Hawks' Club

Last updated

Hawks' Club
Hawks Club front door.jpg
The front door of The Hawks' Club
Location Cambridge, United Kingdom
Founded1872
MembershipBlues, Half Blues
University University of Cambridge
Colours Maroon & Gold
Website www.hawksclub.co.uk
Notable members

The Hawks' Club, founded in 1872, is a members-only social club for the leading sportsmen at the University of Cambridge. Membership is by election only, and the usual criterion is that the candidate should have his Blue. Many notable individuals have been, or are, members, including King George VI, King Charles III, Rob Andrew, Mike Atherton, Chris Brasher, Gavin Hastings and Hugh Laurie. [1]

Contents

History

The Hawks' Club was formed in 1872 when a proposal to allow members of other colleges into the St John's College Eagles sporting club was rejected. This led to the Hawks' being established as an equivalent club for the whole university. In its early history, it was primarily a cricket club but, by the turn of the century, other sports had become well represented. [2]

As is common with student-run organisations, records are patchy in places and old lists of presidents and members have long been lost. The record is better for the period 1889–1963, as during this time a picture of each year's president was added to a display in the clubhouse and these have survived to the present day. During the 1950s a number of subsequently notable sportsmen were presidents, and several are listed below.

It is not known whether participation in a Varsity Match was originally a prerequisite for membership; some early presidents do not appear to have competed against Oxford in any sport. However, the personal 'suitability' of candidates for membership does not appear to have changed since the Club was founded. Candidates must have excelled at their sport on behalf of the University and also be clubbable. Dr Whitehorn, Treasurer of the Club from 1941 to 1960, remarked that beside the many Olympians, internationals and sporting greats who are members, ‘the stout fellows who don’t get Blues, but have been and are the making of the University’s fellowship in sport and life – those are the Hawks too. Long may they flourish’.

The club plays host not only to the Members in residence, but also to visiting All Blacks, Springboks, Samoans – whose height and bulk test the dimensions of the bar – oarsmen, Vincent’s members and also to judges, doctors, parsons, accountants, schoolmasters, knights and lords, captains of industry, farmers, MPs and Heads of Houses who return for ‘auld lang syne’.

Membership

Eligibility criteria

Application for membership is open to any man who is either a member of any college at the University of Cambridge or who has been admitted ad eundem to the University. He must have spent at least one term in residence, and should have earned a Full Blue , Half Blue or Second Team Colours (in a full blue sport) by representing the University against Oxford in a Varsity Match.

Election process

A prospective applicant must be proposed, seconded, and have six further members sign their application form. The proposer is normally the team captain for the relevant sport and the seconder must be a member of the Hawks' Committee. The application is then reviewed by the committee: two "no" votes will reject an applicant, and he may not be proposed again at a later date.

Members are admitted for life and may wear the club colours of maroon and gold. The number of Hawks-in-residence at the University is limited to 250, not including MAs; there are several thousand members worldwide.

Occasionally, individuals are admitted as an Honorary Hawk without fulfilling the above criteria (for example Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who did not study at Cambridge).

Dining Rights Club

Since 1993, individuals have also been elected to The Hawks Dining Rights Club. Members may use the clubhouse, but do not become Hawks. Neither the Cambridge-only nor the men-only restrictions apply in this case, and the majority of Dining Rights members are local business people and professionals who contribute to the costs of running the Club, and to The Hawks’ Trust which is a charity supporting all sportsmen and women at the University. [3] There are slightly fewer dining rights members than Hawks-in-residence, and the number peaked at 160 in 1998.

Committee

The Club's Committee consists of a President, Honorary Secretary, Junior Treasurer and seven ordinary members, and is elected each academic year by the Hawks-in-residence. The Committee are responsible for the Club, the election of new members and host an event each June during May Week in the style of a Cambridge May Ball, known as "The Hawks' Event", at Fenner's Cricket Ground.

There is a Management Committee of the Trustees, the President and the Secretary of the Club, the Steward and the DRC President, who guide the Club's development.

The London Dinner Committee, made up of former Presidents and notable old Hawks, organise the London Dinner at the end of Michaelmas Term. This is hosted at the Savoy Hotel and is the major event in the calendar for Hawks once they have gone down.

The Hawks' Charitable Trust actively supports students who have financial difficulties keeping up their sport. Each year the Club awards a number of bursaries to members of the University under the auspices of the Hawks' Charitable Trust. These awards are equally available to both men and women, and total around £40,000 each year. [4] [5] [6]

Clubhouse

The dining room laid for lunch. Hawks Club large dining room.jpg
The dining room laid for lunch.

