95-543: The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club ( AELTC ), also known as the All England Club , based at Church Road, Wimbledon , London, England, is a private members' club . It is best known as the venue for the Wimbledon Championships , the only Grand Slam tennis event still held on grass . Initially an amateur event that occupied club members and their friends for a few days each summer,
190-591: A 'Privilege Card' which provides discounts and benefits within the town centre. The UK's leading car-sharing company Zipcar has its UK headquarters in Wimbledon. Other notable organisations with head offices in Wimbledon include CIPD , Ipsotek, United Response , the Communication Workers Union (United Kingdom) and, until 2022, Lidl . The Wimbledon Times (formerly Wimbledon Guardian ) provides local news in print and online. In
285-586: A King's plate." However, he gives no further details and does not say how successful horse racing was or how long it lasted. Aoraki Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand . Its height, as of 2014 , is listed as 3,724 metres (12,218 feet). It sits in the Southern Alps , the mountain range that runs the length of the South Island . A popular tourist destination, it
380-458: A common baseline. It's going that way. It's still not there." In 2006, Chairman Tim Phillips said that paying men and women equal prize money at The Championships was something they "fundamentally don't think would be fair on the men" (due to men playing best-of-five sets, and women only best-of-three). The Championships introduced equal prize money the following year. Wimbledon, London Wimbledon ( / ˈ w ɪ m b əl d ə n / )
475-641: A decontamination unit, and troops stationed nearby drilled on the main concourse. At 5:20 p.m. on 11 October 1940, five 50-pound German bombs struck the grounds, demolishing 1,200 seats in Centre Court. The old No.1 Court was replaced with the current No.1 Court in 1997, and the Broadcast Centre was built at the same time. Shortly afterwards, the Millennium Building, which houses facilities for players, press, officials and members,
570-535: A figure which has remained reasonably stable since. Wimbledon is covered by several wards in the London Borough of Merton, making it difficult to produce statistics for the town as a whole. The largest ethnic groups (up to 10%) in the wards according to the 2011 census are: At the time the Domesday Book was compiled (around 1086), Wimbledon was part of the manor of Mortlake. From 1328 to 1536,
665-681: A long-standing tradition of Centre Court players bowing or curtseying to the Royal Box was discontinued by order of the Duke of Kent , with the exception of the Queen or the Prince of Wales 's attendance. Andy Murray and Jarkko Nieminen elected to bow when the Queen visited The Championships for their 2010 second round match, as did Roger Federer and Fabio Fognini at their second round match, watched by
760-633: A manor of Wimbledon was recorded as belonging to the Archbishop of Canterbury . The manor of Wimbledon changed hands many times during its history. Wimbledon was an Ancient Parish from the medieval period, later being re-organised as the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon within the county of Surrey . In 1965, the London Government Act 1963 abolished the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon, Merton and Morden Urban District and
855-402: A pair of tickets for each day of the tournament for five years. Only debenture holders are legally permitted to sell on their tickets to third parties. In 2011, the club established another subsidiary, The All England Lawn Tennis Club (Championships) Limited, trading as AELTC, and transferred all of its assets relating to The Championships to that entity on 1 August of that year. Since that time,
950-500: A stable rural population coexisting with nobility and wealthy merchants from the city. In the 18th century the Dog and Fox public house became a stop on the stagecoach run from London to Portsmouth , then in 1838 the London and South Western Railway (L&SWR) opened a station to the southeast of the village at the bottom of Wimbledon Hill. The location of the station shifted the focus of
1045-591: Is 7 miles (11.3 km) south-west of Charing Cross . The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It is considered an affluent suburb with its grand Victorian houses, modern housing and low-rise apartments. The residential area splits into two sections: the village and the town, with the village near the common centred on the High Street, being part of
SECTION 10
#17327757731001140-558: Is a district and town of south-west London, England, 7.0 miles (11.3 km) southwest of the centre of London at Charing Cross ; it is the main commercial centre of the London Borough of Merton . Wimbledon had a population of 68,187 in 2011 which includes the electoral wards of Abbey, Wimbledon Town and Dundonald, Hillside, Wandle, Village, Raynes Park and Wimbledon Park. It is home to the Wimbledon Championships and New Wimbledon Theatre , and contains Wimbledon Common , one of
1235-773: Is also a favourite challenge for mountain climbers . Aoraki / Mount Cook consists of three summits: from south to north, the Low Peak (3,593 m or 11,788 ft), the Middle Peak (3,717 m or 12,195 ft) and the High Peak. The summits lie slightly south and east of the main divide of the Southern Alps, with the Tasman Glacier to the east and the Hooker Glacier to the southwest. Mount Cook
