1 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:07,720 Speaker 1: Happy Saturday. That mention of Milton Bradley's tabletop croquet set 2 00:00:07,720 --> 00:00:11,640 Speaker 1: from our episode on Him reminded me. We've done a 3 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:16,120 Speaker 1: whole episode on croquet. I'm glad it reminded Tracy because 4 00:00:16,120 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 1: I didn't remember. This episode originally came out February seventeenth, 5 00:00:20,239 --> 00:00:23,640 Speaker 1: twenty twenty, and it is Today's Saturday Classic. So enjoy. 6 00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:29,760 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 7 00:00:29,920 --> 00:00:39,400 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Holly 8 00:00:39,479 --> 00:00:43,319 Speaker 1: Frye and I'm Tracy V. Wilson. Tracy, we recently had 9 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: a listener mail that requested long games as a topic. Yeah. 10 00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:48,680 Speaker 1: I think we read that on the air. Yeah, and 11 00:00:48,720 --> 00:00:52,640 Speaker 1: then I couldn't get it out of my head. Also, 12 00:00:52,760 --> 00:00:55,880 Speaker 1: Atlanta is having a freakishly warm winter so far. We 13 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:58,920 Speaker 1: had snowed this past weekend, but today it's in the sixties. Yeah. 14 00:00:58,960 --> 00:01:02,440 Speaker 1: I was just very week for a quick visit and 15 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:05,920 Speaker 1: was like, wow, it is sticky springtime right now, even 16 00:01:05,959 --> 00:01:10,560 Speaker 1: though it is at that point January. It was January. Now, 17 00:01:10,600 --> 00:01:13,760 Speaker 1: see it's all blurred together. It is. There are a 18 00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:16,360 Speaker 1: lot of confused plants trying to bloom at my house 19 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:20,039 Speaker 1: and my lawn is having a pretty significant identity crisis 20 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:22,640 Speaker 1: where it is also trying to grow, and then the 21 00:01:22,640 --> 00:01:24,920 Speaker 1: weeds are coming in up. So it actually kind of 22 00:01:24,920 --> 00:01:27,120 Speaker 1: does seem like a weird spring here, even though I 23 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:30,000 Speaker 1: know a cold snap is coming anytime. But it does 24 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:32,640 Speaker 1: put me in the mind of long games. I'm gonna 25 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:35,640 Speaker 1: invent a new sport called like winter croquet, which is 26 00:01:35,680 --> 00:01:38,760 Speaker 1: what we're talking about today, because as I started looking 27 00:01:38,800 --> 00:01:41,240 Speaker 1: at long games, croquet kind of took the lead in 28 00:01:41,319 --> 00:01:44,640 Speaker 1: terms of available information. I still would love to do 29 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:47,160 Speaker 1: a survey of other ones, but there was so much 30 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:50,040 Speaker 1: interesting stuff about croquet that I wanted to talk about it. 31 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:52,640 Speaker 1: Because while the origins of it are really really cloudy, 32 00:01:52,680 --> 00:01:54,440 Speaker 1: and we're going to talk about that, there have been 33 00:01:54,480 --> 00:01:57,200 Speaker 1: plenty of books written on a subject in the last 34 00:01:57,200 --> 00:01:59,520 Speaker 1: one hundred and fifty years, many of which are very 35 00:01:59,640 --> 00:02:02,720 Speaker 1: charming and sort of funny from the modern perspective. So 36 00:02:02,920 --> 00:02:05,560 Speaker 1: to start, let's cover just the basic rules of croquet 37 00:02:05,680 --> 00:02:09,320 Speaker 1: as it's played today. The regulation size for a court 38 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:12,080 Speaker 1: is one hundred by fifty feet that's roughly thirty by 39 00:02:12,160 --> 00:02:16,120 Speaker 1: fifteen meters, although for casual play the dimensions can be 40 00:02:16,280 --> 00:02:19,360 Speaker 1: altered to suit the available space. I hang out with 41 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:23,640 Speaker 1: a lot of casual but very dedicated croquet players, and boy, 42 00:02:23,680 --> 00:02:27,240 Speaker 1: oh boy, do we have some non standard play sizes 43 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 1: in my social circle. The space is usually marked out 44 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:35,040 Speaker 1: with steaks or string, and wickets are placed in the 45 00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:37,639 Speaker 1: space to create a pointed figure eight shape with a 46 00:02:37,680 --> 00:02:40,280 Speaker 1: wicket at each point, and at the top and the 47 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:42,800 Speaker 1: bottom of this figure eight there are two croquet wickets 48 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:44,920 Speaker 1: placed close to one another with a steak at the 49 00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:48,919 Speaker 1: very top and bottom of the arrangement. This arrangement uses 50 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:51,840 Speaker 1: a total of nine wickets. The play starts at the 51 00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 1: bottom of this figure eight, and every ball needs to 52 00:02:54,639 --> 00:02:57,920 Speaker 1: move through each wicket, first along the right side of 53 00:02:57,919 --> 00:02:59,919 Speaker 1: the diamond, up through the double wicket at the top, 54 00:03:00,120 --> 00:03:03,440 Speaker 1: up hitting the stake that's there, and then turning and 55 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:05,720 Speaker 1: moving back down the figure eight on the opposite side. 56 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:08,920 Speaker 1: Two teams compete, taking turns to move all their croquet 57 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:11,880 Speaker 1: balls through this configuration by tapping the balls with the 58 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:15,280 Speaker 1: ends of the mallets, not the sides. The first team 59 00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:18,560 Speaker 1: to successfully get all the croque balls through the course wins. 60 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:21,560 Speaker 1: And there are of course more rules than that, and 61 00:03:21,639 --> 00:03:23,519 Speaker 1: a lot of house rules. If you know a lot 62 00:03:23,560 --> 00:03:28,959 Speaker 1: of casual croquet players, but the basic layout is that's 63 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:33,079 Speaker 1: how the game works today. However, there is another variation. 