cricketing world. Against this background, Richard Nyren left the club in 1791 – John Nyren wrote that the head and right arm were gone and he was pretty much right – the die was cast.

Players

Again, based on Nyren, this is a select eleven composed of the players of this era:

PlayerOriginRoleCricket career
(approx)
Lifespan
John Small jrPetersfieldBat1785 – 18111765 – 1836
Tom WalkerChurt, near Frensham, SurreyDefensive bat. Briefly experimented with round-arm bowling and with very high lobs1785 – 18121762 – 1831
Silver Billy BeldhamFarnhamBat1786 – 18621786 – 1862
Robert RobinsonAsh, near FarnhamBat1792 – 18191765 – 1822
Harry WalkerChurt, near Frensham, SurreyAggressive bat1784 – 18021760 – 1805
Thomas ScottAlton, HampshireBat1784 – 17991766 – 1799
John WellsFarnham, SurreyAll-rounder, good fielder1783 – 18151759 – 1835
Tom TaylorAlresford, HampshireAggressive bat, bowler, good fielder1775-17981753 – 1806
Richard PurchaseLiss, near PetersfieldSlowish bowler1781 – 1803
(plus a youthful
appearance in 1773)
1756 – 1837
Noah MannNorthchapel, SussexAggressive bat. Died in an accident1777 – 17891759 – 1789
David HarrisElvetham, HampshireBowler, perfected the length ball1782-17981755 – 1803

An important name missing from this list is that of Lumpy Stevens who played at Broadhalfpenny Down on many occasions either as a member of a visiting team or as a given man for Hambledon, something he could do as he was essentially freelance.

These were the players who brought cricket at Hambledon to the peak of its performance, Harris raising the standards of bowling and Beldham of batting. Forward play became predominant and footwork improved. As a result of the improvement in techniques, the game developed and became closer to the game we know today.

Patrons

  • Charles Powlett – He has been described as the mainstay, perhaps the founder, of the Hambledon Club. Powlett held an important position in the administration of cricket and was a member of the committee which revised the Laws of Cricket in 1774.
  • The Earl of Winchelsea was chairman of the Hambledon Club but founded the White Conduit Club in Islington in 1786 and persuaded Thomas Lord to prepare a ground in Marylebone. This became Lord’s, and the White Conduit Club became the MCC, which replaced Hambledon as the leading cricket force in the land.

The closing days

In 1793, war broke out with France and the club’s strength further diminished as players went to war at sea and on the continent. A meeting called for 29 August 1796 attracted only four members though several non-members as well, one of who is recorded as being Thomas Paine author of The Rights of Man – this actually seems unlikely as he was resident on the Continent at the time and persona-non-grata in England. A meeting in September 1796 had no members present and the is the last record of the Hambledon Club itself.

Hambledon villagers however carried on playing at Windmill Down until 1825, perhaps even beyond, but the great players who carried on were now to be found elsewhere.

The modern club

It is not the aim of this site to look very much at cricket after 1800. Nonetheless, tribute must be paid to the current Hambledon Cricket Club, the one that emerged in the middle of the nineteenth Century. Based at Ridge Meadow, near Windmill Down, they are a fine example of the best of English cricket. A thriving club, with strong teams and an energetic youth section, they are still conscious of their history – they hold six-monthly dinners at the Bat and Ball Inn and their third team play regular fixtures at Broadhalfpenny Down. Long may they prosper.

The Hambledon Club and the Laws

Of the many incorrect claims about the Hambledon Club is that, in its heyday, it was the main authority on the laws of the game. Ashely Mote expresses an an extreme version of this idea – he writes “The Hambledon club also became the sole source of decision and arbitration on matters pertaining to the laws of cricket”. Mote quote three examples, none of which stand up to scrutiny. Let us look at these in more detail.

Bat width

The fine cricket writer, Mike Selvey, had this to say on 22 September 2015:

It was 23 September 1771 when White went in to bat for Chertsey against Hambledon and ‘tried to use a bat that was fully as wide as the wicket itself’. It prompted the introduction of a rule that remains the standard today.2

And most authorities will add that it was the Hambledon Club that made this rule.

Sources are as follows:

Firstly Richard Nyren wrote

…on the 23rd of September, 1771, having played the County of Surrey, at Laleham Burway, they beat them by one run. Out of fifty-one matches played by the same club against England, &c., during the ensuing ten years, they gained twenty-nine of the number.

