PART ELEVEN
HistoryThe history of Ice Hockey will develop here from the first origins to actual play over time.
1) OriginsThe Game
‘After the Crimean war (1854-55) a regiment was formed containing for the most part soldiers from the ranks of the ‘English Crimean war veterans’. This regiment took the name of the Royal Canadian Rifles and established itself half in Halifax and half in Kingston, Ontario.
Founded about the year 1860 it existed until 1870 when it was replaced by the Royal Canadian Horse Artillery……
The Royal Canadian Rifles occupied, at Kingston, the historic old building ‘Head of the Bridge Barracks’ which was situated opposite the port of Kingston.
It can be established without question that it was here (Kingston) that, about 1860, the Royal Canadian Rifles played ice hockey for the first time in the world.
It is admitted, however, that the other section of the regiment stationed at Halifax also played ice hockey in the same epoch (1860-70) which is proved by the fact that the rules of the Halifax Hockey were adopted by members of the Canadian Royal Rifles stationed at Kingston’.
This was a statement by Captain Sutherland (an eminent Canadian personality in sport) in an interview published in the Canadian ‘Whig-standard’ also reproduced in our own local Ice Hockey World - February 6th, 1936.
Yet there was some thought of Halifax, Nova Scotia being the origin of the sport as it was their ‘established’ rules used by Kingston. Vince Lunney (writing in the ‘Montreal Standard’ January 1950) stated that ‘documents at that time reveal that ‘in Kingston shinny was the players delight’. Lunney had made comment that the year 1846 was a starting point yet Foster Hewitt’s book ‘Down the Ice’ put the date of 1867 more to when the puck was used in the shinny type game.
Whatever argument or debate Montreal, with the McGill students lay foundations for the sport and its popularity.
W.F.Robertson, keen on ‘field hockey’ played in 1879 in England returned to Montreal to preach the game to his fellow students and questioned the notion of being able to play it in a form on Canadian ice.
According to the ‘All Sports Record’, ‘Ice hockey was first played in Montreal in December 1879….first regulations for the game were drawn by McGill student R.F.Smith on Robertson’s request and Smith said ‘..I drew up the first set of hockey rules and submitted them to Robertson and some fellow students at McGill on 17th September 1879’….I used some field hockey rules, a few others I thought out myself, and mixed in some Rugby Football Rules, the latter being why hockey is an onside game’.
A square puck was used made from a rubber ball in the first game in December then inter-class matches followed.
By this portion of history it was Montreal as well as Halifax and Kingston that were debated over as to where the ‘Hockey Hall of Fame’ was to be erected. Kingston being the choice in the end and the obvious reason for it was when the game of Ice hockey had been officially started by use of a puck as opposed to a ball. Not the number of players, or when players changed on the fly or such.
Captain Sutherland making point to a committee that the puck as well as sticks, goals and skates were part of the Kingston game.
Therefore the soldiers who carried with them their own tools of a homeland sport, who came from Europe, were attributed to be the founders of the game.
Playing with sticks a kin to the sport of field hockey and a puck is sited as to when the start of a game that spread on Canadian lands. Evident of this England would also lay honour to this game being played at home (on ice) as the first ‘visions’ of a game of ‘ice hockey’. The game being similar to that of Bandy (on ice but with a ball) which was also played in Scandinavia, and other similar games that other lands ‘wielded’ some kind of stick and brandished it to hit an object, as with the likes of the Greeks, Irish (Hurley), Danes and Scots (Shinty) and the French lay claim to the name ‘Hockey’ as coming from the word ‘hoquet’ – a shepherds crooked/curved stick.
**Below, three parts of the late Trevor Boyce's work.
*In the beginning
*Origins
*Pioneers
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2) Progression
BRITAIN STILL A BACKWATER - Written by Trevor Boyce
During the 1880's, Ice Hockey progressed by leaps and bounds over in Canada. Rules were drawn up, teams and leagues had been formed, and by the end of the decade a smart entrepreneur in Montreal was producing ice hockey sticks. Previous to this time players used field hockey sticks or made their own.
IN the United Kingdom however, it was a different story. The few artificial rinks that were open frowned on the game being played indoors. There was no need to encourage ice hockey anyway as public skating was very popular, and as also happened in the 1960's, the sport had to play second fiddle to the skaters.
The 1890's was the decade that would witness the first Stanley Cup competition in Canada, but in Britain the sport was generally limited to games that could be played on outdoor surfaces, not- I think you will agree- a sound foundation for the progress of the sport in these Isles.
In 1893, there was a game at Gravenhurst, Bedfordshire, and in 1895 a game was in played in the grounds of Buckingham Palace between a Palace sextette and Lord Stanley's team. Two future kings- Edward VII and George V played in the Palace side, while Lord Stanley's team included five of his sons who had recently returned from Canada.