64 00:03:33,400 --> 00:03:36,320 Speaker 1: In the US. A version of croquet exists using only 65 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:39,920 Speaker 1: six wickets. These are arranged so that they form two 66 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:43,560 Speaker 1: triangles that point toward the center of the established court, 67 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:47,800 Speaker 1: and that court can be just fifty by forty feet 68 00:03:47,920 --> 00:03:51,480 Speaker 1: that's roughly fifteen by twelve meters, so much smaller. Gameplay 69 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:54,320 Speaker 1: in the six wicket arrangement has the balls played in 70 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:57,160 Speaker 1: kind of a spiral that starts at the outside edge 71 00:03:57,200 --> 00:03:59,640 Speaker 1: to work inward for the first six points of play, 72 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:02,280 Speaker 1: and then it restarts from another point on the exterior 73 00:04:02,320 --> 00:04:05,320 Speaker 1: of the wickets and moves inward for the last seven points. 74 00:04:05,640 --> 00:04:08,560 Speaker 1: In an eighteen ninety seven book on crow K's history, 75 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: author Arthur Lilly opens with a story about a friend 76 00:04:12,200 --> 00:04:15,200 Speaker 1: whose doctor told him that the crazy work, work, work 77 00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:18,560 Speaker 1: lifestyle of the eighteen sixties was making people ill. We 78 00:04:18,560 --> 00:04:20,600 Speaker 1: can have a moment of a side to just laugh 79 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:24,599 Speaker 1: at how they would be terrified at the workload of 80 00:04:24,640 --> 00:04:28,599 Speaker 1: most people in twenty twenty. In this particular case, though, 81 00:04:28,640 --> 00:04:32,160 Speaker 1: the explanation was that quote work keeps the mucous membrane 82 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:35,520 Speaker 1: of the brain in perpetual irritation. I'm going to use 83 00:04:35,520 --> 00:04:39,360 Speaker 1: that excuse all the time. Fresh air was the recommended treatment, 84 00:04:39,400 --> 00:04:43,719 Speaker 1: and after unsuccessfully trying out things like long walks, what 85 00:04:43,960 --> 00:04:47,040 Speaker 1: really helped the patient, who was a clergyman named dunbar 86 00:04:47,120 --> 00:04:51,800 Speaker 1: isidor Heath, was croquet. Lily went on in his writing 87 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:56,039 Speaker 1: to proclaim quote Croque, according to many medical men, is 88 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:59,240 Speaker 1: the healthiest game in the world, seeing that it furnishes 89 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:03,039 Speaker 1: the great does bottom of the overworked nineteenth century the 90 00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:07,640 Speaker 1: maximum of daily fresh air and amusement with the minimum fatigue. 91 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:10,080 Speaker 1: He also points out that the beauty of the game 92 00:05:10,120 --> 00:05:13,440 Speaker 1: is its accessibility to almost anyone to play. It can 93 00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:16,840 Speaker 1: be intellectually simulating, as the player has to strategize, but 94 00:05:16,880 --> 00:05:21,320 Speaker 1: it's not actually taxing. Thirty years prior to Arthur Lilly, 95 00:05:21,640 --> 00:05:25,560 Speaker 1: a man named Walter Jones Whitmore similarly extolled the virtues 96 00:05:25,640 --> 00:05:28,960 Speaker 1: and noted the appeal of croquet in his eighteen sixty 97 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:33,040 Speaker 1: eight book Croquet Tactics, writing quote considered simply as an 98 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:37,000 Speaker 1: outdoor amusement affording healthy exercise and excitement to a number 99 00:05:37,040 --> 00:05:40,560 Speaker 1: of people who only got their exercise formerly in the 100 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:44,200 Speaker 1: dull round of a constitutional walk. We are bound to 101 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: confess that it has conferred an immense boon to society, 102 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:52,800 Speaker 1: which boon society gratefully acknowledges by its attachment. Then it 103 00:05:52,880 --> 00:05:55,680 Speaker 1: is a game suited to every age and both sexes. 104 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:59,000 Speaker 1: This was, of course, a great element of success from 105 00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: the first. This same writing also mentions that croquet has 106 00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:06,640 Speaker 1: an edge over both billiards and cricket because the financial 107 00:06:06,680 --> 00:06:10,320 Speaker 1: barrier to entry is pretty low by comparison. It's not 108 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:13,360 Speaker 1: a luxury sport, but it's one that during nice weather, 109 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:16,000 Speaker 1: can be found almost anywhere. I mean, as long as 110 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:20,560 Speaker 1: there's a spot of greenery that's large enough. Yeah, you 111 00:06:20,640 --> 00:06:24,120 Speaker 1: just need a little open, fairly flat piece of lawn. 112 00:06:24,839 --> 00:06:29,320 Speaker 1: Anybody can play. Arthur Lilly's book also quotes the Reverend J. G. 113 00:06:29,480 --> 00:06:32,560 Speaker 1: Woods explanation of the name of this game in his 114 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:35,960 Speaker 1: work quote. The word croquet is derived from a French 115 00:06:36,000 --> 00:06:39,680 Speaker 1: word croquet to crunch with the teeth. This word is 116 00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:43,000 