This is a history of cricket from its origins up to the time when it became a major English sport towards the end of the 17th century. The game of cricket has a known history spanning from the 16th century to the present day, with international matches played since 1844, although the official history of international Test cricket began in 1877. ... By the end of the 17th century, cricket had progressed to the point where it was ready to break its bounds as a village pastime and enter the age of great matches. ... See also: History of cricket; History of cricket to 1696; History of cricket 1697 - 1725 This is a stub that will expand into a history of cricket through its years of great development from the end of the 17th Century to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. ... For more coverage of cricket, see the cricket portal. ... For more coverage of cricket, see the cricket portal. ... For more coverage of cricket, go to the Cricket portal. ... England in Australia 1901/2. ... The history of the West Indian cricket team begins in the 1890s, when the first representative sides were selected to play visiting English sides. ... Barry Richards International cricket in South Africa between 1971 and 1981 consisted of 4 private tours arranged by English sports promoter Derrick Robins, 2 tours by a private team called the International Wanderers, and one womens Test match. ... The International Cricket Council organise international cricket This article discusses International cricket in the 2005 season. ... This article contains information on International cricket in the 2005-06 cricket season, as defined by Cricinfo - mainly containing the results of tours from September 2005 until May 2006. ... International cricket played in the 2006 cricket season is defined as matches scheduled between May and August 2006 in all cricketing countries, as well as all international matches scheduled for the 2006 English cricket season. ... For more coverage of cricket, go to the Cricket portal. ... This is a list of Test cricket records; that is, record team and individual performances in Test cricket. ... This list of first-class cricket records shows some record team and individual performances in first-class cricket. ... For the insect, see Cricket (insect). ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ...

Chronology: 1300 - 1696

A number of cricket books make reference to incidents in the distant past before the game became properly organised and promoted during the 18th century. As far as is known, there is no comprehensive chronology of those events and the purpose here has been to create one. Starting with the tentative reference to creag in the days of Edward Longshanks, this is a collation of all known references until the mists of time began to clear around the beginning of the 18th Century and cricket matters began to be reported with increasing frequency and more detail in the English press. (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ...

1300 

Thurs 10 March (Julian). Wardrobe accounts of Edward I include a reference to a game called creag being played at the town of Newenden in Kent by the Prince of Wales, then aged 15 or 16. It has been suggested that creag was an early form of cricket. There is no evidence to support this view and creag could have been something quite different, but it does at least seem a likely suspect, especially when the location is considered. Events February 22 - Jubilee of Pope Boniface VIII. March 10 - Wardrobe accounts of King Edward I of Englanddo (aka Edward Longshanks) include a reference to a game called creag being played at the town of Newenden in Kent. ... March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in leap years). ... Edward I (June 17, 1239 – July 7, 1307), popularly known as Longshanks because of his 6 foot 2 inch (1. ...

The most widely accepted theory on the origin of cricket is that it developed among the farming and metalworking communities of the Weald, which spreads across Kent and Sussex. It is significant that these counties and neighbouring Surrey were the earliest centres of excellence and that it was from there that the game eventually reached London, where it achieved mass popularity, and Hampshire, where it achieved both fame and legend. A weald once meant a dense forest, especially the famous great wood once stretching far beyond the ancient counties of Sussex and Kent, England, where this country of smaller woods is still called the Weald. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... Sussex is a traditional county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. ... Surrey is a county in southern England, part of the South East England region and one of the Home Counties. ... London (pronounced ) is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom. ... Hampshire (abbr. ...

It is quite likely that cricket was devised by children and survived for many generations as essentially a children’s game. Possibly it was derived from bowls, assuming bowls is the older sport, by the intervention of a batsman trying to stop the ball reaching its target by hitting it away. Playing on sheep-grazed land or in clearings, the original implements may have been a matted lump of sheep’s wool (or even a stone or a small lump of wood) as the ball; a stick or a crook or another farm tool as the bat; and a gate (e.g., a wicket gate), a stool or a tree stump as the wicket. The invention of the game could have happened in Norman or Plantagenet times anytime before 1300; or even in Saxon times before 1066. Events February 22 - Jubilee of Pope Boniface VIII. March 10 - Wardrobe accounts of King Edward I of Englanddo (aka Edward Longshanks) include a reference to a game called creag being played at the town of Newenden in Kent. ... Events January 6 - Harold II is crowned September 20 - Battle of Fulford September 25 - Battle of Stamford Bridge September 29 - William of Normandy lands in England at Pevensey. ...