I have read many accounts of this game, but have yet to find the final score- the nearest being that the Stanley team scored numerous goals to a solitary marker from the Palace team. However it was reported that "the game had to be played early as the Prince of Wales had to attend a levee". (A levee is an assembly held by a sovereign at which only men are received). It was also reported that the "Prince was greatly impressed by the play of the Hon. W.F. Stanley, who dribbled the puck at considerable speed while skating backwards".
Around 1895/96, new rinks were opened in London at Niagara Hall (near to St. James's Park Station), Henglers (on the site of the London Palladium) and Prince's (Knightsbridge), and with the established Royal patronage, ice hockey started to be accepted at these clubs. An important game was played at Henglers early in 1896. England beat Canada 4-2 in perhaps the first ever ice hockey international in the World, and I shall report on this game in the next issue.
In 1897, Major B.M. Patton- considered by many to be the father of British ice hockey- was given permission to form a team at Prince's Skating Club, and in February of that year the first game was played. The players had to pay expensive subscriptions for late night ice time, but at least it could be a stepping stone to bigger and better things.
As the century came to a close another rink appeared on the scene, the first outside of London known to host ice hockey. On January 4th 1899, a team from Brighton's original rink in Middle Street beat Prince's 4-2. Prince's blamed the defeat on the fact that the Sussex rink was circular. Ice Hockey was making progress in this country- but still had a long way to go.
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3) As time goes by...
- A BULLET POINT OF HISTORY -
1180 Early records of skating in London
1642 Edinburgh skating club formed
1700's Early forms of Ice Hockey/bandy played on the fens of East Anglia
1772 The Art of Skating by Robert Jones is published
1827 Earliest recorded account of a game at Bury Fen
1842 Ice Rink made of Pigs Lard opens at Portman Square in London
1853 Ice Hockey game played at Windsor with Prince Albert in goal
1860 The Bury Fenners play an exhibition game at the Crystal Palace in London
1862 London newspaper complains that Ice Hockey should be banned due to the fact that it is 'annoying and dangerous'
1870's During inclement weather ,Cricket, hockey and Rowing clubs start to play ice hockey at Hampton Court,Rick Pond,Home Pond and Wimbledon Lake
1876 First conventional rink, the Glacerium opens in the King's Road, Chelsea
1885 First Ice Hockey/bandy varsity match in St.Moritz, Oxford 6 Cambridge 0
1891 Bury Fenners play an early International series in Holland, winning all these games. On their return to England they travel to Virginia Water to play a London select team. One half of the game was roughly based on bandy rules and one half on Ice hockey. London wins 8-3
1893 A game was reported to have been played at Gravenhurst in Bedfordshire
1895 A game was played on the lake at Buckingham Palace. On one team were five of the sons of Lord stanley, and on the other were two future kings,Edward V11 and George V. New artificial rinks were built in London at Niagara Hall (St.James park), Henglers (now the London palladium) and Prince's (Knightsbridge.
1896 England beat Canada 4-2 at Henglers
1897 Major B M Patton forms an ice hockey team at Prince's
1898 Niagara recognised as first English champions
1899 Brighton beat Prince's 4-2, on the new circular shaped rink in Middle Street
1900 First varsity game to be played in the UK. Oxford win 7-6 at Prince's
1903 First Ice Hockey league with five teams. Princes, Cambridge University, London Canadians and two teams from Henglers
1904 London Canadians win first English league
1908 On 16th May, England are founder members with France,Belgium and Switzerland, of the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace (LIHG), now the IIIH.
1909 In March, England beat Scotland 11-1 at Prince's, the first match between them.
1910 Prince's (representing England) win the first European Championship in Les avants, Switzerland. Manchester Ice palace opens. The local team beating Prince's 5-3. Prince's play Scotland at Crossmyloof in Glasgow, winning 8-3 with a bandstand on centre ice. England
1913 The British Ice Hockey association (BIHA) is formed. Members are Prince's, Oxford and Cambridge University's, Manchester and the Royal Engineers(Chatham, Kent). President is Major B M Patton.
1914 Patton serves briefly as LIHG president.
1917 Stanley Cup stars play at Prince's en route to THE WAR IN France
1924 GB compete in the second Olympics at Chamonix, France, finishing 3rd.
1926 Westminster ice club opens, and ice hockey proves popular. Other rinks also come and go at Queens Club (Bayswater), Oxford, Birmingham, Liverpool, Grosvenor House (Park lane), Richmond, Hove and Hammersmith (now the Palais)
1929 Scottish Ice Hockey association is formed. Bearsden are Scotland's first Champions.
- For more, wait for my next book.
4) Someone else's fine work... and it's nice to see the credits (wink) -
thanks to David Parker for reminding me of these write ups.panthersfromthevault.wordpress.com/2017/07/
