John Moyer Heathcote

John Moyer Heathcote (12 July 1834 – 3 August 1912) was an English barrister and real tennis player. He was one of the committee members at the Marylebone Cricket Club responsible for drafting the original rules of lawn tennis and is credited with devising the cloth covering for the tennis ball.

Heathcote was born in London, the eldest son of John Heathcote of Conington Castle,^[1] Huntingdonshire, and his third wife Emily Colbourne. He was a descendant of Lord Ancaster of Conington Castle. He was educated at Eton College and was admitted at Trinity College Cambridge on 8 October 1851. He was awarded an MA in 1856, but also began playing real tennis at Cambridge. He was admitted at Lincoln's Inn on 27 March 1856 and was called to the bar on 17 November 1859. He served on the Northern Circuit.^[2]

Heathcote played real tennis regularly at a court in James Street Haymarket from 1856 to 1866. His chief professional teacher and opponent was Edmund Tompkins, for some years champion of tennis. Heathcote became amateur champion in about 1859. At that time, there was no formal competition for the amateur championship, but from 1867 the Marylebone Cricket Club annually offered prizes to its members for play in the courts at Lord's Cricket Ground, and the gold prize carried with it the blue riband of amateur tennis. Heathcote won the gold prize for the next 15 years and in about 1869 he was the equal of any player in the world until the professional George Lambert began to surpass him. Heathcote became involved in lawn tennis which used a vulcanised rubber ball, and he proposed covering the rubber ball with cloth. In 1875, he instigated a meeting at Lords to establish rules for lawn tennis. Walter Clopton Wingfield put forward proposals based on his own game for an hour-glass court and a racquets counting method which were adopted but which led to some objections. By 1877 the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club was proposing the first Wimbledon Tournament, and a review of the rules was required. Heathcote with his fellow MCC commissioner Julian Marshall, and Henry Jones of the All England club laid down the rules that are almost unchanged to this day in time for the first Wimbledon tournament on 9 July 1877. Heathcote was particularly in favour of a return to the rectangular court.^[3]

Heathcote became an Honorary Colonel in the 3rd Volunteer Battalion Suffolk Regiment and became Honorary Colonel of the 1st Administrative Battalion of the Cambridge Rifle Volunteers in 1880. He was chairman of the Huntingdonshire Quarter Sessions and was JP and Deputy Lieutenant for Huntingdonshire, and JP for Sussex and the Liberty of Peterborough.^[2]

Heathcote was amateur real tennis champion every year until 1882 when the Hon. Alfred Lyttelton ended his long run but in 1883 he regained the title. After this Heathcote only won the gold prize once more in 1886 when Lyttleton was unable to play. Heathcote played tennis for many years and in a number of courts after he retired from competition play.

Heathcote had many interests in sports and games including shooting and skating, he was an amateur artist of some repute and was a graceful writer on sporting subjects. He wrote for the Badminton Library authoring Volume 14: Tennis, Lawn Tennis, Rackets & Fives (1890) with contributions by A. Lyttelton, W. C. Marshall, and others^[4] and Volume 18: Skating & Figure Skating (1892), co-authored by Charles Goodman Tebbutt and illustrated with photographs and with wood-engravings by Charles Whympe^[5]

Heathcote died aged 78 at Conington Castle.^[2]

Heathcote married Louisa Cecilia Macleod, the eldest child and only daughter of Norman MacLeod of MacLeod and his wife Louisa St John, on 18 December 1860.^[2] She was born on 24 May 1838. They had four children one of whom, John Norman Heathcote, was a writer about St Kilda and they lived at 24 Brunswick Square Brighton and Conington Castle. Louisa died aged 72 on 20 January 1910.

References

1. Demolished in 1953
2. "Heathcote, John Moyer (HTCT851JM)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
3. Heiner Gillmeister Tennis: a cultural history
4. Court Tennis in the 19th Century at sc.edu (accessed 3 April 2008)
5. Victorian Entertainments: We Are Amused An Exhibit Illustrating Victorian Entertainment at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library of the University of Illinois (Item 31: Golf in 1890, Item 32: Skating in 1892, Item 33: Cricket in 1888, Item 34: Cycling in 1887) online at library.uiuc.edu (accessed 3 April 2008)