There is a theory about the development of the game’s name which suggests that creag evolved into creag-a-wicket and then into the rhyming cricket-a-wicket, but this must have been much later and is in any case speculation. It seems more likely that the name derived from words that were in use, probably imported, after the Norman Conquest in 1066. In old French, the word criquet (which may have been confused with etiquet) seems to have meant a kind of club or stick; and it might have given its name to croquet. Some believe that cricket and croquet have a common origin but there is no evidence to substantiate that view. In Flemish, krick(-e) meant a stick and, in Olde English, cricc or cryce meant a crutch or staff. Bayeux Tapestry depicting events leading to the Battle of Hastings The Norman Conquest of England was the conquest of the Kingdom of England by William the Conqueror (Duke of Normandy), in 1066 at the Battle of Hastings and the subsequent Norman control of England. ... Events January 6 - Harold II is crowned September 20 - Battle of Fulford September 25 - Battle of Stamford Bridge September 29 - William of Normandy lands in England at Pevensey. ... Winslow Homer: Croquet, 1864 Croquet is a recreational game and, latterly, a sissy sport that involves hitting wooden or plastic balls with a mallet through hoops embedded into the grass playing arena. ... The term Flemish can be a linguistic one, referring to the speech of the Flemings, inhabitants of Flanders, or a geographical one, referring to any attribute of Flanders, but not to its official language, which is exclusively Dutch. ...

1337 

Edward III claimed the throne of France and so began a long series of conflicts that is collectively known as the Hundred Years War, which did not end until the English were finally expelled from most of France (i.e., except Calais) in 1453. Many tentative cricket references have been found which have an apparent “French Connection”, such as one at St Omer in 1478 (see below). Some historians seem to think the game might have originated in France or perhaps in neighbouring Flanders. They are missing a key historical point. As the Hundred Years War progressed, large parts of France including great cities like Paris and Bordeaux were subject to long-term English occupation. Paris, when François Villon was born there in 1431, was described as “an English town”. Calais remained an English possession until 1558, a whole century after the end of the Hundred Years War. So there may well be cricket references in France but they do not indicate a movement of the sport from France to England; they indicate that English soldiers and settlers brought their culture with them across the Channel during the long period of occupation. March 16 - Edward, the Black Prince is created Duke of Cornwall, becoming the first English Duke Beginning of the Hundred Years War (c. ... Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377) was one of the most successful English kings of medieval times. ... This article is in need of attention. ... Events May 29 - Fall of Constantinople to Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror, marking the end of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire). ... Saint-Omer, a town and commune of Artois in northern France, sous-préfecture of the Pas-de-Calais département, 42 miles west-north-west of Lille on the railway to Calais. ... Events February 18 - George, Duke of Clarence, convicted of treason against his older brother Edward IV of England, is privately executed in the Tower of London. ... François Villon (ca. ... Events February 21 - The trial of Joan of Arc March 3 - Eugenius IV becomes Pope May 30 - In Rouen, France, 19-year old Joan of Arc is burned at the stake. ...

1477 

A statute of King Edward IV banned certain games, including one called handyn and handoute, on the grounds that they distracted his subjects from their compulsory practice of archery. There is no evidence to suggest that handyn and handoute was a form of cricket, as some have surmised. It was probably a simple indoor gambling game. Events January 5 - Battle of Nancy - Charles the Bold of Burgundy is again defeated, and this time is killed. ... Edward IV (April 28, 1442 – April 9, 1483) was King of England from March 4, 1461 to April 9, 1483, with a break of a few months in the period 1470–1471. ... These arrows score as an inner 10 (X), and a 9 Archery is the practice of using a bow to shoot arrows. ...