Speaker 1: used to describe the sound caused by eating anything very 117 00:06:43,040 --> 00:06:46,279 Speaker 1: hard and brittle. The word is used to distinguish the 118 00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:49,360 Speaker 1: game in consequence of the crackling sound of the mallets 119 00:06:49,400 --> 00:06:53,120 Speaker 1: against the ball. However, though that quote is very Charming 120 00:06:53,520 --> 00:06:57,599 Speaker 1: Lily then dismisses this entire explanation as complete nonsense and 121 00:06:57,760 --> 00:07:00,560 Speaker 1: explains that the proto mallets in the games pre date 122 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:04,600 Speaker 1: croquet were themselves called croquets, and that that derived from 123 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:09,279 Speaker 1: the Old French word croche, which translated to crooks. So 124 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:12,160 Speaker 1: the origins of games are almost always a little bit 125 00:07:12,240 --> 00:07:15,720 Speaker 1: murky because a lot of these diversions start out pretty organically. 126 00:07:15,800 --> 00:07:20,480 Speaker 1: They evolve over time as people make up things to do. Historically, 127 00:07:20,520 --> 00:07:24,200 Speaker 1: people haven't just documented the moment when they came up 128 00:07:24,280 --> 00:07:26,720 Speaker 1: with a game for the most part. Yeah, it's not 129 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:30,920 Speaker 1: like Cones of Duncher or any of the sort of 130 00:07:31,360 --> 00:07:33,600 Speaker 1: gaming trend of today where people are like, I'm going 131 00:07:33,640 --> 00:07:35,640 Speaker 1: to come up with a game and it is well documented. 132 00:07:36,160 --> 00:07:38,160 Speaker 1: This is definitely more of a casual we could hit 133 00:07:38,200 --> 00:07:41,960 Speaker 1: that thing with that thing to make some rules. While 134 00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:44,800 Speaker 1: there are variations in how the game spread and how 135 00:07:44,800 --> 00:07:47,920 Speaker 1: its rules were refined, it is generally believed to have 136 00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:52,000 Speaker 1: originated in Western France Brittany, specifically as early as the 137 00:07:52,040 --> 00:07:56,600 Speaker 1: thirteenth century. Players in this proto croquet entertainment, according to 138 00:07:56,640 --> 00:08:01,000 Speaker 1: the Croquet Foundation of America quote, used crudely fashioned mallets 139 00:08:01,040 --> 00:08:04,160 Speaker 1: to whack wooden balls through hoops made of willow branches. 140 00:08:04,560 --> 00:08:09,040 Speaker 1: In the mid sixteen hundreds, the English lexiconographer Thomas Blunt 141 00:08:09,240 --> 00:08:12,120 Speaker 1: described the game this way quote a game wherein a 142 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:15,560 Speaker 1: round bowl is with a mallet struck through a high 143 00:08:15,720 --> 00:08:18,560 Speaker 1: arch of iron standing at either end of an alley, 144 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:22,360 Speaker 1: which he can do at the fewest blows or at 145 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:26,239 Speaker 1: the number agreed on wins. The game is heretofore used 146 00:08:26,240 --> 00:08:30,160 Speaker 1: in the long Alley near Saint James's and vulgarly called 147 00:08:30,360 --> 00:08:35,680 Speaker 1: pell Mell. On April second, sixteen sixty one, during the 148 00:08:35,720 --> 00:08:39,719 Speaker 1: restoration reign of Charles the Second, Samuel, Peeps recorded an 149 00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:42,280 Speaker 1: instance of watching the Duke of York play a game 150 00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:44,920 Speaker 1: that he calls pell mell. He spells it p e 151 00:08:45,160 --> 00:08:48,400 Speaker 1: l E d m e l E. The King himself 152 00:08:48,559 --> 00:08:51,160 Speaker 1: was said to love the game, and two years later 153 00:08:51,280 --> 00:08:54,280 Speaker 1: Peeps interviewed the man who looked after what Peeps is 154 00:08:54,360 --> 00:08:57,400 Speaker 1: by that time calling the pell mell. That's the yard 155 00:08:57,520 --> 00:08:59,439 Speaker 1: used to play the game, and it's spelled the way 156 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:03,679 Speaker 1: it sounds e l And the area that's used for 157 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:06,680 Speaker 1: playing was made up of a mix of earth covered 158 00:09:06,720 --> 00:09:10,000 Speaker 1: with powdered cockle shells and then the name Paul Mall 159 00:09:10,240 --> 00:09:13,000 Speaker 1: is another variation of the two that are already noted 160 00:09:13,040 --> 00:09:17,200 Speaker 1: in Peeps's writing, and there are others. It is possible 161 00:09:17,440 --> 00:09:21,400 Speaker 1: that the mall in this case is an anglicization of Maya, 162 00:09:21,679 --> 00:09:24,160 Speaker 1: which is a French word for mallet. We're going to 163 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:26,520 Speaker 1: talk a little bit more about how pall Mall, pell 164 00:09:26,600 --> 00:09:29,679 Speaker 1: Mell or pie my was played, but first we're going 165 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:42,160 Speaker 1: to pause for a quick sponsor break. So this game 166 00:09:42,320 --> 00:09:44,360 Speaker 1: with many names, but we'll go with Paul Mall or 167 00:09:44,440 --> 00:09:48,719 Speaker 1: pell Mell was played in essentially a long alley. It 168 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:52,800 Speaker 1: is sometimes described as being something between golf and modern croquet, 169 00:09:53,400 --> 00:09:57,280 Speaker 1: and like croquet, it included a ball, mallets with curved heads, 170 00:09:57,640 --> 00:09:59,680 Speaker 1: and an arch that players tried to get the ball 171 00:10:00,280 --> 00:10:04,520 Speaker 1: through the arches. In seventeen seventeen, a book titled Jeu Demy, 172 00:10:04,640 --> 00:10:09,559 Speaker 1: written by Monsieur Lothier, offered instructive advice on playing technique. Quote, 173 00:10:09,960 --> 00:10:12,160 Speaker 1: the body ought not to be either too straight or 174 00:10:12,200 --> 00:10:16,000 Speaker 1: too much curved, but moderately incline, so that in striking 175 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:18,760 Speaker 1: it may be supported by the strength of the loins 176 00:10:18,880 --> 00:10:21,480 Speaker 1: while we turn it gently back from the waist upwards, 177 00:10:21,640 --> 00:10:24,160 Speaker 1: raising the head without ever losing sight of the ball. 178 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:27,160 Speaker 1: So use your course strength with this and not just 179 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:31,480 Speaker 1: your arms. Yeah. Latier also shared a story of a 180 00:10:31,640 --> 00:10:35,040 Speaker 1: unique ball that was used for this game. So at 181 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:37,920 Speaker 1: this point pell Mell balls were normally about six inches 182 00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:41,040 Speaker 1: in diameter. They are made from a substance called dudgeon, 183 00:10:41,280 --> 00:10:43,640 Speaker 1: and that is the root of the box tree, And 184 00:10:43,720 --> 00:10:47,520 Speaker 1: that dungeon was then beaten carefully into this ball shape. Quote. 