1330-733: Is located at the northern end of the Mount Cook Range , where it meets with the main spine of the Main Divide, forming a massif between the Hooker Valley to the southwest and the Tasman Valley east of the mountain. These two valleys provide the closest easily accessible view points of Aoraki / Mount Cook. A lookout point at the end of the Hooker Valley Track located only 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from
1425-708: Is now approved by the British Horse Society and the Association of British Riding Schools. It offers horse-riding lessons and hacks on Wimbledon Common and in Richmond Park. In 1792 the Rev. Daniel Lysons published The Environs of London: being a historical account of the towns, villages, and hamlets, within twelve miles of that capital in which he wrote: "In the early part of the present century there were annual races upon this common, which had then
1520-716: Is ranked 10th in the world by topographic isolation . The mountain is in the Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park , in the Canterbury Region . The park was established in 1953 and along with Westland National Park , Mount Aspiring National Park and Fiordland National Park forms one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites . The park contains more than 140 peaks standing over 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) and 72 named glaciers , which cover 40 percent of its 700 square kilometres (170,000 acres). The peak
1615-721: Is the only one of these names where the Māori name precedes the English. Under the settlement the Crown agreed to return title of Aoraki / Mount Cook to Ngāi Tahu, who would then formally gift it back to the nation. Neither transfer has yet occurred, and Ngāi Tahu can decide when this will happen. The Southern Alps in the South Island were formed by tectonic uplifting and pressure as the Pacific and Indo-Australian Plates collided along
1710-410: Is thought to have been constructed. In 1086 when the Domesday Book was compiled, Wimbledon was part of the manor of Mortlake . The ownership of the manor of Wimbledon changed between various wealthy families many times during its history, and the area also attracted other wealthy families who built large houses such as Eagle House, Wimbledon Manor House and Warren House . The village developed with
1805-800: Is used in the Māori dialect in the vicinity of the mountain). It is most commonly known as "Henman Hill" because of the popularity of former British tennis player Tim Henman . Initially the only use that the All England Club itself made of this new land was for car parking during The Championships, but in 1981 the New Zealanders' lease was terminated, and the club has developed most of the area for its own purposes. The All England Club, through its subsidiary The All England Lawn Tennis Ground plc, issues debentures to tennis fans every five years to raise funds for capital expenditure. The original debentures were issued in 1920. Each debenture provides
1900-638: The 1908 Summer Olympics , the venue hosted the Grass Courts tennis events. The early club colours were found to be almost identical to those of the Royal Marines , so they were changed in 1909 to the present club colours of dark green and purple. The popularity of Frenchwoman Suzanne Lenglen was largely responsible for forcing the club to move to larger grounds at its present site in Church Road, Wimbledon, in 1922, where its first championship
1995-472: The Dog and Fox made the journey to London routine, although not without the risk of being held-up by highwaymen , such as Jerry Abershawe on the Portsmouth Road. The stagecoach horses would be stabled at the rear of the pub in what are now named Wimbledon Village Stables. The 1735 manor house burnt down in the 1780s and was replaced in 1801 by Wimbledon Park House, built by the second Earl . At
SECTION 20
#17327757731002090-572: The Iron Age when the hill fort on Wimbledon Common , the second-largest in London, is thought to have been constructed. The original nucleus of Wimbledon was at the top of the hill close to the common – the area now known locally as "the village". The village is referred to as "Wimbedounyng" in a charter signed by King Edgar the Peaceful in 967. The name Wimbledon means "Wynnman's hill", with
2185-672: The Municipal Borough of Mitcham , creating instead the London Borough of Merton. Initially, the new administrative centre was at Wimbledon Town Hall, but it moved to the 14-storey Crown House in Morden in the early 1990s. It is now in the Parliamentary constituency of Wimbledon , and since 2005 has been represented by the Conservative MP Stephen Hammond . Since 2005, the north and west of
2280-707: The Papatūānuku , the Earth Mother, their canoe became stranded on a reef and tilted. Aoraki and his brothers climbed onto the top side of their canoe. However, the south wind froze them and turned them to stone. Their canoe became the Te Waka o Aoraki, the South Island , and their prows, the Marlborough Sounds . Aoraki, the tallest, became the highest peak, and his brothers created the Kā Tiritiri o te Moana,