Several years since (I do not recollect the precise date) a player, named White, of Ryegate, brought a bat to a match, which being the width of the stumps, effectually defended his wicket from the bowler: and in consequence, a law was passed limiting the future width of the bat to 4¼ inches.

Secondly, this piece of paper, ostensibly a record of an resolution of the Hambledon Club, was for a long time displayed in the Bat and Ball Inn. It says

“In view of the performance of one White of Ryegate on September 23rd, that four and quarter inches shall be the breadth forthwith.
This 25th day of September 1771
Richard Nyren, T Brett, John Small”

However – John Goulstone3 has looked at this document in some depth and concluded that the document is a forgery. Briefly, the points he makes include the following:-

  • The signature of Richard Nyren is nothing like other examples we have of his signature.
  • The date of the match seem all wrong. It is derived from Nyren’s previous paragraph which clearly is about an different occasion.
  • Nyren, Brett and Small are players, not committee members, they would not have had the authority to pass a resolution of this nature.
  • John Nyren would only have been 6 years of age in September 1771, yet in old age he could still remember seeing the incident. One so young would not have travelled so it was almost certainly a home match and perhaps a year or two later.
  • All of the information could easily have been lifted from Cricketers of my Time – and almost certainly has been.
  • The document has no provenance before the 1930s.

At all events, the bat width was incorporated into the Laws of the Game somewhat later, in 1774. Probably the game was closer to the 1774 than 1771.

The third stump

Again, John Nyren is our source for this:

On the 22nd of May, 1775, a match was played in the Artillery Ground, between five of the Hambledon Club and five of All England; when Small went in the last man for fourteen runs, and fetched them. Lumpy was bowler upon the occasion; and it having been remarked that his balls had three several times passed between Small’s stumps, it was considered to be a hard thing upon the bowler that his straightest balls should be thus sacrificed; the number of the stumps was in consequence increased from two to three. Many amateurs were of opinion at the time that the alteration would tend to shorten the game; and subsequently the Hampshire gentlemen did me the honour of taking my opinion upon this point. 

The third stump however was not included in the Laws until 1826, until then it seems it was a matter of custom and practice. It certainly seems that Hambledon were to the fore of the change, but not as definitive arbitrators.

Round arm bowling

Nyren writes about Tom Walker:

About a couple of years after Walker had been with us, he began the system of throwing instead of bowling, now so much the fashion. At that time it was esteemed foul play, and so it was decided by a council of the Hambledon Club which was called for the purpose.

This is clearly an important matter, one that was not fully resolved until the middle of the Nineteenth Century. However, this seems to have been a decision internal the Hambledon Club, not a general edict. Someone would have a had a word with Walker and there is no evidence that round-arm bowling was being tried outside the club.

Codes of laws

It must be said in conclusion, there is no code of Hambledon Club Laws of Cricket, not any suggestion that such a thing existed. Neither do th eclub minutes ever suggest that the Laws of cricket are its concern. The only reasonable conclusion is that it simply was not a law-making body.

Laws were set at the Star and Garter Club in 1744 and were printed in 1755. The next revision was 1774 and was “Settled and revised at the Star and Garter in Pall Mall on Friday 25 February 1774 by a Committee of Noblemen and Gentlemen of Kent, Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex, Middlesex, and London.” Three of those present had close connections to Hambledon – they were the Reverend Charles Powlett (patron), Philip Delaney (member) and Charles Coles (soon to become a member) – so they were a major influence, but so were others.

The club toasts

From 1781, there were six toasts at club dinners (which were attended by members, not players) of which much has been written. They were:

  1. The Queen’s Mother
  2. The King
  3. The Hambledon Club
  4. Cricket
  5. To the Immortal Memory of Madge
  6. The President

The first is a puzzle as the Queen’s mother was German and not at all known in England. It is suggested that the fifth is a reference to the female genetalia using a kind of rhyming slang. We will never really know.

Club colours

The players wore white shirts and breeches to play in. The gentlemen’s shirts might have ruffed sleeves, but essentially, the players all looked alike. Off the field they wore light blue coats with black velvet collars and the letters CC on their buttons.

Footnotes

  1. Major, page 99 ↩︎
  2. The Guardian ↩︎
  3. Goulstone chapter 7 ↩︎
Scroll to Top