185 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:50,240 Speaker 1: There was a ball of great renown, the history of 186 00:10:50,280 --> 00:10:53,520 Speaker 1: which will perhaps not be useless or disagreeable, and will 187 00:10:53,559 --> 00:10:55,920 Speaker 1: show what importance in the game of mal is a 188 00:10:55,960 --> 00:10:59,720 Speaker 1: good ball. A ball merchant of Provence brought a large 189 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:02,520 Speaker 1: back of them to Ikes. The players, who were in 190 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:05,360 Speaker 1: great number in this town, bought them all at thirty 191 00:11:05,480 --> 00:11:09,520 Speaker 1: sous apiece, except one only, which, not being so pretty 192 00:11:09,559 --> 00:11:13,200 Speaker 1: as the others, was rejected. A good player named Bernard 193 00:11:13,320 --> 00:11:16,760 Speaker 1: came the last and bought this waste ball, for which 194 00:11:16,800 --> 00:11:20,360 Speaker 1: he would not give but fifteen suit. It weighed seven 195 00:11:20,440 --> 00:11:23,719 Speaker 1: ounces and two DRAMs, and was of ugly wood, and 196 00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:26,319 Speaker 1: half of it reddish. He played it a long time, 197 00:11:26,480 --> 00:11:28,839 Speaker 1: finished it, and it became so excellent that when he 198 00:11:28,960 --> 00:11:31,160 Speaker 1: had a long stroke to make it never failed. Him 199 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:34,200 Speaker 1: at his need, and led infallibly to his winning the match. 200 00:11:34,640 --> 00:11:37,840 Speaker 1: This ball, which became famous, became known as the Bernard, 201 00:11:38,400 --> 00:11:40,920 Speaker 1: and it was so coveted and renowned that its next 202 00:11:40,960 --> 00:11:44,959 Speaker 1: owner refused numerous offers to purchase it, including a proposed 203 00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:49,640 Speaker 1: trade in which the would be buyer offered thirty pistols. Clearly, 204 00:11:49,679 --> 00:11:53,920 Speaker 1: it's a very valuable ball. It was, however, occasionally loaned 205 00:11:53,960 --> 00:11:57,360 Speaker 1: out to famous players for matches, though so. In addition 206 00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:00,720 Speaker 1: to this primary version of pall Mall, the Lothier text 207 00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:05,040 Speaker 1: also described two other variations. The first of these was 208 00:12:05,080 --> 00:12:08,520 Speaker 1: something called chakam paull Mall, which was a lot like golf. 209 00:12:09,120 --> 00:12:11,960 Speaker 1: It was played in an open field with specified targets, 210 00:12:12,080 --> 00:12:16,440 Speaker 1: usually naturally occurring obstacles like trees and rocks, and instead 211 00:12:16,440 --> 00:12:19,360 Speaker 1: of mallets they used crooks. And then the third version 212 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:22,559 Speaker 1: was played a lot like billiards. Other accounts of these 213 00:12:22,679 --> 00:12:27,040 Speaker 1: games suggest that they were completely different sports. In his 214 00:12:27,200 --> 00:12:30,079 Speaker 1: eighteen ninety seven History of Croquet, Arthur Lilly made the 215 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:33,280 Speaker 1: point that many sports, in addition to paul Mall, including 216 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:37,560 Speaker 1: hockey and polo, had some version in their history which 217 00:12:37,640 --> 00:12:40,320 Speaker 1: was called chican or you'll see it sometimes called chicane, 218 00:12:41,040 --> 00:12:43,720 Speaker 1: so they may have all had some sort of commonality 219 00:12:43,800 --> 00:12:47,000 Speaker 1: from which they branched, evolved, and then in some cases 220 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:49,959 Speaker 1: combined with other games. It makes the case that this 221 00:12:50,080 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 1: may be in part due to the changing seasons. In Brittany, 222 00:12:52,960 --> 00:12:56,280 Speaker 1: where the rudimentary game started, they would have played a 223 00:12:56,440 --> 00:12:58,880 Speaker 1: version of the game that evolved into hockey in the 224 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:02,040 Speaker 1: winter and one more like golf in the spring, and 225 00:13:02,120 --> 00:13:04,360 Speaker 1: as the summer got hot and movement was a lot 226 00:13:04,440 --> 00:13:07,600 Speaker 1: more arduous, the limited range version that was played within 227 00:13:07,640 --> 00:13:10,520 Speaker 1: an alley or a court would have become the standard. 228 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:14,319 Speaker 1: He also suggests that on the most uncomfortable days, the 229 00:13:14,360 --> 00:13:17,840 Speaker 1: players might have just simply practiced their putting so hot 230 00:13:17,880 --> 00:13:22,599 Speaker 1: I only want to put pal mall fell out of 231 00:13:22,640 --> 00:13:25,600 Speaker 1: favor in England over time, but as it declined there 232 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:28,679 Speaker 1: it seems that some version of it was introduced to Ireland. 233 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:32,880 Speaker 1: It's unclear exactly how this sport migrated from France, but 234 00:13:32,960 --> 00:13:35,520 Speaker 1: by the eighteen thirties it was popular in the areas 235 00:13:35,559 --> 00:13:39,240 Speaker 1: around Dublin and the rules had started to become more uniform. 