2375-522: The Tasman Sea with them. Annual precipitation around the mountain ranges varies greatly as the local climate is dominated by the eastward movement of depressions and anticyclones from across the Tasman Sea. The Aoraki / Mount Cook massif is a major obstacle to the prevailing westerly winds as they push depressions and associated cold fronts of moist air from the subtropics in the northwest against
2470-713: The Worshipful Company of Girdlers and a director of the British East India Company built Eagle House as a home at an easy distance from London. The Cecil family retained the manor for fifty years, before it was bought by Charles I in 1638 for his Queen, Henrietta Maria . Following the King's execution in 1649, the manor passed rapidly among various parliamentarian owners, including the Leeds Member of Parliament (MP) Adam Baynes and
2565-530: The civil war general John Lambert ; Lambert drafted the Instrument of Government , the founding document of the Protectorate , at Wimbledon. After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, it was returned to Henrietta Maria (now as mother of the new King, Charles II ). The Dowager Queen sold the manor in 1661 to George Digby, 2nd Earl of Bristol , who employed John Evelyn to improve and update
2660-686: The 14th century CE. The first Europeans who may have seen Aoraki / Mount Cook were members of Abel Tasman 's crew, who saw a "large land uplifted high" (probably some part of the Southern Alps) while off the west coast of the South Island, just north of present-day Greymouth on 13 December 1642 during Tasman's first Pacific voyage. The English name of Mount Cook was given to the mountain in 1851 by Captain John Lort Stokes to honour Captain James Cook who surveyed and circumnavigated
2755-537: The 1820s employed a young Joseph Paxton as one of his gardeners, but in the 1840s the Spencer family sold the park off as building land. A period of residential development began with large detached houses in the north of the park. In 1864, the Spencers attempted to get parliamentary permission to enclose the common as a new park with a house and gardens and to sell part for building. Following an enquiry, permission
2850-534: The 1870s, at the bottom of the hill on land between the railway line and Worple Road, the All-England Croquet Club had begun to hold its annual championships. But the popularity of croquet was waning as the new sport of lawn tennis began to spread, and after initially setting aside just one of its lawns for tennis, the club decided to hold its first Lawn Tennis Championship in July 1877 . By 1922,
2945-418: The 1890 ascent attempt by Mannering and Dixon. The first known ascent was on 25 December 1894, when New Zealanders Tom Fyfe , John Michael (Jack) Clarke and George Graham reached the summit via the Hooker Valley and the north ridge. Despite an earlier failed attempt on 20 December, the local climbers were spurred on by their desire for the first ascent to be made by New Zealand mountaineers amid reports that
All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club - Misplaced Pages Continue
3040-530: The 1930s, residential expansion had peaked in Wimbledon and the new focus for local growth had moved to neighbouring Morden , which had remained rural until the arrival of the Underground at Morden station in 1926. Wimbledon station was rebuilt by the Southern Railway with a simple Portland stone facade for the opening of a new railway branch line from Wimbledon to Sutton in 1930. In 1931,
3135-491: The American mountaineer Edward FitzGerald had his eye on the summit. The party reached the summit at approximately 1:30pm after bounding up the last leg of the mountain full of excitement at reaching the top. The route they had successfully traversed was not repeated again until the 100th ascent over 60 years later in 1955. Swiss guide Matthias Zurbriggen of FitzGerald's party made the second ascent on 14 March 1895 from
3230-539: The Estate's accounts of 1236–37. Stables on the current site, behind the Dog & Fox pub in the High Street, were founded in 1915 by William Kirkpatrick and named Hilcote Stables; William's daughter Jean took over on his retirement and continued to visit the stables until her death in 2005. From 1969 Hilcote Stables were leased to Colin Crawford, and when they came up for sale in 1980 renamed Wimbledon Village Stables. It
3325-564: The Prince of Wales, in 2012 . In December 2016, it was announced that the then Duchess of Cambridge would succeed the Queen as Patron of The AELTC and The Championships, effective January 2017. Black players were not allowed to play at the club until 1951, and Jews were not admitted until 1952. According to Angela Buxton , the Jewish former British Wimbledon doubles champion, it also has led to her exclusion. Buxton said in 2004, reflecting on
3420-528: The South Ridge was renamed as Hillary Ridge in August 2011. Aoraki / Mount Cook is a technically challenging mountain with a high level of glaciation. Its level of difficulty is often underestimated and can change dramatically depending on weather, snow and ice conditions. The climb crosses large crevasses, and involves risks of ice and rock falls, avalanches and rapidly changing weather conditions. Since
3515-466: The Tasman Glacier side, via the ridge that now bears his name. This is credited as the first solo ascent, although Zurbriggen was accompanied part of the way up the ridge by J Adamson. After Zurbriggen's ascent it was another ten years before the mountain was climbed again. In February 1905 Jack Clarke with four others completed the third ascent following Zurbriggen's route. Clarke therefore became