1478 

A spurious reference to criquet near St Omer in Flanders, then part of the Duchy of Burgundy, seems to be a misreading of the word etiquet meaning a small stick. See explanation in HMM. Events February 18 - George, Duke of Clarence, convicted of treason against his older brother Edward IV of England, is privately executed in the Tower of London. ... Saint-Omer, a town and commune of Artois in northern France, sous-préfecture of the Pas-de-Calais département, 42 miles west-north-west of Lille on the railway to Calais. ... Flanders (Dutch: Vlaanderen) has several main meanings: the social, cultural and linguistical, scientific and educational, economical and political community of the Flemings; some prefer to call this the Flemish community (others refer to this as the Flemish nation) which is, with over 6 million inhabitants, the majority of all Belgians... The following is a list of the Dukes of Burgundy Richard of Autun, the Justicier (880–921) Rudolph of Burgundy (king of France from 923) (921–923) Hugh the Black (923–952) Gilbert of Chalon (952–956) Odo of Paris (956-965) Otto-Henry the Great...

1523 

Reference to stoolball found (see Bowen) re a designated field in Oxfordshire. This may be a generic term for any game in which a ball is somehow hit; or it may be a specific reference to an early form of rounders. 18th Century references to stoolball in conjunction with cricket clearly indicate that it was a separate activity. (See the references in TJM, paragraphs 98, 361 and 377.) Events April - Battle of Villalar - Forces loyal to Emperor Charles V defeat the Comuneros, a league of urban bourgeois rebelling against Charles in Spain. ... Stool ball is a historical ball game, originating in southern England, where variants are still played in some schools. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ...

1550 

Evidence in a 1597 court case indicates that kreckett was played on a certain plot of land in Guildford around 1550. This is the earliest reference to cricket being played in Surrey. Events February 7 - Julius III becomes Pope. ... Events 17 January - A court case in Guildford recorded evidence that a certain plot of land was used for playing “kreckett” (i. ...

1597 

Mon 17 January. The court case in Guildford concerned a dispute over a school's ownership of the plot of land in question. A 59-year old coroner, John Derrick, testified that he and his school friends had played kreckett on the site fifty years earlier. This is generally considered to be the first definite mention of cricket in the English language. The school was the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, and Mr. Derrick's account proves beyond reasonable doubt that the game was being played c.1550. Events 17 January - A court case in Guildford recorded evidence that a certain plot of land was used for playing “kreckett” (i. ... January 17 is the 17th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Royal Grammar School is a boring school in Guildford, Surrey, United Kingdom. ...

John Eddowes in his The Language of Cricket (1997) points out that Mr Derrick’s surname was derived from the Flemish name Hendrik. In Rowland Bowen’s history, he mentions that Heiner Gillmeister of Bonn University, a European language expert, derived “cricket” from the Flemish met de (krik ket)sen (i.e., "with the stick chase"), which may indicate a possible Flemish connection in the game’s origin, but it is more likely that the terminology of cricket was based on words in use in south east England at the time and, given trade connections with Flanders, especially in the 15th century when it belonged to the Duchy of Burgundy, many Flemish words will have found their way into southern English dialect.

1598 

There was a reference to cricket in an Italian-English dictionary produced in 1598 by Giovanni Florio and his definition of the word sgillare, which he defines as: “to make a noise as a cricket, to play cricket-a-wicket, and be merry”. Some writers think the reference is spurious and relates only to the insect variety of cricket but “to play cricket-a-wicket” hardly suggests insect activity. Given the reference to cricket as a boys’ game in another dictionary only 13 years later, it would seem that Florio does have both an insect and a game in mind. Events January 7 - Boris Godunov seizes the throne of Russia following the death of his brother-in-law, Tsar Feodor I. April 13 - Edict of Nantes - Henry IV of France grants French Huguenots equal rights with Catholics. ... Giovanni Florio (1553 – ?1625), English writer, was born in London about 1553. ...

1600 

Queen Elizabeth I granted a Royal Charter to the Honourable East India Company, often colloquially referred to as “John Company”. The East India Company was the means by which cricket was introduced into India 1597 1598 1599 - 1600 - 1601 1602 1603 |- | align=center colspan=2 | Decades: 1570s 1580s 1590s - 1600s - 1610s 1620s 1630s |- | align=center | Centuries: 15th century - 16th century - 17th century |} // Events January January 1 - Scotland adopts January 1st as being New Years Day February February 17 - Giordano Bruno burned at the... Elizabeth I Queen of England and Ireland Queen of France, nominal title Elizabeth I (September 7, 1533–March 24, 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from November 17, 1558 until her death. ... The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as John Company, was a joint-stock company which was granted an English Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intention of favouring trade privileges in India. ...