236 00:13:39,679 --> 00:13:42,400 Speaker 1: In the early eighteen fifties, the game as it had 237 00:13:42,520 --> 00:13:46,280 Speaker 1: evolved in Ireland included the basic rules that were developed there. 238 00:13:46,920 --> 00:13:49,800 Speaker 1: They were exported to England, where the modern version of 239 00:13:49,840 --> 00:13:52,600 Speaker 1: the game was first played with the name Crookie. Yeah. 240 00:13:52,640 --> 00:13:56,400 Speaker 1: I am unclear on whether that is just an Englishman 241 00:13:56,960 --> 00:14:01,600 Speaker 1: writing a snooty phonetic of how he thinks Irish people speak, 242 00:14:03,960 --> 00:14:09,000 Speaker 1: because it's literally a crooky I don't know. The first 243 00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:12,520 Speaker 1: retail croquet sets were also introduced during this time, in 244 00:14:12,559 --> 00:14:15,360 Speaker 1: the eighteen fifties by Jean Jacques of London, which still 245 00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:19,560 Speaker 1: exists after some name shifting as Jacques of London. Their 246 00:14:19,640 --> 00:14:22,560 Speaker 1: croquet set offerings on their website, which they still offer, 247 00:14:22,680 --> 00:14:26,840 Speaker 1: include copy that states that the company invented the sport, 248 00:14:27,160 --> 00:14:31,280 Speaker 1: which is a matter of some debate. Sure. Even early 249 00:14:31,360 --> 00:14:34,960 Speaker 1: on in Croquet's modern era popularity, the origin of the 250 00:14:35,040 --> 00:14:38,360 Speaker 1: game was still debated, and a letter penned by a 251 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:41,400 Speaker 1: doctor Pryor in the late eighteen hundreds on this matter, 252 00:14:41,480 --> 00:14:45,200 Speaker 1: he wrote, quote who invented croquet? Or who improved a 253 00:14:45,360 --> 00:14:48,720 Speaker 1: rustic game into one fit for polite society is a 254 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:51,800 Speaker 1: question that has often been asked and has never been answered. 255 00:14:52,480 --> 00:14:56,080 Speaker 1: One thing only is certain. It is from Ireland that 256 00:14:56,160 --> 00:14:58,600 Speaker 1: it came to England, and it was on the lawn 257 00:14:58,840 --> 00:15:01,560 Speaker 1: of the late Lord Lonsdale, that was first played in 258 00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:04,840 Speaker 1: this country. How long it had been practiced in Ireland, 259 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:08,000 Speaker 1: or in what year his lordship introduced it, nobody knows. 260 00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:10,960 Speaker 1: It may be presumed that it did not occur to 261 00:15:11,160 --> 00:15:13,600 Speaker 1: anyone in its perfect form as we have it now, 262 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:16,240 Speaker 1: but was built up, so to say, bit by bit, 263 00:15:16,440 --> 00:15:20,240 Speaker 1: with hints and contributions from many different people, which is 264 00:15:20,280 --> 00:15:24,680 Speaker 1: exactly how most things evolve in history. Uh. Pryor's position, though, 265 00:15:24,840 --> 00:15:28,400 Speaker 1: was that croquet did not evolve from Paul Mall as 266 00:15:28,480 --> 00:15:30,680 Speaker 1: that game hadn't been played in so long that no 267 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:33,280 Speaker 1: one probably even remembered it enough to revive it in 268 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:37,000 Speaker 1: any sort of revised version. But one thing about croque 269 00:15:37,440 --> 00:15:40,920 Speaker 1: was entirely clear to Pryor. He wrote, quote, nothing but 270 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:45,560 Speaker 1: tobacco smoking has ever spread as quickly. Croquet eventually made 271 00:15:45,600 --> 00:15:47,840 Speaker 1: its way to the US from Europe, and it quickly 272 00:15:47,880 --> 00:15:51,600 Speaker 1: became very popular here too. From the mid eighteen hundreds 273 00:15:51,640 --> 00:15:55,040 Speaker 1: up until the eighteen nineties, its state side appeal grew, 274 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:57,440 Speaker 1: but in the last decade of the nineteenth century it 275 00:15:57,560 --> 00:16:00,920 Speaker 1: was lumped in with drinking and gamimbling due to its 276 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:06,040 Speaker 1: popularity on Boston Common, where Tho's other entertainments were also popular. 277 00:16:06,800 --> 00:16:10,680 Speaker 1: After that, it's popularity declined for several decades. Yeah, I 278 00:16:10,680 --> 00:16:15,320 Speaker 1: had a little little smear on its identity. I'm trying 279 00:16:15,360 --> 00:16:19,040 Speaker 1: to think if I've ever seen people playing croquet on 280 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:21,600 Speaker 1: Boston Common, And I'm like, I don't think i've seen 281 00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:26,080 Speaker 1: anyone do? Is it allowed? Right? It's because in the 282 00:16:26,160 --> 00:16:29,640 Speaker 1: eighteen nineties they knew it's too much trouble with the 283 00:16:29,720 --> 00:16:33,360 Speaker 1: croquet on Boston, right, they associated it with vices that 284 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:38,880 Speaker 1: were not healthy. But beginning in the nineteen twenties, croque 285 00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:41,560 Speaker 1: in the US once again became popular as it was 286 00:16:41,600 --> 00:16:45,480 Speaker 1: embraced by various celebrities at their gatherings and it gained 287 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:49,359 Speaker 1: a fresh wave of cachet. The United States Croquet Association 288 00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:52,640 Speaker 1: was founded in nineteen seventy seven, so it took a 289 00:16:52,640 --> 00:16:55,760 Speaker 1: little while by Jack Osborne, and he established the rules 290 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:58,760 Speaker 1: for that six wicket kind of abbreviated style of play 291 00:16:58,840 --> 00:17:00,280 Speaker 1: that we mentioned at the top of the show. Show. 292 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:04,960 Speaker 1: That association still exists today. In nineteen eighty seven, the 293 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:08,440 Speaker 1: American Croque Association was born to support gameplay with the 294 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:13,439 Speaker 1: international rules, so with more wickets. Though the USCA now 295 00:17:13,560 --> 00:17:17,320 Speaker 1: oversees most events that feature international rules gameplay, and there's 296 00:17:17,359 --> 00:17:20,600 Speaker 1: a pretty significant overlap in membership. That ven diagram has 297 00:17:21,280 --> 00:17:25,320 Speaker 1: a big middle section. Next, we're going to discuss two 298 00:17:25,440 --> 00:17:29,440 Speaker 1: interesting figures in Crok's history and one significant organization that 299 00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:32,000 Speaker 1: has shifted away from the sport of croque in favor 300 00:17:32,080 --> 00:17:35,520 Speaker 1: of another game. We'll get to that after a word 301 00:17:35,680 --> 00:17:47,200 Speaker 1: from our sponsors. One of the most prominent figures in 302 00:17:47,280 --> 00:17:50,879 Speaker 1: Croque's history is Walter Jones Whitmore, who we mentioned earlier. 