3610-575: The Wimbledon Championships). It has been fitted with a retractable roof similar to Centre Court and was unveiled at a special ceremony on 19 May 2019. A new No.2 Court with 4,000 seats was first used at the 2009 Championships. The old No.2 Court was renamed No.3 Court in 2009, and was rebuilt after the 2009 Championships. The grounds underwent major renovation as part of the Wimbledon Master Plan. In December 2018
3705-616: The World". The Championships attract attendance of around 450,000 people. Ninety per cent of the financial surplus that the Club generates from running The Championships is used to develop tennis in Great Britain; between 1998 and 2016 the surplus ranged from £25–40 million per year. The Championships are run by a Committee of Management that consists of 12 club members and seven nominees of The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA). In 2003,
3800-413: The borough council, to house some of those who had lost their homes. During the 1970s and 1980s, Wimbledon town centre struggled to compete commercially with more developed centres at Kingston and Sutton . Part of the problem was the shortage of locations for large anchor stores to attract customers. After some years in which the council seemed unable to find a solution, The Centre Court shopping centre
3895-668: The borough have been represented in Westminster by Paul Kohler , a Liberal Democrat MP. The east and south of the Borough are represented by Siobhain McDonagh , a Labour MP. In 2012 the businesses in Wimbledon voted to introduce a Business Improvement District. "Love Wimbledon" was formed in April 2012, funded and managed by the business community to promote and enhance the town centre. Those who work within Wimbledon can apply for
All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club - Misplaced Pages Continue
3990-423: The centre at the time it was built, but as new courts were added in later years it became a more accurate description. It currently seats 15,000 – expanded from 14,000 following redevelopment in 2007–08 (spatially, the expansion is greater than those numbers imply, as seats have been widened), and (as of 2009) is the fourth-largest tennis stadium in the world. The Club installed a retractable roof on Centre Court which
4085-456: The championships have become far more prominent than the club itself. The club has 375 full members, about 100 temporary playing members, and a number of honorary members. To become a full or temporary member, an applicant must obtain letters of support from four existing full members, two of whom must have known the applicant for at least three years. The name is then added to the candidates' list. Honorary members are elected from time to time by
4180-401: The city. Renewed upheaval came in 1838, when the opening of the London and South Western Railway (L&SWR) brought a station to the south-east of the village, at the bottom of Wimbledon Hill. The location of the station shifted the focus of the town's subsequent growth away from the original village centre. For several years Wimbledon Park was leased to the Duke of Somerset , who briefly in
4275-410: The club agreed a £65 million compensation package with the members of the adjacent Wimbledon Park Golf Club to cut short their lease on the ground in order to expand. In September 2024, planning permission was granted for the expansion plans which include 39 new tennis courts. The club also houses the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum . Among the features that differentiate The Wimbledon Championships from
4370-440: The club's activities have been conducted separately from those of The Championships. The club was the venue for the tennis event at the 2012 Summer Olympics . In June 2020, Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II due to the COVID-19 pandemic . Wimbledon was cancelled several times during the wars: in World War I between 1915 and 1918 and World War II between 1940 and 1945. From June 2022, Wimbledon
4465-429: The club's committee. Membership carries with it the right to purchase two tickets for each day of the Wimbledon Championships. In addition to this all champions are invited to become members. Catherine, Princess of Wales , has been the patron of the club since 2016 (then the Duchess of Cambridge) when the then monarch Elizabeth II stepped back from a number of royal patronages. The club was founded by six gentlemen at
4560-454: The company meant it was never finished. The next owner was Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough , who increased the land belonging to the manor and completed the construction of a house to replace Jansen's unfinished effort in 1735. On her death in 1744, the property passed to her grandson, John Spencer, and subsequently to the first Earl Spencer . The village continued to grow and the 18th-century introduction of stagecoach services from