1609 

The first British settlement in the West Indies was on Bermuda by shipwrecked English colonists originally bound for Virginia. The settlement became permanent in 1612. The earliest definite reference to cricket in the West Indies is dated 1806 but there is no doubt the game must have been introduced by English colonists very early in the 17th century, as it was in England's North American colonies. // Events April 4 – King of Spain signs an edit of expulsion of all moriscos from Spain April 9 – Spain recognizes Dutch independence May 23 - Official ratification of the Second Charter of Virginia. ...

1610 

First definite mention of cricket in Kent concerned a match at Chevening between teams from the Weald and the Downs. // Events January 7 - Galileo Galilei discovers the Galilean moons of Jupiter. ...

1611 

First definite mention of cricket in Sussex relates to ecclesiastical court records which state that two parishioners of Sidlesham in west Sussex failed to attend church on Easter Sunday because they were playing cricket. They were fined 12d each and made to do penance. Events June 23 - Henry Hudsons crew maroons him, his son and 7 others in a boat November 1 - At Whitehall Palace in London, William Shakespeares romantic comedy The Tempest is presented for the first time. ...

A French-English dictionary was published by Randle Cotgrave. The noun crosse is defined as the crooked staff wherewith boys play at cricket. The verb form of the word is crosser, defined as to play at cricket. Randle Cotgrave (died 1634) was an English lexicographer who in 1611 compiled and published A Dictionarie of the French and English Tongues, a bilingual dictionary that represented a real breakthrough at the time and remains historically important. ...

It is interesting that cricket was defined as a boys’ game in the dictionary, as per the Guildford schoolboys of the 16th Century, but that adults were playing it in Sussex at the beginning of the 17th Century. It almost seems as if Mr Cotgrave was "overtaken by events" here. No sooner did he publish his dictionary than his definition was updated by the involvement of adults in cricket. (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ...

1613 

A court case recorded that someone was assaulted with a cricket staffe at Wanborough, near Guildford. Events January - Galileo observes Neptune, but mistakes it for a star and so is not credited with its discovery. ...

1622 

Several parishioners of Boxgrove, near Chichester in west Sussex, were prosecuted for playing cricket in a churchyard on Sunday 5 May. Events January 1 - In the Gregorian calendar, January 1 is declared as the first day of the year, instead of March 25. ...

There were three reasons for the prosecution: one was that it contravened a local bye-law; another reflected concern about church windows which may or may not have been broken; the third was that a little childe had like to have her braines beaten out with a cricket batt! This latter situation was because the rules at the time allowed the batsman to hit the ball twice and so fielding near the batsman was very hazardous, as two later incidents drastically confirm.

This is the earliest reference to the cricket bat. The use of a “batt” in cricket was peculiar to Kent and Sussex where coastal smugglers were known as batmen, because of the cudgels they carried. The earliest reference to a “flat-faced” bat (i.e., with a flat surface at the bottom of the stick in ice hockey style) also occurs in 1622 in the files of the Sussex Records Society (see Terry, note 23).

The term “bat” remained comparatively rare until about 1720. The terms in more general use were “staff”, “stave” or “stick”. These tended to have regional usage: for example, “stave” was used in the Gloucester area and “batt” in the south-east; while “staff” and especially “stick” were more widely used. “Bat” is derived from the French battledore, shaped like a table tennis bat, which was used by washerwomen to beat their washing with! (See OED re “battledore”).

1624 

A fatality occurred at Horsted Keynes in east Sussex when a fielder called Jasper Vinall was struck on the head by the batsman who was trying to hit the ball a second time to avoid being caught. Mr. Vinall is thus the earliest recorded cricketing fatality. The matter was recorded in a coroner’s court, which returned a verdict of misadventure. Events January 24 - Alfonso Mendez, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Prelate of Ethiopia, arrives at Massawa from Goa. ... Jasper Vinall (died 28 August 1624) was the first known cricketer to be killed while playing the game when he was accidentally struck by the bat of Edward Tye. ...