303 00:17:51,440 --> 00:17:54,280 Speaker 1: Whitmore was born in eighteen thirty one and became acquainted 304 00:17:54,320 --> 00:17:56,480 Speaker 1: with crok in eighteen sixty when he was just a 305 00:17:56,720 --> 00:17:59,080 Speaker 1: young man of twenty nine. He was working at the 306 00:17:59,160 --> 00:18:01,280 Speaker 1: time as a government clerk and he picked up the 307 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:04,119 Speaker 1: game casually playing with the people in his neighborhood of 308 00:18:04,240 --> 00:18:07,840 Speaker 1: Morton in Marsh in Gloucestershire, England. At this point, there 309 00:18:07,960 --> 00:18:10,879 Speaker 1: wasn't a standardized set of rules for the game beyond 310 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:15,040 Speaker 1: a very friendly version. Different companies were producing croquet sets 311 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:18,160 Speaker 1: for recreational use, and every company had its own version 312 00:18:18,240 --> 00:18:21,280 Speaker 1: of the rules that was included with the set. Whitmore 313 00:18:21,359 --> 00:18:24,240 Speaker 1: recognized that if the sport was going to be taken seriously. 314 00:18:24,359 --> 00:18:27,399 Speaker 1: There needed to be a clear, standardized rule set for 315 00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:30,879 Speaker 1: competitive play. So he wrote some Yeah, there were rules 316 00:18:30,920 --> 00:18:33,159 Speaker 1: that have been developed, but there's a lot of them. 317 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:36,560 Speaker 1: There's a lot of house rules for everybody that played. 318 00:18:36,600 --> 00:18:39,359 Speaker 1: And as we said, different different companies that made sets 319 00:18:39,400 --> 00:18:42,359 Speaker 1: made their own shifts to the rules, and he thought, like, 320 00:18:42,520 --> 00:18:45,760 Speaker 1: this is a sport that could be like a pro sport, 321 00:18:46,040 --> 00:18:49,520 Speaker 1: but it's going to need some more structure. These rules 322 00:18:49,560 --> 00:18:51,760 Speaker 1: that he came up with were published by a periodical 323 00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:53,959 Speaker 1: called The Field and they came to be known as 324 00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:56,520 Speaker 1: the Field Rules, or you'll sometimes see them listed as 325 00:18:56,600 --> 00:19:00,080 Speaker 1: the Field Laws, and they did shift public thinking on 326 00:19:00,160 --> 00:19:02,320 Speaker 1: the sport to consider it as more than just a 327 00:19:02,359 --> 00:19:06,159 Speaker 1: backyard pastime. The same year that the Field Rules came out, 328 00:19:06,200 --> 00:19:09,680 Speaker 1: which was eighteen sixty six, Walter Jones Whitmore also published 329 00:19:09,720 --> 00:19:12,600 Speaker 1: a book which used a lot of the articles that 330 00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:15,440 Speaker 1: he had written to establish these rules, and that was 331 00:19:15,520 --> 00:19:19,320 Speaker 1: called The Science of Croque. In eighteen sixty seven, Whitmore 332 00:19:19,440 --> 00:19:24,320 Speaker 1: established England's first croque tournament, which he also won. That 333 00:19:24,560 --> 00:19:29,000 Speaker 1: championship status led to his book croqu Tactics. He explained 334 00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:32,240 Speaker 1: to the introduction quote, the present volume is a compilation 335 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:35,280 Speaker 1: of my articles which appeared in that journal. The field, 336 00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:39,840 Speaker 1: although considerably enlarged and with the addition of several points 337 00:19:39,880 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 1: which have since occurred to me. He next established the 338 00:19:43,119 --> 00:19:46,399 Speaker 1: All England Croquet Club, and after failing to secure a 339 00:19:46,480 --> 00:19:50,080 Speaker 1: permanent home for the AECC, he next founded a second 340 00:19:50,359 --> 00:19:54,160 Speaker 1: All England Croque Club, which became the National Croque Club. 341 00:19:54,560 --> 00:19:57,760 Speaker 1: Both of these clubs worked together with Whitmore's leadership to 342 00:19:57,920 --> 00:20:01,239 Speaker 1: refine the sport rules further and sub years, and then 343 00:20:01,359 --> 00:20:03,359 Speaker 1: he died in eighteen seventy two at the age of 344 00:20:03,440 --> 00:20:06,719 Speaker 1: forty one. Women's involvement in the game of croquet has 345 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:09,800 Speaker 1: been touted almost as long as the sport has existed 346 00:20:09,880 --> 00:20:12,800 Speaker 1: under that name. One of the selling points of croquet, 347 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:14,960 Speaker 1: as we mentioned at the top of the episode, is 348 00:20:15,000 --> 00:20:17,200 Speaker 1: that it is something that many people can do because 349 00:20:17,240 --> 00:20:22,040 Speaker 1: it is not especially physically demanding. Caricaturist John Leech made 350 00:20:22,119 --> 00:20:27,440 Speaker 1: engravings in the eighteen sixties featuring ladies playing croquet alongside gentlemen. 