4655-581: The council built a new red brick and Portland stone Town Hall next to the station, on the corner of Queen's Road and Wimbledon Bridge. The architects were Bradshaw Gass & Hope . Damage to housing stock in Wimbledon and other parts of London during World War II led to a final major building phase when many earlier Victorian houses with large grounds in Wimbledon Park were sub-divided into flats or demolished and replaced with apartment blocks. Other parts of Wimbledon Park, which had previously escaped being built upon, saw local authority estates constructed by
4750-851: The country. On 27 February 1913, a suffragette woman "between the ages of 30–35" was arrested within the grounds, after being spotted by a groundsman climbing over a hedge at around midnight. She was found to have on her paraffin and wood shavings, for the purpose of setting fires in the grounds. The woman refused to give her name or any information and was later sentenced to two months' imprisonment. The club currently has 18 tournament grass courts, eight American clay courts, two acrylic courts, and six indoor courts. There are also 22 Aorangi Park grass courts, which serve as competitors' practice courts before and during The Championships. The grass courts can be used from May until September. The grass has been cut to 8 mm since 1995, and 100% perennial ryegrass has been used for its strength since 2001 (prior to that, it
4845-610: The difficult climbing conditions on Aoraki / Mount Cook. Temperatures at the mountain's base in the Hooker Valley around 800 metres (2,600 feet) range from −13 °C (9 °F) to 32 °C (90 °F), and generally fall just over 1 °C (1.8 °F) for every 200 metres (656 ft) of altitude. From about 1,000 m (3,280 ft) and higher, semi-permanent snow and ice fields exist during winter. Winter and spring are usually less settled than summer and autumn. Anticyclones often bring days of settled weather in summer, or clear cold conditions in winter with severe frost. In
SECTION 50
#17327757731004940-408: The early 20th century, around 80 people have died attempting to climb the mountain, making it New Zealand's deadliest peak. The climbing season traditionally runs from November to February, and hardly a season goes by without at least one fatality. According to Māori legend, Aoraki was a young boy who, along with his three brothers, were the sons of Rakinui , the Sky Father. On their voyage around
5035-430: The early 20th century, as was recognised in 1905, when the urban district was incorporated as the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon , with the power to select a mayor. By 1910, Wimbledon had established the beginnings of the Wimbledon School of Art at the Gladstone Road Technical Institute and acquired its first cinema and the theatre. Unusually, the facilities at its opening included Victorian-style Turkish baths . By
5130-497: The fact that the All England Club, almost 50 years after Buxton's 1956 Wimbledon triumph with Althea Gibson , had still not invited Buxton to join: "I think the anti-Semitism is still there. The mere fact that I'm not a member is a full sentence that speaks for itself." Buxton told New York Post reporter Marc Berman that she had been on the "waiting list" since she applied in the 1950s. "I wish it still wasn't such an elite sport," Buxton told Berman. "I wish we could bring it down to
5225-433: The final element of the name being the Celtic "dun" (hill). The name is shown on J. Cary's 1786 map of the London area as "Wimbleton", and the current spelling appears to have been settled on relatively recently in the early 19th century, the last in a long line of variations. At the time the Domesday Book was compiled (around 1086), Wimbledon was part of the manor of Mortlake , and so was not recorded. The ownership of
5320-447: The first obstacle the winds encounter after South America, having moved east across the Southern Ocean . The height of Aoraki / Mount Cook was established in 1881 by G. J. Roberts (from the west side) and in 1889 by T. N. Brodrick (from the Canterbury side). Their measurements agreed closely at 12,349 feet (3,764 m). The height was reduced by 10 metres (33 ft) when approximately 12–14 million cubic metres of rock and ice fell off
5415-421: The first person to do a repeat ascent. The first woman to ascend the mountain was Australian Freda Du Faur on 3 December 1910. Local guide George Bannister, a nephew of another guide, Butler Te Koeti of Ngāi Tahu, was the first Māori to successfully scale the peak in 1912. A traverse of the three peaks was first accomplished in 1913 by Freda Du Faur and guides Alec and Peter Graham . This 'grand traverse'
5510-412: The island's western coast. The uplifting continues, raising Aoraki / Mount Cook an average of 7 millimetres (0.28 in) each year. However, erosive forces are also powerful shapers of the mountains. The severe weather is due to the mountain's jutting into powerful westerly winds of the Roaring Forties which run around approximately 45°S latitude, south of both Africa and Australia. The Southern Alps are
5605-429: The islands of New Zealand in 1770. Captain Cook did not sight the mountain during his exploration. Following the settlement between Ngāi Tahu and the Crown in 1998, a number of South Island place names were amended to incorporate their Māori names by the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998 . The name of the mountain was officially changed from Mount Cook to Aoraki/Mount Cook to incorporate its historic Māori name. It