An interesting point arising from the court record is that both Jasper Vinall and the batsman Edward Tye came from West Hoathly, another village, which indicates that games involving teams from different villages were already being played.

1628 

An ecclesiastical case is preserved that relates to a game at East Lavant, near Chichester in western Sussex, being played on a Sunday. One of the defendants argued that he had not played during evening prayer time but only before and after. It did him no good as he was fined the statutory 12d and ordered to do penance. Doing penance involved confessing his guilt to the whole East Lavant congregation the following Sunday. Events March 1 - writs were issued in February 1628 by Charles I of England that every county in England (not just seaport towns) pay ship tax by this date. ...

1629 

Henry Cuffin, a curate at Ruckinge in Kent, was prosecuted by an Archdeacon’s Court for playing cricket on Sunday evening after prayers. He claimed that several of his fellow players were persons of repute and fashion. This may indicate that cricket had achieved popularity among the well-to-do. Events March 4 - Massachusetts Bay Colony is granted a Royal charter. ...

1636 

In a court case concerning a tithe dispute, a witness called Henry Mabbinck testified that he played cricket in the Parke at West Horsley in Surrey. Events February 24 - King Christian of Denmark gives an order that all beggars that are able to work must be sent to Brinholmen Island to build ships or as galley rowers March 26 - Utrecht University founded in The Netherlands. ...

1637 

Another ecclesiastical case records parishioners of Midhurst, west Sussex, playing cricket during evening prayer on Sunday 26 February. Events February 3 - Tulipmania collapses in Netherlands by government order February 15 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor December 17 - Shimabara Rebellion erupts in Japan Pierre de Fermat makes a marginal claim to have proof of what would become known as Fermats last theorem. ...

1640 

Puritan clerics, at Maidstone and at Harbledown near Canterbury, denounced cricket as profane, especially if played on Sunday. Events December 1 - Portugal regains its independence from Spain and João IV of Portugal becomes king. ...

The influence of Puritans at this time is significant as this was the year in which the Long Parliament was first assembled and proved to be a precursor to the English Civil War. The Long Parliament is the name of the English Parliament called by Charles I, in 1640, following the Bishops Wars. ... The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations which took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651. ...

1642 

The English Civil War began and Parliament banned theatres, which had met with Puritan disapproval. Although similar action would be taken against certain sports, it is not clear if cricket was in any way prohibited, except that players must not break the Sabbath. References to the game during the Cromwell years suggest that it was not widely banned. Events January 4 - Charles I attempts to arrest five leading members of the Long Parliament, but they escape. ... For the Monty Python song based on the historical figure, see Oliver Cromwell (song) Oliver Cromwell (April 25, 1599 – September 3, 1658) was an English military and political leader, considered by critics to be a dictator, best known for making England a republic and leading the Commonwealth of England. ...

The preceding references indicate that inter-parish matches were being played but there is nothing to suggest that any teams representative of counties had been formed by this time. There is no evidence of large scale gambling or patronage prior to the English Civil War and it was those factors which drove the formation of "representative" teams in the 18th Century. It must be concluded, therefore, that the level of cricket being played before the war was still "minor" standard: inter-parish at best.

1646 

The earliest record of an organised match is held in the report of a court case. The match took place at Coxheath in Kent on 29 May. The case concerned non-payment of a wager that was made at the game. Curiously, the wager was for twelve candles! The participants included members of the local gentry: further evidence of the sport’s growing affluence. // Events The Westminster Confession of Faith Ongoing events Wars of the Three Kingdoms, including the English Civil War (1642-1649) Births February 4 - Hans Erasmus Aßmann, Freiherr von Abschatz, German statesman and poet (d. ...

1647 

A Latin poem contains a probable reference to cricket being played at Winchester College, earliest known mention of cricket in Hampshire. // Events March 14 - Thirty Years War: Bavaria, Cologne, France and Sweden sign the Truce of Ulm. ...

