Prince's Club
There were two sporting clubs (or one club with two or more locations?) in Knightsbridge, London, England, known as Prince's Club.
The "Old Prince's Club" was built in 1853 and closed in 1940(?). Its rackets courts set the standard dimensions (50 x 30 ft).
The "New Prince's Club" was a socially exclusive club opened in 1870 by George and James Prince, which moved to become Queen's Club in 1885 when its lease expired.
The Old Club had facilities for lawn tennis, real tennis, rackets, cricket and badminton. It was also home to Prince's Skating Club, which hosted Prince's Ice Hockey Club.
Many real tennis championship challenges were played at Prince's. In particular, Pierre Etchebaster won the world championship here from Fred Covey in 1928, having failed to do so in 1927. Notable real tennis professionals at Prince's include Henry Johns from c. 1926 to 1935.
The real tennis court of the International Tennis Club of Washington is known as Prince's Court. However, it takes its name from its primary founder, Fred Prince.
A new Prince's Club is being developed in Agadir, Morocco at the present time. It plans to re-create the previous ambiance of the original Prince's, and features Rackets, Real Tennis, Squash and Lawn Tennis courts. The project was designed by Robinson McColl Architects+Designers.[1]
Notes
- ↑ Princes Club in Building Design magazine
Sources
- Social history: Social and cultural activities, A History of the County of Middlesex, Volume 12: Chelsea (2004), pp. 166–176.