Badminton and it's English History

Imbued in English culture is a love and creator of Sports of all kinds. I have a website where I have listed and linked to the 100+ various sports and games created by us Brits. One of England’s popular games is Badminton which is played by over 1 million people every week. Badminton was originally an English game called “The battledore and shuttlecock Game”, an English game about which there are many references as far back as the 1400’s.

As early as 1860, Isaac Spratt, a London toy dealer, published a booklet, Badminton Battledore – a new game, but unfortunately no copy has survived.

The beginnings of Modern Badminton can be traced to mid-18th century British India, where it was created by British military officers stationed there. Early pictures show Englishmen adding a net to the traditional English game of battledore and shuttlecock. Being particularly popular in the British garrison town Poona (now Pune), the game also came to be known as Poona. Initially, balls of wool were preferred by the upper classes in windy or wet conditions, but ultimately the shuttlecock stuck. This game was taken by retired officers back to England where it developed and rules were set out.

The new sport was definitively launched in 1873 at Badminton House, Gloucester, England and owned by the Duke of Beufort ( The same house and grounds used every year for the Badminton Horse Show ). During that time, the game was referred to as “The Game of Badminton,” and the game’s official name became Badminton.

The game uses Shuttlecocks which are made up of nylon and feathers instead of balls. Shuttlecocks have been used in English games since the 8th Century.

Until 1887, the sport was played in England under the rules that prevailed in British India. The Bath Badminton Club standardized the rules and made the game applicable to English ideas. The basic regulations were drawn up in 1887. In 1893, the Badminton Association of England published the first set of rules according to these regulations, similar to today’s rules, and officially launched badminton in a house called “Dunbar” at 6 Waverley Grove, Southsea, Portsmouth, England on September 13 of that year. They also started the All England Open Badminton Championships, the first badminton competition held in the world, in 1899.

The International Badminton Federation (IBF) (now known as Badminton World Federation) was established in 1934 with the following countries:

• Canada

• Denmark

• England

• France

• Holland

• Ireland

• New Zealand

• Scotland

• Wales

India joined as an affiliate in 1936. The BWF now governs international badminton and develops the sport globally.

I would image during the last 1500 years my family have been playing the many sports developed and created in England and may have led to my family’s interest in most sports played in England and given to the world. My older brother Mark is a good example of our sporting prowess. When my brother was 11 years of age and onwards he represented his school in Cricket, Football, Tennis, Badminton, Athletics and when he was 15 years of age he had a Football trial with Portsmouth Football Club and at 16 years of age played for Hampshire juniors at Cricket.

It always amazes me how from a Island like England we created and gave the world over 100 sports and games that have dominated the world. My family tree has been traced back to the early Kings of England from the 7th. Century AD. This has given me an interest in English history and the sports England have created.

Please visit my Funny Sports and Badminton Art Prints Collection for sale @ http://ift.tt/1ROhlYZ

My other website is called Directory of British Icons: http://ift.tt/1sEW4GN

The Chinese call Britain ‘The Island of Hero’s’ which I think sums up what we British are all about. We British are inquisitive and competitive and are always looking over the horizon to the next adventure and discovery.

Copyright © 2010 Paul Hussey. All Rights Reserved.