A fatality was recorded at Selsey, west Sussex, when a player called Henry Brand was hit on the head by the batsman trying to hit the ball a second time. The case was obviously a repeat of the Horsted Keynes incident in 1624.

1652 

A case at Cranbrook against John Rabson, Esq. and others refers to a certain unlawful game called cricket. It is interesting that the game was described as unlawful and that Rabson was evidently a gentleman whereas the other defendants were all working class. Cricket has long been recognised as the sport that bridged the class divide. // Events April 6 - Dutch sailor Jan van Riebeeck establishes a resupply camp for the Dutch East India Company at the Cape of Good Hope, and founded Cape Town. ...

European colonisation of southern Africa began when the Dutch East India Company established a settlement called the Cape Colony on Table Bay, near present-day Cape Town. There was no significant British interest in South Africa until the Napoleonic Wars, when the Netherlands fell to Bonaparte and the British decided to secure the colony against French encroachment. The whole territory was formally ceded to Great Britain in 1814 by the Anglo-Dutch Treaty and administered as Cape Colony until it joined the Union of South Africa in 1910. Dutch colonial possessions, with the Dutch East India Company possessions marked in a paler green, surrounding the Indian Ocean plus Saint Helena in the mid-Atlantic. ... Official language English and Dutch1 Capital Cape Town Largest City Cape Town Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 1st 569,020 km² (1910) Negligible Population  - Total (1911)  - Density Ranked 1st 2,564,965 4. ... Cape Town, False Bay (top) and Table Bay (right) from space, February 1995. ... City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Location of the City of Cape Town in Western Cape Province Province Western Cape Mayor Helen Zille Area  - % water 2,499 km² N/A Population  - Total (2004)  - Density Not ranked 2,893,251 1,158/km² Established 1652 Time zone SAST (UTC+2... Combatants Allies: • Great Britain (until 1801)/United Kingdom(from 1801) • Prussia • Austria • Sweden • Russia • Portugal • Spain • and others • France • Denmark-Norway • Poland Casualties Full list The Napoleonic Wars comprised a series of global conflicts fought during Napoleon Bonapartes rule over France (1799 - 1815). ... Anglo-Dutch Treaty refers to either of the following: Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 (Convention of London) Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 (Treaty of London) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... National motto: Ex Unitate Vires (Latin: From Unity, strength} Official languages Afrikaans, Dutch and English. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ...

Cricket arrived very quickly once the British had finally taken over with the earliest known reference to the game in South Africa dated 1808. 1808 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

1653 

Some sports evidently were approved by the Puritans as Izaak Walton published The Compleat Angler. Events February 2 - New Amsterdam (later renamed New York City) is incorporated. ... Izaak Walton (August 9, 1593 - December 15, 1683) was an English writer, author of The Compleat Angler. ...

1654 

Three men were prosecuted at Eltham in Kent for playing cricket on Sunday. As the Puritans were now firmly in power, Cromwell’s Protectorate having been established the previous year, the penalty was doubled to 24d (two shillings). Events April 5 - Signing of the Treaty of Westminster, ending the First Anglo-Dutch War. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

1655 

British forces seized the Spanish island of Jamaica which, like all other British possessions in the New World, was exploited by means of slave labour. By 1800, there were 300,000 black slaves and only 30,000 white "masters" in Jamaica alone. After slavery was finally abolished and a majority black civilian population was established in the islands, cricket retained its popularity and numerous great players have been born in the West Indies. Events March 25 - Saturns largest moon, Titan, is discovered by Christian Huygens. ... 1800 (MDCCC) was an exceptional common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, but a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Caribbean or the West Indies is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. ...

1656 

The defendants in the 1654 case were charged with breaking the Sabbath, not with playing cricket. Cromwell’s commissioners in Ireland did ban sport in 1656 but not cricket. They were concerned as always with preventing unlawful assemblies in Ireland and sport was held to be that. The sport in question was hurling. Cricket had probably not reached Ireland at this time. // Events Mehmed Köprülü becomes Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire. ... The counties of Ireland, coloured by dominant sport. ...

