The first tennis match played was in France, in the 12th century. Instead of a racket, they used their hands! It was also called "jeux de paume", which means game of the palm.Rackets began to be used in the 16th century, and that is when the name "Tennis" began to be used. It was very popular in England and France.
The medieval version of tennis is called real tennis. Real tennis evolved from a ball game that was played in the 12th century. It had similarities to handball and wall-ball.
There were several important people who loved to play real tennis. Two of the most important ones were Francis I and Henry II of France.
The game thrived in the 17th century in France, Spain, and Italy. By the Age of Napoleon, the royal families of Europe were captured and real tennis was abandoned. Real tennis played a role in the history of the French Revolution, through the Tennis Court Oath.
The Tennis Court Oath was an event that happened in the first days of the French Revolution. The Oath was a pledge saying that King Louis XVI was trying to force his will onto the Third Estate. King Louis XVI ordered his men to barricade the doors to the meeting rooms, so that the Third Estate could not meet. Instead, they met in a tennis court and signed the oath, and that is how it got it's name.In England, during the 18th and early 19th centuries as real tennis died out, three other racquet sports were made. Those sports were racquets, squash racquets, and lawn tennis. Lawn tennis is what we play today.
I have played tennis for a few years. I have not done any big matches yet because I don't have time for them, but I try to play a good amount.
When we played handball in P.E, I found out that I was a good goalie, and I am thinking it is because if tennis. Handball was a similar sport to the first kind of tennis!
Image Sources:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Lawn-tennis-Prang-1887.jpeg
http://www.irtpa.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/court_graphic_large.jpg
Hey kian,
ReplyDeleteI really like your blog. However, one question came up.
When I was reading your work, you talked about how tennis was largley and rich persons sport (many royals played the game). But was it only a wealthy mans sport? Did the lower class compete in the game at all?
thanks, good blog,
hank
Howdy Kian,
ReplyDeleteI didn't know tennis dated back to the 12th century, that's so cool! Also it was very nice that you connected it to the French Revolution with the Tennis Court Oath, very creative. Do you know how it spread to the rest of the world from Europe?
-Robbie
Hey Kian!
ReplyDeleteI really liked your blog, and it was fun and interesting to read. I liked your connections!
I was wondering:
1) Why was it called Lawn Tennis?
2) How did you get into Tennis?
3) What did you learn about Tennis from researching it for this post?
Thanks for reading my comment!
Hi Kian!
ReplyDeleteI didn't know tennis is so old! It's really cool but I was wondering how the rest of the world found out about tennis once the Europeans discovered it. Also, since I'm assuming you play tennis, I was wondering how you start playing?
Great Job!
~Grace
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Kian,
ReplyDeleteI had no idea Tennis had so much history. Do you think it hurt them to play tennis with just their hands, it seems like it would hurt.
Much love
Alex
Hey Ahh Da (Kian),
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post because when i started reading ya I knew what tennis was, but you made me know much more about it. Sometimes I feel like tennis can be a very classy game, but do some people not like the sport because of that?
Stay True,
Aiden
Kian,
ReplyDeleteWow! I never would've thought tennis was first played 900 years ago. Why was called real tennis? How often do you play tennis? Great post!
-Arman
Hello Kian,
ReplyDeleteI didn't know tennis dated back to the 12th century! Also it was very nice that you connected it to the French Revolution with the Tennis Court Oath, which was very creative. Do you know how it spread to the rest of the world from Europe? If not, that's alright. Thank you for posting!
Thanks!
~Sydney
Wow Kian!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize how different tennis is today than how it was in the 12th century. Your post was very interesting and educational!
-Nicholas
Hi Kian,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog post. I would have never know were it came from but now I know. I am a good tennis player myself. I can't wait until we play it in P.E. One question: do you like singles or doubles?
Great Post,
J.T
To Kian,
ReplyDeleteWow, I was shocked when I heard that tennis was first played with their hands! I would of never thought the sport evolved from hitting a ball with your hands! Thanks for explaining the history of Tennis in great detail! Have you tried playing tennis in your hands, if so do you like it more than recent tennis?
Nice post!
-Lion