5700-412: The landscape in accordance with the latest fashions, including grottos and fountains. After his death in 1677, the manor was sold again to the Lord High Treasurer , Thomas Osborne , Earl of Danby . The Osborne family sold the manor to Sir Theodore Janssen in 1712. Janssen, a director of the South Sea Company , began a new house to replace the one built by the Cecils, but the spectacular collapse of
5795-420: The largest areas of common land in London. The residential and retail area is split into two sections known as the "village" and the "town", with the High Street being the rebuilding of the original medieval village, and the "town" having first developed gradually after the building of the railway station in 1838. Wimbledon has been inhabited since at least the Iron Age when the hill fort on Wimbledon Common
SECTION 60
#17327757731005890-417: The manor of Wimbledon changed hands many times during its history. The manor was held by the church until 1398 when Thomas Arundel , Archbishop of Canterbury fell out of favour with Richard II and was exiled. The manor was confiscated and became crown property. The manor remained crown property until the reign of Henry VIII when it was granted briefly to Thomas Cromwell , Earl of Essex , until Cromwell
5985-441: The mother of the writer Frederick Marryat . Their association with the area is recorded in the names of nearby Calonne and Marryat roads. Directly south of the common, the early 18th-century Warren House ( Cannizaro House from 1841) was home to a series of grand residents. The first decades of the 19th century were relatively quiet for Wimbledon, with a stable rural population coexisting alongside nobility and wealthy merchants from
6080-410: The mountain range. As the air rises towards the peaks, it expands and cools, and forms clouds. Rain and snowfall are often heaviest around the 1,200 m (3,900 ft) level and can last for several days if the front is slow-moving. As a result of the local weather patterns, the western slopes of Aoraki / Mount Cook can receive well over 10,000 mm (394 in) of annual precipitation, whereas
6175-497: The mountain's three summits forms a distinctive blocky shape when viewed from an eastern or western direction. Another popular view point is from Lake Matheson on the West Coast, described as the "view of views", where on calm days, the peaks of Aoraki / Mount Cook and Mt Tasman are reflected in Lake Matheson. Aoraki / Mount Cook receives substantial orographic precipitation throughout the year, as breezy, moisture-laden westerly winds dominate all year-round, bringing rainclouds from
6270-406: The nearby Mount Cook Village, only 15 km (9 mi) south of the mountain, receives 4,484 mm (176.5 in) of rain or snowfall. While the weather on the eastern side of the mountain is generally better, rain or snow can quickly become widespread on that side as well if the wind turns to the south or southeast. This brings with it a rapid drop in temperature and poor visibility, adding to
6365-458: The northern peak on 14 December 1991. Two decades of erosion of the ice cap exposed after this collapse reduced the height by another 30 m to 3,724 m, Aoraki / Mount Cook lies in the centre of the distinctive Alpine Fault , a 650 km long active fault in the Southern Alps. It is responsible for the uplift of Aoraki / Mount Cook and is believed to move every 100 to 300 years. It last moved in 1717. The average annual rainfall in
6460-412: The offices of The Field on 23 July 1868 at the height of a croquet craze as the All England Croquet Club, and held its first croquet competition in 1870. Its original ground was situated off Worple Road, Wimbledon. Croquet was very popular there until the then-infant sport of lawn tennis (a game introduced by Major Walter Clopton Wingfield a year or so prior, and originally called Sphairistikè )
6555-423: The original medieval village, and now a prime residential area of London commanding high prices, and the "town" being part of the modern development, centred on The Broadway, since the building of the railway station in 1838. The majority of the adult population of around 68,200 adults belong to the ABC1 social group. The population grew from around 1,000 at the start of the 19th century to around 55,000 in 1911,
6650-451: The other Grand Slams are that they are played on grass courts, they require the players to wear white, and until 2021, the middle Sunday was a day off (though sometimes – in 1991, 1997, 2004 and 2016 – poor weather meant play needed to take place). Balls were also white until 1986. The winner of the Gentlemen's singles at The Championships receives a gold trophy inscribed with the words: "The All England Lawn Tennis Club Single Handed Champion of
6745-591: The peak has views of the entire mountainside. The settlement of Mount Cook Village , also referred to as "Aoraki / Mount Cook", is a tourist centre and base camp for the mountain. It is 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from the end of the Tasman Glacier and 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south of Aoraki / Mount Cook's summit. On clear days, Aoraki / Mount Cook is visible from the West Coast as far north as Greymouth, some 150 km (93 mi) away, and from most of State Highway 80 along Lake Pukaki and State Highway 6 south of Lake Pukaki. The near horizontal ridge connecting