1658 

The cricket ball was first referred to in those terms in a book by Edward Phillips. Events January 13 - Edward Sexby, who had plotted against Oliver Cromwell, dies in Tower of London February 6 - Swedish troops of Charles X Gustav of Sweden cross The Great Belt (Storebælt) in Denmark over frozen sea May 1 - Publication of Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial and The Garden of Cyrus by... Edward Phillips (August, 1630 - about 1696), was an English author. ...

1660 

The Restoration of the monarchy in England was immediately followed by the reopening of the theatres and so any sanctions that had been imposed by the Puritans on cricket would also have been lifted. Although there are only a few references to the game in the time of Charles II, it is clear that its popularity was increasing and that it was expanding. // Events January 1 - Colonel George Monck with his regiment crosses from Scotland to England at the village of Coldstream and begins advance towards London in support of English Restoration. ... King Charles II, the first monarch to rule after the English Restoration. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland from 30 January 1649 (de jure) or 29 May 1660 (de facto) until his death. ...

The Restoration was effectively completed during the spring of 1660 and it can safely be assumed that, in the general euphoria which both accompanied and followed these historic events, gambling on cricket and other sports was freely pursued. It is logical to assume that the large amounts at stake will have led some investors to try and improve their chances of winning by forming teams that were stronger than your typical parish XI. Although details continue to be conspicuous by their absence, there can be little doubt that the first teams representing several parishes and even whole counties were formed at this time; and so it may reasonably be concluded that this period saw the first great matches or major matches or important matches or whatever term may be applied to denote the highest level of cricket.

Indeed, it must be so that this was the historical point of origin of first-class cricket.

1662 

The Printing Act was passed and introduced very stringent controls of the press. Sport, including cricket, was certainly not a subject to be reported. Events February 1 - The Chinese pirate Koxinga seizes the island of Taiwan after a nine-month siege. ...

1664 

A Gambling Act was passed by the Cavalier Parliament to try and curb some of the post-Restoration excesses. It limited stakes to £100 which was in any case a fortune at the time. We know that cricket could attract stakes of 50 guineas by 1697 and it was funded by gambling throughout the next century. Events March 12 - New Jersey becomes a colony of England. ...

1666 

A letter by Sir Robert Paston of Richmond refers to a game on Richmond Green, which became a noted venue in the 18th century. 1666 is often called Annus Mirabilis. ... Richmond Green in Richmond, Surrey, England was a popular venue for cricket matches during the 18th Century and before. ...

1668 

The promoter of a match at Maidstone had to obtain a licence to sell ale there. // Events January - The Triple Alliance of 1668 is formed. ...

Cricket was again mentioned in a court case as being played at Shoreham in Kent.

It has been reported in some books that the Clerkenwell Rate Book rated the landlord of the Ram Inn, Smithfield, Middlesex for a cricket field but later investigation established the meaning was otherwise and that this was not a cricket reference.

1671 

Perhaps a sign that the times, post-Restoration, they were a-changing. A man called Edward Bound was charged with playing cricket on the Sabbath and was exonerated! The case was reported in Shere, Surrey. Events May 9 - Thomas Blood, disguised as a clergyman, attempts to steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London. ...

1676 

Sat 6 May. A diarist called Henry Tonge, who was part of a British mission at Aleppo in Turkey (now in Syria), recorded that at least forty of the English left the city for recreational purposes and, having found a nice place to pitch a tent for dinner, they had several pastimes and sports including krickett. At six they returned home in good order. Events January 29 - Feodor III becomes Tsar of Russia First measurement of the speed of light, by Ole Rømer Bacons Rebellion Russo-Turkish Wars commence. ... May 6 is the 126th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (127th in leap years). ...

1677 

Accounts of Thomas Dacre, the Earl of Sussex, include an item which refers to £3 being paid to him when he went to a cricket match being played at ye Dicker, which was a common near Herstmonceux in east Sussex. Events First performance of Racines tragedy, Phèdre Sarah Churchill marries John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough Battle of Cassel, Philippe I of Orléans defeats William of Orange Mary II of England marries William of Orange English Statute of frauds is passed into law Battle of Landskrona Elias...

1678 

Mention of cricket as a play (presumably in the sense of a sport that is played) in a Latin dictionary published by Dr Adam Littleton. Events August 10 - Treaty of Nijmegen ends the Dutch War. ...

