Jaques of London

Jaques of London,formerly known asJohn Jaques of LondonandJaques and Son of Londonis a long-establishedfamily companythat manufactures sports and game equipment.

History

Dating itself from 1795 when Thomas Jaques, a farmer's son of FrenchHuguenotdescent, set up as a "Manufacturer of Ivory, Hardwoods, Bone, andTunbridge Ware",the company gained a reputation for publishing games under his grandson John Jaques the younger.

Jaques is said to have been instrumental in the invention and popularisation ofCroquet.The family lore is that "John Jaques II... was a friend ofLewis Carroll[and] ‘Carroll was one of the founding members of the croquet club at Oxford University’ ", according to Joe Jaques, a descendent of the founder, who goes on to explain that," It is no surprise that croquet is inAlice in Wonderlandbecause Lewis Carroll was a family friend and we had commissioned the illustratorSir John Tenniel,who went on to illustrateAlice in Wonderland,to draw the original Happy Families characters when he was a cheap jobbing illustrator in 1851. It is all connected. Carroll’s niece Irene Dodgson then married my great-grandfather John Jaques III. "

The popularity of chess during World War II helpedMI9hide items in chess games sent to British and American prisoners of war, because the chess sets were made of wood, especially the Staunton chess sets by Jaques of London. The inside walls of the chess pieces box were hollowed out "...to secrete maps, currency, documents, hacksaw blades and swinger compasses." The large chess boards were perfect for supplying to prisoners "...counterfeit documents, maps, currency and other contraband." The chess pieces themselves were hollowed out and used to hold messages, compasses, maps and dye to help turn uniforms into civilian attire. The base of the piece was often screwed in with a left turn screw, so any attempt to unscrew the base normally would only make it tighter.

The company moved its offices and showroom toEdenbridge, Kent,in 2000.

Staunton chessmen

Staunton chess setdesigned byNathaniel Cookefor Jaques of London, 1849.

TheStaunton chess setwas released in 1849 by Jaques of London ofHatton Gardenin London. The pieces were designed to be easy to use and universally recognized by chess players of diverse backgrounds. It became known as the Staunton chess set afterHoward Staunton(1810–1874), the chess player and writer who was generally considered thestrongest player in the worldfrom 1843 to 1851.Nathaniel Cookehas long been credited with the design.

Products

A Jaques and SonParcheesi/Ludo board

• Chess– Jaques had exclusive manufacturing rights for achess setdesigned by Nathaniel Cooke in 1849 and named theStaunton chess setafterHoward Staunton.This set later became the official international standard.
• Clock golf– Jaques assert that they originated the game in the mid 19th century.
• Croquet– played an important role in popularising the game, producing editions of the rules in 1857, 1860, and 1864.
• Happy Families– popular card game, developed in 1851.
• Icosian game– a mathematical puzzle involving cycles on adodecahedron,invented byW. R. Hamiltonand published by Jaques and Son in 1859.
• Ludo– patented in England 1897.
• Shove ha'penny– apub gamein theshuffleboardfamily, played predominantly in theUnited Kingdom.
• Snakes and Ladders– the first publishers starting in 1888.
• Table tennis– pioneered under the namesGossimaand laterPing Pong.
• Reversi– the first publishers starting in 1888.
• Tiddledy-Winks– the first publishers starting in 1888.

See also

• British Chess Company

Sources

• Edmonds, David;Eidinow, John (2004).Bobby Fischer Goes to War: How the Soviets Lost the Most Extraordinary Chess Match of All Time.HarperCollins Publishers Inc.ISBN0-06-051024-2.

External links

• Official website