The modern history of badminton began in India with a game known as poona. Poona was a competitive sport that British Army officers learned and brought back to England, but more about that part of badminton’s history in a moment. First, we must answer the question, “So just where did the game of poona come from?”
Child’s
Play
Poona developed from a children’s
game called battledore and shuttlecock.
The object of this game was to see
how long a group could volley the
shuttlecock by hitting it with the
battledore, or paddle. This cooperative,
non-competitive game was originally
played without a net. The shuttlecock
is often called a bird because its
made out feathers. Today, some models
are made of plastic, but competition
shuttlecocks consist of 16 real feathers.
Experts claim the very best shuttles
are made from feathers taken from
the left wing of a goose. Who knew?
Even before battledore and shuttlecock evolved, there were similar sports being played throughout the world. In fifth century China, ti jian zi was played by kicking a shuttle into the air. By the 1600s, people in Europe were playing jeu de volant, a game that used a racket rather than feet to volley the shuttle.
By the time British officers stationed in India encountered poona the game was a fast-paced competitive sport. These officers took the equipment for poona back to England in the early 1870s.
A Party
at Badminton
It was the Duke of Beaufort who officially introduced the game to England. In
1873, guests at a lawn party on his country estate, Badminton, played a game
of poona. The game was a hit and soon became popular among the British elite.
People began calling the new party sport “the Badminton game.”
The game was played both indoors and outdoors on a court with an hourglass shape. It has been suggested that this unusual shape developed so the game could be played in Victorian salons, large rooms with doors that opened inward on both sides. In 1901, the official badminton court became rectangular.