351 00:20:28,280 --> 00:20:31,080 Speaker 1: In his eighteen sixty two etching a croquet match, a 352 00:20:31,200 --> 00:20:34,639 Speaker 1: large group of people is playing, including several women. As 353 00:20:34,720 --> 00:20:37,639 Speaker 1: the women are leaning forward playing the game, their large 354 00:20:37,800 --> 00:20:41,280 Speaker 1: cage crenlines lift their dresses so they slightly expose the 355 00:20:41,359 --> 00:20:45,199 Speaker 1: petticoats that are underneath. Leech's eighteen sixty five piece titled 356 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,000 Speaker 1: A Nice Game for Two or More, shows a garden 357 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:50,720 Speaker 1: party with a woman preparing a shot as she looks 358 00:20:50,760 --> 00:20:53,560 Speaker 1: at one of her male opponents. The caption for this 359 00:20:53,680 --> 00:20:56,959 Speaker 1: image reads, fixing her eyes on his and placing her 360 00:20:57,000 --> 00:20:59,800 Speaker 1: pretty little foot on the ball. She said, now then 361 00:21:00,080 --> 00:21:03,159 Speaker 1: I am going to croquet you and croquete. He was 362 00:21:03,320 --> 00:21:08,600 Speaker 1: completely Arthur Lily history. We've referenced several times, even mentions 363 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:11,640 Speaker 1: and interpreting a poem about croquet that lists a number 364 00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:14,200 Speaker 1: of other sports. Quote, all these games are inferior to 365 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:18,520 Speaker 1: croquet where they exclude ladies. And there was incidentally a 366 00:21:18,640 --> 00:21:21,280 Speaker 1: nickname for an adaptation of the game, which was called 367 00:21:21,359 --> 00:21:24,159 Speaker 1: crinoline croquet, But that didn't really have anything to do 368 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:27,200 Speaker 1: with women, So I just want to clarify on that 369 00:21:27,320 --> 00:21:29,440 Speaker 1: in case you come across it. This was just the 370 00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:33,320 Speaker 1: game played on a smaller scale with smaller implements. This 371 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:36,600 Speaker 1: version was apparently considered far less serious by more devoted 372 00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:38,879 Speaker 1: players of the game, but it was also the reason 373 00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:41,440 Speaker 1: that its popularity spread so quickly as it could be 374 00:21:41,520 --> 00:21:45,520 Speaker 1: played even on tiny backyard lawns. It was also where, 375 00:21:45,600 --> 00:21:49,480 Speaker 1: according to Lily's estimate, ninety percent of enthusiasts were playing. 376 00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:53,440 Speaker 1: This is again not the professional tournament version, but the 377 00:21:53,600 --> 00:21:56,720 Speaker 1: more casual version, and it's really that version that came 378 00:21:56,760 --> 00:22:00,240 Speaker 1: across the Atlantic and became popular in the US. There's 379 00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:03,320 Speaker 1: one woman in particular who had a surprising rise to 380 00:22:03,400 --> 00:22:06,399 Speaker 1: fame as a croquet player. Her name was Lily Gower 381 00:22:06,560 --> 00:22:09,000 Speaker 1: and she was Welsh. In eighteen ninety eight, at the 382 00:22:09,040 --> 00:22:12,800 Speaker 1: age of twenty one, the relatively inexperienced Gower entered a 383 00:22:12,880 --> 00:22:16,880 Speaker 1: tournament in Budley, which is a coastal town in East Devon, England. 384 00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:19,840 Speaker 1: Yeah she had never played in public before, and after 385 00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:22,200 Speaker 1: a fairly boring run of the beginning of the tournament, 386 00:22:22,680 --> 00:22:25,160 Speaker 1: it ended up that the newcomer Gower was up against 387 00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:28,520 Speaker 1: mister C. E. Willis, a champion player, for the finals. 388 00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:32,320 Speaker 1: The finals were a best of three situation. Lily had 389 00:22:32,359 --> 00:22:35,840 Speaker 1: been categorized as having beginner's luck by most people in attendance, 390 00:22:36,400 --> 00:22:38,760 Speaker 1: but in the first round of play against the veteran Willis, 391 00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:41,440 Speaker 1: she beat him and in the second game, which was 392 00:22:41,520 --> 00:22:44,840 Speaker 1: heavily attended, After Gower's success in the first game, Willis 393 00:22:44,920 --> 00:22:48,719 Speaker 1: came back and played incredibly well, beating the young woman easily. 394 00:22:49,200 --> 00:22:52,080 Speaker 1: So it appeared that Lily's luck had run out. But 395 00:22:52,240 --> 00:22:55,560 Speaker 1: in the third game she trounced Willis, winning in just 396 00:22:55,640 --> 00:22:58,680 Speaker 1: thirty five minutes with a twenty six point lead. So 397 00:22:58,760 --> 00:23:01,000 Speaker 1: while they were still detractors that chocked all this up 398 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:03,560 Speaker 1: to just good luck on her part, that was really 399 00:23:03,680 --> 00:23:06,520 Speaker 1: the beginning of a successful career in the sport for her. 400 00:23:07,160 --> 00:23:10,800 Speaker 1: Lily Gower went on to win a lot of championships. Yeah, 401 00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:13,160 Speaker 1: she also ended up married to another croquet player, which 402 00:23:13,200 --> 00:23:16,760 Speaker 1: I love. There is also another name in croquet history 403 00:23:17,080 --> 00:23:20,480 Speaker 1: that I would bet is very familiar to most of 404 00:23:20,520 --> 00:23:23,960 Speaker 1: our listeners, which is Wimbledon. The sport that you probably 405 00:23:24,040 --> 00:23:25,960 Speaker 1: think of when you hear that name is tennis with 406 00:23:26,119 --> 00:23:30,359 Speaker 1: good reason, but Wimbledon was actually associated with croquet. First, 407 00:23:30,880 --> 00:23:34,440 Speaker 1: we're gonna jump back first to the Walter Jones Whitmore story. 408 00:23:34,680 --> 00:23:37,359 Speaker 1: He had, as we just mentioned, founded the All England 409 00:23:37,440 --> 00:23:40,720 Speaker 1: Croquet Club in eighteen sixty eight, four years before his death. 