6840-426: The popularity of tennis had grown to the extent that the club's small ground could no longer cope with the numbers of spectators and the renamed All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club moved to new grounds close to Wimbledon Park. Wimbledon historian Richard Milward recounts how King George V opened the new courts. "He (the king) gave three blows on a gong, the tarpaulins were removed, the first match started – and
6935-415: The posts and 3 feet (0.91 m) at the centre. In 1882, croquet was dropped from the name, as tennis had become the main activity of the club. But in 1899 it was restored to the club's name for sentimental reasons, and the club's name became The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club . In 1884, the club added Ladies' Singles and Gentlemen's Doubles, and then in 1913 Ladies' Doubles and Mixed Doubles. For
7030-516: The property until 1574 when she gave the manor house (but not the manor) to Christopher Hatton , who sold it in the same year to Sir Thomas Cecil , Earl of Exeter . The lands of the manor were given to the Cecil family in 1588 and a new manor house, Wimbledon Palace , was constructed and gardens laid out in the formal Elizabethan style. Wimbledon's proximity to the capital was beginning to attract other wealthy families. In 1613 Robert Bell, Master of
7125-558: The rain came down." The club's old grounds continue to be used as the sports ground for Wimbledon High School . Wimbledon Village Stables is the oldest recorded riding stables in England. The late Richard Milward MA, a local historian, researched the background of horses in Wimbledon over the years and found that the first recorded stables belonged to the Lord of the Manor, and are detailed in
7220-659: The rebuilding of St Mary's Church in 1849 and the construction of Christ Church (1859) and Trinity Church (1862). Street names reflect events: Denmark Road, Denmark Avenue and the Alexandra pub on Wimbledon Hill mark the marriage of Edward, Prince of Wales , to Princess Alexandra of Denmark . The change of character of Wimbledon from village to small town was recognised under the Local Government Act 1894 , which formed Wimbledon Urban District with an elected council . Wimbledon's population continued to grow in
7315-519: The roads from the centre towards neighbouring Putney, Merton Park and Raynes Park . Transport links improved further with railway lines to Croydon (Wimbledon and Croydon Railway, opened in 1855) and Tooting (Tooting, Merton and Wimbledon Railway, opened in 1868). The District Railway (now the London Underground District line ) extended its service over new tracks from Putney in 1889. The commercial and civic development of
7410-409: The same" – lines from Rudyard Kipling's poem If— . This court also served as the main venue for the tennis events at the 2012 Summer Olympics . Initially, the courts were arranged in such a way that the principal court was situated in the middle with the others arranged around it; hence the title "Centre Court". The present Centre Court, built in 1922 upon the move of the club, was not actually in
7505-566: The snowline, only lichen can be found amongst the rock, snowfields and ice that dominate the highest parts of Aoraki / Mount Cook. The first recorded attempt on the summit was made by the Irishman Rev. William S. Green , the Swiss hotelier Emil Boss and the Swiss mountain guide Ulrich Kaufmann on 2 March 1882 via the Tasman and Linda Glaciers. They came within a few feet of the top, as did
7600-403: The surrounding lowlands, in particular to the west, is around 5 to 10 metres (200 to 390 in). This very high rainfall leads to temperate rainforests in these coastal lowlands and a reliable source of snow in the mountains to keep the glaciers flowing. These include the Tasman Glacier to the east of the mountain and the smaller Hooker Glacier immediately to its south. The vegetation in
7695-414: The time the manor estate included Wimbledon Common (as a heath ) and the enclosed parkland around the manor house. Its area corresponded to the modern Wimbledon Park . The house stood east of St Mary's church . Wimbledon House, a separate residence close to the village at the south end of Parkside (near Peek Crescent), was home in the 1790s to the exiled French statesman Vicomte de Calonne , and later to
7790-399: The town also accelerated. Ely's department store opened in 1876 and shops began to stretch along Broadway towards Merton. Wimbledon built its first police station in 1870. Cultural developments included a Literary Institute by the early 1860s and the opening of Wimbledon Library in 1887. The religious needs of the growing population led to an Anglican church-building programme, starting with
7885-493: The town's subsequent growth away from the original village centre. Wimbledon was a municipal borough in the county of Surrey from 1905 to 1965, when it became part of the London Borough of Merton as part of the creation of Greater London . Wimbledon has established minority groups ; among the prominent ones being British Asians (mainly British Pakistanis and British Sri Lankans ), British Ghanaians , Poles and Irish people . Wimbledon has been inhabited since at least
7980-663: The traditions of the Ngāi Tahu iwi an early name for the South Island is Te Waka o Aoraki ('Aoraki's Canoe'). In the past many believed it meant "Cloud Piercer", a romantic rendering of the name's components: ao (world, daytime, cloud, etc.) and raki or rangi (day, sky, weather, etc.). Historically, the Māori name has been spelt Aorangi , using the northern dialect. Aoraki / Mount Cook became known to Māori after their arrival in New Zealand some time around
