LAWN BOWLS

Aspects of the Ancient and the Modern Game of Lawn Bowls

A  BRIEF  HISTORY  of  BOWLS

Although Lawn Bowls is essentially an English sport, it is likely that it was first brought to this country by the conquering Normans in 1066. Like Italy's bocce and Provencal's petanque, lawn bowling seems to have had its beginnings in a game played by Roman soldiers throughout the countries of their empire. Stones were tossed toward a target stone with the object of getting as close to the target as possible.

Balls that were rolled rather than thrown gradually replaced stones. In France, the sport became known as boules, from the Latin word for ball, the English world "bowl" coming from that same French root. In medieval times a feather stuck upright in the ground was at times used as a target. (As in the illustration above).

The oldest known bowling green is said to date back at least to 1299 and is in Southampton, England. In 1511 Henry VIII, himself a bowler, banned the sport among the lower classes and in order to ensure that only the wealthy could play he levied a fee of £100 on any private bowling green. All able-bodied men were required to spend their spare time practising archery rather than playing the frivolous game of bowls. The king's proclamation also noted that arrow-makers and bow-makers were not being sufficiently productive because of the time they wasted on bowling. With the lessening importance of archery which followed the increasing use of firearms in warfare, such bans passed. The dominance of Puritans in the 17th Century, however, menat that virtually all sports in England ceased. Lawn bowling was only gradually re-introduced after the Restoration in 1660. However, the sport did continue to flourish in Scotland, and during the 1840s the Scots developed a set of standardized rules that have been changed very little since that time.

A good outline history of 'Playing At Bowls', can be found on the Greydragon Library website from which two of the Medieval Bowls illustrations are reproduced in the accompanying slideshow. You can visit there and read the article by clicking your mouse on either of the images Both of these drawings are based on illustrations in 14th Century manuscripts.

Bowling in Medieval & Tudor Times

         Illustration Titles

Feather Bowling

Bowling in the 14th Century

Bowling - in Medieval Times - 1

Bowling - in Medieval Times - 2

Bowling - in Medieval Times - 3

Sir Francis Drake Bowling on Plymouth Hoe

Sir Francis Drake Playing Bowls

The most famous game of bowls . . .

. . . you will recall from school history lessons, that this was played in 1588, in Devon, on Plymouth Hoe, by Sir Francis Drake, while the invading Spanish fleet sailed up the English Channel.

Drake is said to have scoffed at the imminent threat by saying that the Spanish could wait till he had finished playing. Unperturbed, he completed his game, then went off to play a major part in vanquishing the Spanish Armada. The result of the game of bowls is not recorded.

THE  MODERN  GAME  OF  BOWLS

The BBC Sports website contains a straightforward guide to the modern game of bowls. It includes sections on ...

HOW COMPETITIONS UNFOLD;  HOW THE SCORING WORKS;  TYPES OF DELIVERY;  TACTICS;  WANT TO GET INVOLVED?

For this and further tips on how to play the game click on the 'BBC Sport Bowls' logo to the right -- >>>

Live LAWN BOWLS NEWS FEED

Keep bang up-to-date with what is going on in the world of bowls and bowling by reference to this live News feed from the 'NEWS NOW' website. (Warning: This news-gathering website trawls the news agencies for anything to do with 'bowls', so be prepared to ignore items on tableware, ten-pin, cricket, and other manifestations of 'bowls'!)!!.

Click on the site's icon on the right to go there --- > > >

'LAWN BOWLING 101' VIDEO
'An Introduction To Lawn Bowling'

Not for the experienced player, but a useful video for the beginning lawn bowler. American, from Newport Beach, California.

Use the start control in the centre and the pause button beneath the image on the left to operate.

For a larger picture click on the image itself to go directly to the YouTube website where you will also find other interesting bowls material in the  'Related Videos'  section.

. . . & now, 2 light-hearted BOWLING VIDEOS from 'YouTube' . . .

"I love my bowls" . . . Don't try this at home! . . .

Click on the START arrow in the window below to view,
or click directly on the screen to see a larger image > > >

The Sacha Baron Cohen character 'Borat' visits Camberley Indoor Bowling Club. (One of Baron Cohen's spoof interviews). Click on the START arrow below to view, or click directly on the screen to see a larger image > > >

LAWN  BOWLS  -
HINTS ON PLAY

BOWLS MATTERS

More Snippets, Bits & Pieces, Items and Issues,
relating to the subject of bowls and bowling
have been added in a Supplementary Webpage.

Click on the 'Runner' image on the
right to be taken there --- >>>