1748.1
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
 |
| Prominent Milestones |
| Misc BB Firsts |
| Add a Misc BB First |
| About the Chronology |
| Tom Altherr Dedication |
| Add a Chronology Entry |
| Open Queries |
| Open Numbers |
| Most Aged |
Lady Hervey Reports Royals' "Base-ball" in a Letter
| Salience | Noteworthy |
|---|---|
| Tags | FemalesFemales |
| Location | EnglandEngland |
| City/State/Country: | [[{{{Country}}}]] |
| Modern Address | |
| Game | |
| Immediacy of Report | |
| Age of Players | JuvenileJuvenile |
| Holiday | |
| Notables | |
| Text | Lady Hervey (then Mary Leppel) describes in a letter the activities of the family of Frederick, Prince of Wales: "[T]he Prince's family is an example of innocent and cheerful amusements All this last summer they played abroad; and now, in the winter, in a large room, they divert themselves at base-ball, a play all who are, or have been, schoolboys, are well acquainted with. The ladies, as well as gentlemen, join in this amusement . . . . This innocence and excellence must needs give great joy, and well as great hope, to all real lovers of their country and posterity." [The last sentence may well be written in irony, as Lady Hervey was evidently known to be unimpressed with the Prince's conduct.] Hervey, Lady (Mary Lepel), Letters (London, 1821), p.139 [Letter XLII, of November 14, 1748, from London]. Google Books now has uploaded the letters: search for "Lady Hervey." Letter 52 begins on page 137, and the baseball reference is on page 139. Accessed 12/29/2007. Note: David Block, page 189, spells the name "Lepel," citing documented family usage; the surname often appears as "Leppell." In a 19CBB posting of 2/15/2008, David writes that it is "George III, to whom we can rightly ascribe the honor of being the first known baseball player. The ten-year-old George, as [Prince] Frederick's eldest son, was surely among the prince's family members observed by Lady Hervey in 1748 to be 'divert[ing] themselves at base-ball.'" |
| Sources | |
| Warning | |
| Comment | Edit with form to add a comment |
| Query | Edit with form to add a query |
| Source Image | [[Image:|left|thumb]] |
| External Number | |
| Submitted by | |
| Submission Note | |
| Has Supplemental Text |
1748.1 Lady Hervey Reports Royals' "Base-ball" in a Letter"
Comments
<comments voting="Plus" />