8075-399: The valleys to the east, in particular the Tasman Valley, is noticeably less lush than that on the western slopes of the mountain. Forest would normally grow to about 1,300 m in this area, but a lack of soil due to scree, rock falls and the effects of glaciation prevent this in most localities around the mountain. Snow tussock and other alpine plants cling to as high as 1,900 m. Above
8170-460: Was "plagued by rain each day". The current Centre Court dates from that year. It has been improved and extended on several occasions. Most recently a sliding roof was added in time for the 2009 Championships. In 1924 the old No.1 Court opened on the west side of Centre Court. During World War II The Championships were suspended but the club remained open with a much smaller staff, and was used for fire and ambulance services, British Home Guard , and
8265-463: Was 70% perennial rye and 30% creeping red fescue ). The courts are renovated in September, using nine tons of grass seed annually. The largest court is Centre Court , which hosts the finals of the main singles and doubles events at The Championships. There is an inscription above the entryway to Centre Court which reads "If you can meet with triumph and disaster / And treat those two impostors just
8360-494: Was built on the site of the old No.1 Court. The Church Road site initially extended only as far north as Centre Court. In 1967 the All England Club purchased 11 acres (4.5 ha) to the north. This was leased to the New Zealand Sports and Social Club and became known as Aorangi Park (Aorangi means "Cloud Piercer", and is the Māori part of Aoraki / Mount Cook ; "Aorangi" is the standard Māori spelling and "Aoraki"
8455-567: Was completed in May 2009. It is a "folding concertina" made of 5,200 square metres of a translucent waterproof fabric that allows natural light to reach the grass, and opens or closes in under 10 minutes. Redevelopment work commenced in 2006, and Centre Court had no roof at all in place for the duration of the 2007 Championships. The other "show court" is No.1 Court , built in 1997, which holds around 11,500 people and occasionally plays host to Davis Cup matches (Centre Court usually being reserved for
8550-680: Was developed on land next to the station, providing a much-needed focus, and opened in 1990. The shopping centre incorporated the old town hall building. A new portico, in keeping with the old work, was designed by Sir George Grenfell-Baines , who had worked on the original designs over fifty years before. Wimbledon lies in the south-west area of London, three miles (4.8 km) south of Wandsworth , two miles (3.2 km) south-west of Tooting , three miles west of Mitcham , four miles (6.4 km) north of Sutton and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) east of Kingston upon Thames , in Greater London . It
8645-400: Was executed in 1540 and the land was again confiscated. The manor was next held by Henry VIII's last wife and widow Catherine Parr until her death in 1548 when it again reverted to the monarch. In the 1550s, Henry's daughter, Mary I , granted the manor to Cardinal Reginald Pole who held it until his death in 1558 when it once again become royal property. Mary's sister, Elizabeth I held
8740-455: Was introduced in 1875, when one lawn was set aside for this purpose. The first tennis gentlemen's championship in singles was held in July 1877, when the club changed its name to The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club . That year at Wimbledon service was underarm. The champion, Spencer Gore , opined that "Lawn tennis will never rank among our great games." In 1878 the height of the net was altered to 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 m) at
8835-597: Was played on a Sunday for the first time since 2016, as a replacement for the traditional rest day. In July 2023, Debbie Jevans became the first chairwoman of the board, succeeding Ian Hewitt at the end of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships . A failed attempt was made to destroy the grounds in 1913, as part of the suffragette bombing and arson campaign . During the years before the First World War , suffragettes , as part of their campaign for women's votes, carried out politically motivated arson and bombings across
8930-470: Was refused and a board of conservators was established in 1871 to take ownership of the common and preserve it in its natural condition. In the second half of the century, Wimbledon experienced a very rapid expansion of its population. From under 2,700 residents recorded in the 1851 census, the population grew by a minimum of 60 per cent each decade up to 1901, to increase fifteen-fold in fifty years. Large numbers of villas and terraced houses were built along
9025-471: Was repeated in January 1916 by Conrad Kain , guiding the 57-year-old Jane Thomson , considered at the time "a marvellous feat unequalled for daring in the annals of the Southern Alps". Sir Edmund Hillary made his first ascent in January 1948. In February 1948 with Ruth Adams, Harry Ayres and Mick Sullivan, Hillary made the first ascent of the South Ridge to the Low Peak. To celebrate the life of Hillary
#99900