410 00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:43,760 Speaker 1: We mentioned that he had some difficulty finding a permanent 411 00:23:43,840 --> 00:23:46,800 Speaker 1: home for the club and once that was finally secured 412 00:23:47,080 --> 00:23:50,720 Speaker 1: it was near the Wimbledon train station. The station name 413 00:23:50,840 --> 00:23:55,040 Speaker 1: and the club became totally intertwined. In eighteen seventy five, 414 00:23:55,240 --> 00:23:57,440 Speaker 1: the club, in an effort to stay relevant and to 415 00:23:57,560 --> 00:24:01,399 Speaker 1: capitalize on another sport that was gaining in popularity, changed 416 00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:05,560 Speaker 1: its name to the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club. 417 00:24:06,040 --> 00:24:09,679 Speaker 1: By eighteen eighty, croquet had vanished from the name, as tennis, 418 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:12,160 Speaker 1: which held a wider appeal because it was a little 419 00:24:12,200 --> 00:24:14,520 Speaker 1: bit more of a spectator sport, made use of the 420 00:24:14,600 --> 00:24:18,600 Speaker 1: club's lawns. It is no accident that two Wimbledon tennis 421 00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:22,240 Speaker 1: courts fit just about perfectly into one croquet court because 422 00:24:22,240 --> 00:24:25,080 Speaker 1: the space was converted from one to the other. But 423 00:24:25,359 --> 00:24:29,480 Speaker 1: croquet and Wimbledon's divorce did not stick. Croquet once again 424 00:24:29,560 --> 00:24:32,280 Speaker 1: became part of the All England Club in eighteen ninety nine, 425 00:24:32,480 --> 00:24:34,920 Speaker 1: although the order was reversed so that it became the 426 00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:39,280 Speaker 1: All England Lawn Tennis and Croquete Club, although All England 427 00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:42,200 Speaker 1: Club is commonly used. When the club moved in the 428 00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:45,200 Speaker 1: nineteen twenties, Croquete did not move with it, although it 429 00:24:45,359 --> 00:24:48,280 Speaker 1: stayed in the official name. In the nineteen fifties, the 430 00:24:48,320 --> 00:24:51,000 Speaker 1: club once again picked up croquet, but it has remained 431 00:24:51,040 --> 00:24:54,560 Speaker 1: a secondary aspect of Wimbledon. The club had only one 432 00:24:54,640 --> 00:24:57,600 Speaker 1: croquet court until two thousand and seven. That one was 433 00:24:57,680 --> 00:25:00,160 Speaker 1: removed and then three new ones were installed in two 434 00:25:00,200 --> 00:25:03,720 Speaker 1: thousand and eight. During high tennis season, the croquet players 435 00:25:03,840 --> 00:25:07,160 Speaker 1: have to play elsewhere they usually. I heard it described 436 00:25:07,200 --> 00:25:12,720 Speaker 1: they do like four kind of open tournaments in the 437 00:25:12,840 --> 00:25:15,280 Speaker 1: club each year and four away and the away wins 438 00:25:15,320 --> 00:25:19,360 Speaker 1: are scheduled when tennis is in its season because those 439 00:25:19,440 --> 00:25:21,959 Speaker 1: lawns that would be used for croquet are used as 440 00:25:22,040 --> 00:25:25,719 Speaker 1: practice areas for the more prevalent sports. It's a very 441 00:25:25,880 --> 00:25:30,280 Speaker 1: brief glimpse at croquet in our history. We'll talk about 442 00:25:30,280 --> 00:25:32,720 Speaker 1: the fact. Here's the thing. I know that if you 443 00:25:32,840 --> 00:25:36,560 Speaker 1: are in England, they do the accent differently, so it's 444 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:43,680 Speaker 1: croquet rather than croquet. This is like whether it's Marriott 445 00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:51,280 Speaker 1: or Marriott right precisely. But yeah, it's a fun little 446 00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:54,560 Speaker 1: I'm thinking of spring already, so it was a fun 447 00:25:54,640 --> 00:25:58,359 Speaker 1: adventure to consider going outside and playing on the lawn. Yeah. 448 00:25:58,520 --> 00:26:03,159 Speaker 1: I as as I was reading through this outline, I 449 00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:06,400 Speaker 1: read a really interesting article about the spread of England 450 00:26:06,640 --> 00:26:12,320 Speaker 1: or the spread of croquet through like places that England 451 00:26:12,640 --> 00:26:17,360 Speaker 1: or Britain had colonized, and like its introduction into Egypt 452 00:26:17,520 --> 00:26:22,280 Speaker 1: and then Egypt becoming like the dominant home of croquet players. 453 00:26:23,400 --> 00:26:25,840 Speaker 1: So like it's a game that has had a whole 454 00:26:26,640 --> 00:26:32,480 Speaker 1: trajectory beyond its origins. Oh yes, yeah, I stuck to 455 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,200 Speaker 1: the very European kind of developmental rules because once it 456 00:26:35,960 --> 00:26:38,119 Speaker 1: passed out of there, it exploded and became like a 457 00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:41,280 Speaker 1: worldwide sport. I definitely did not get into the more 458 00:26:41,320 --> 00:26:44,920 Speaker 1: competitive There are not very many, but there are professional 459 00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:47,760 Speaker 1: croquet players today that that is their full time thing, 460 00:26:49,200 --> 00:26:52,760 Speaker 1: which is just one of the many evolutions of any 461 00:26:52,880 --> 00:27:01,199 Speaker 1: sport that becomes popular, I think. Yeah, thanks so much 462 00:27:01,280 --> 00:27:04,280 Speaker 1: for joining us on this Saturday. Since this episode is 463 00:27:04,359 --> 00:27:06,359 Speaker 1: out of the archive, if you heard an email address 464 00:27:06,440 --> 00:27:08,960 Speaker 1: or a Facebook RL or something similar over the course 465 00:27:09,000 --> 00:27:12,240 Speaker 1: of the show, that could be obsolete now. Our current 466 00:27:12,359 --> 00:27:17,920 Speaker 1: email address is History Podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. You 467 00:27:18,000 --> 00:27:21,119 Speaker 1: can find us all over social media at missed Dhistory, 468 00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:24,480 Speaker 1: and you can subscribe to our show on Apple podcasts, 469 00:27:24,560 --> 00:27:28,120 Speaker 1: Google podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, and wherever else you listen 470 00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:33,320 Speaker 1: to podcasts. Stuff you missed in History Class is a 471 00:27:33,359 --> 00:27:37,720 Speaker 1: production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the 472 00:27:37,760 --> 00:27:41,280 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 473 00:27:41,280 --> 00:27:42,000 Speaker 1: favorite shows.