Real Tennis (Jeu de Paume), the predecessor of modern sneakers and “sports of kings”
Why did the European kings from Henry VIII to Louis X love to play “Real Tennis”, the so -called “sports of kings”? The predecessor of modern sneakers was a very different and potentially more dangerous proof.
In 1570, a Frenchman was arrested for smuggling clandestine correspondence between France and England.
One curious detail In the interrogation author reveals that he also carried a leather bag “where three or four dozen wool balls were found to play tennis.”
The French term used was palm game. This sport was throwing with the hand (the palm), often gloved instead of racket.
Then evolved to what is called “, a sport very different from the tennis currently practiced, account Penny RobertsHistory Professor at Warwick University, in an article no.
The interrogator believed that this cheap merchandise was just a Disguise for the true mission of man: communicate with exiles Huguenotes.
As historian, a quantity and composition of objects that the smuggler transported intrigued Roberts. If well curled, the wool could indeed give it to those balls.
The historian came from chance with similar objects in a small exposure at Palazzo Te, in Mantua, Italy. These balls had been apparently recovered from the Palace roof and others from a nearby church.
They were made of leather, cloth or string, more than wool, and probably stuffed with soil or the animal. Just like the real tennis handcrafted balls used today, They were harder, irregular in size and little colorful – Sometimes only with a simple painting abroad.
Currently, “Real Tennis” is known as “The sport of kings”, Praised for testing the agility and physical resistance.
The best known field where it is practiced in England is that of Hampton Courtbut there are several others in the UK. There is, for example, one in Moreton Morll in Warwickshire, not far from the University of Warwick.
In the 16th century, “Real Tennis” attracted gamblersbecoming a target for the Puritans. Rumor has it Ana Bolena will have made a bet on a game the one that watched on the day of its detention. AND Henrique VIII, almost ironicallywill have played a match on the day of execution of the queen.
And to dispel doubts about the risks of sport, There are several real deaths in France attributed to the game. The king Louis x was an enthusiastic practitioner of palm game and was the first to order the construction of covered fields. Stylish spread quickly through Europe.
In June 1316, after a particularly exhausting game, Louis x will have drunk a large amount of fresh wine and died shortly after – Probably pleurisy, although there was Suspected poisoning.
Likewise, in August 1536, the Death of the eldest son of Francisco I18, was attributed to his Italian secretary, the Count of Montecuccoliwhich had given him a glass of cold water after a match. Although the autopsy has pointed out natural causes, the Count ended up being executed.
In the sixteenth century, there were two fields in the Louvre and many others in Paris and in other real palaces. Diplomatic reports describe frequent matches between the king and high courtiers, which sometimes ended in injuries “Especially when someone was hit by one of the hard balls.”
The smuggler who in 1570 carried dozens of tennis balls probably had only a profitable business identifiedbefore the growing search. The French game had gained popularity in the Tudor England.
At the time, No European courts dismissed his own Tennis fields, built from rootwhere monarchs and cuts tested their expertise. They often did so before ambassadors, who reported the exploits to their sovereigns-making them a true competitive international sport.
Fortunately, today’s tennis is much less dangerous: there are no balls full of land flying through the field, nor the risk of deadly reprisals for beating a royal opponent…