1680 

Lines written in an old bible invite All you that do delight in Cricket, come to Marden, pitch your wickets. Marden is in west Sussex, north of Chichester, and interestingly close to Hambledon, which is just across the county boundary in Hampshire. Events First Portuguese governor was appointed to Macau The Swedish city Karlskrona was founded as the Royal Swedish Navy relocated there. ...

This is the earliest known reference to the wicket.

As is well known, the wicket until the 1770s comprised two stumps and a single bail. By that time, the shape of the wicket was high and narrow after the 1744 Laws of Cricket defined the dimensions as 22 inches high and six inches wide. But earlier 18th century pictures show a wicket that was low and broad, perhaps two feet wide by one foot high. The ends of the stumps were forked to support the light bail and there were criteria for the firmness of pitching the stumps into the ground and for the delicate placing of the bail so that it would easily topple when a stump was hit.

There has been a lot of conjecture about the origin of the wicket, but suffice to say that the 17th century outline shape is more akin to the profile of a church stool, which is low and broad. Furthermore, the legs of the stool were called stumps, which adds further credence to the idea that stools were used as early wickets. Interestingly, according to the Churchwarden’s Accounts for Great St. Mary’s Church of Cambridge (1504 – 1635), a church stool was sometimes known in the south-east by the Flemish name of “kreckett”, this being the same word used for the game by John Derrick in 1597.

1693 

A match in Sussex was the occasion of crowd trouble and a number of persons were charged with riot and battery. We know about it because of a later petition by the defendants to Queen Anne (who did not succeed until 1702) in which they pleaded for remission of fines imposed, they having been mere spectators at the game. Events January 11 - Eruption of Mt. ... Anne (6 February 1665 – 1 August 1714) became Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. ... Events March 8 - William III died; Princess Anne Stuart becomes Queen Anne of England, Scotland and Ireland. ...

1694 

Accounts of Sir John Pelham record 2s 6d paid for a wager concerning a cricket match at Lewes. Events February 6 - The colony Quilombo dos Palmares is destroyed. ...

1695 

Parliament decided against a renewal of the Licensing Act and so cleared the way for a free press on the Act’s expiry in 1696. Events January 27 - Change of emperor of the Ottoman Empire from Ahmed II to Mustafa II (1695-1703) July 17 - The Bank of Scotland is founded by an Act of Parliament of the old Scottish Parliament. ...

1696 

Freedom of the press resulted from the British government's decision not to renew the Licensing Act. Censorship had already been relaxed following the Bill of Rights in 1689. It was from this time that cricket matters could be reported in the newspapers, but it would be a very long time before the newspaper industry adapted sufficiently to provide frequent, let alone comprehensive, reports. The year 1696 had the earliest equinoxes and solstices for 400 years in the Gregorian calendar, because this year is a leap year and the Gregorian calendar would have behaved like the Julian calendar since March 1500 had it have been in use that long. ... Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public press for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ... A bill of rights can be a statement of certain rights that may be guaranteed to citizens or residents of a society, legal jurisdiction, or nation-state; or an enumeration of rights they would like to have or believe they ought to have. ... Events Louis XIV of France passed the Code Noir, allowing the full use of slaves in the French colonies. ...

By the end of the 17th Century, cricket had long since broken its bounds as a village pastime and was already into the age of great matches. All that was needed now was for the matches to be reported. The first "great match" we know of took place in Sussex in 1697. (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... Events September 11 - Battle of Zenta, Prince Eugene of Savoy crushed Ottoman army of Mustafa II September 20 - The Treaty of Ryswick December 2 – St Pauls Cathedral opened in London Peter the Great travels in Europe officially incognito as artilleryman Pjotr Mikhailov Use of palanquins increases in Europe Christopher...

The story continues in: History of cricket 1697 - 1725. By the end of the 17th century, cricket had progressed to the point where it was ready to break its bounds as a village pastime and enter the age of great matches. ...

Sources

• A Social History of English Cricket by Derek Birley
• Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians - various publications
• Cricket: History of its Growth and Development by Rowland Bowen
• From the Weald to the World by Peter Wynne-Thomas (PWT)
• Start of Play by David Underdown
• Wisden Cricketers Almanack (annual)