The clubhouse was originally on Trinity Street, but by the 1890s it had moved to a St John's College property in All Saints' Passage. It remained there until 1966 when financial troubles meant the property had to be sold, despite surviving through both world wars, during which the Club was closed. After this, it briefly occupied the same premises as the Pitt Club, until conflicts of interest regarding the differing objectives of the two clubs made this no longer possible.

There was no clubhouse until 1986 when a four-storey building at 18 Portugal Place became available. This property was bought by a group of members, who restored it from its previous existence as a dilapidated hotel staff hostel. The restored clubhouse was opened by the Duke of Edinburgh in October 1992. It consists of a bar, members' lounge, dining room space for some 25-30 people, and the Club steward's flat on the top floor. [7]

Resident Hawks voted in advisory votes in 2017 (85% in favour) and January 2019 (89% in favour) on the question of allowing resident Ospreys (Cambridge women's sports club) to pay for access arrangements to the Hawks’ clubhouse. [8] [9] 1,400 non-resident Hawks (out of 4,480 members) voted 89% in favour of the proposal in an online ballot run by Electoral Reform Services in February and March 2019.

Notable members

Looking down the staircase at the Club's premises on Portugal Place. Hawks Club staircase.jpg
Looking down the staircase at the Club's premises on Portugal Place.

Monarchs:

Members of the Royal Family:

Academic:

Politics & Law:

Business:

Arts:

Sportsmen:

See also

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amateur sports</span> Sport played by non-professionals

Amateur sports are sports in which participants engage largely or entirely without remuneration. The distinction is made between amateur sporting participants and professional sporting participants, who are paid for the time they spend competing and training. In the majority of sports which feature professional players, the professionals will participate at a higher standard of play than amateur competitors, as they can train full-time without the stress of having another job. The majority of worldwide sporting participants are amateurs.

Anthony Robert Lewis CBE is a Welsh former cricketer, who captained England, became a journalist, went on to become the face of BBC Television cricket coverage between 1986 and 1998, and became president of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University Pitt Club</span> Private members club of the University of Cambridge

The University Pitt Club, popularly referred to as the Pitt Club, the UPC, or merely as Club, is a private members' club of the University of Cambridge. It was formerly male-only, and has admitted women since 2017.

A blue is an award of sporting colours earned by athletes at some universities and schools for competition at the highest level. The awarding of blues began at Oxford and Cambridge universities in England. They are now awarded at a number of other British universities and at some universities in Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christchurch Boys' High School</span> State school, day and boarding school in Christchurch, New Zealand

Christchurch Boys' High School, often referred to as CBHS, is a single sex state secondary school in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is situated on a 12-hectare (30-acre) site between the suburbs of Riccarton and Fendalton, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) to the west of central Christchurch. The school also provides boarding facilities for 130 boys in a residence called Adams House located about 500 metres (1,600 ft) to the east. The school's colours are deep blue and black with an occasional flash of gold.

Durban High School is a public English medium high school for boys situated in the suburb of Musgrave in Durban in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa.

Wilfred Wooller was a Welsh cricketer, rugby union footballer, cricket administrator and journalist.

The Cambridge University Automobile Club or CUAC is a motor club for members and alumni of the University of Cambridge. It is recognised by the Motor Sports Association. CUAC is also a member club of the London Counties Association of Motor Clubs (LCAMC) and the Association of Eastern Motor Clubs (EAMC).

Cambridge University Hare and Hounds (CUH&H) is the University of Cambridge cross country running club. It has been providing training and competitions for its members since 7 February 1880. The club's activities take place in multiple locations, with the University's track facilities at Wilberforce Road off Madingley Road; road training around the West Cambridge site; and off-road routes in the nearby countryside and parks, including Jesus Green and Grantchester Meadows in Cambridge, England. Past members include the 1956 Olympic Steeplechase gold medallist Chris Brasher, England international Bruce Tulloh, the Australian miler Herb Elliott, scientist Alan Turing, top 1,500m runner Andrew Baddeley,, 2012 Summer Olympics & World Triathlon Champion Alistair Brownlee, and all-time legend of the sport Hamilton Allport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom James (rower)</span> British Olympic rower

Thomas James MBE is a British rower, twice Olympic champion and victorious Cambridge Blue. In a British coxless four in 2012 he set a world's best time which still stood as of 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sidney Swann</span> British clergyman and rower

Sidney Ernest Swann was a Manx-English clergyman and a rower who competed for Great Britain in the 1912 Summer Olympics and in the 1920 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Daniell (English sportsman)</span> English cricketer & rugby union player

John Daniell was an international rugby union player for England and a first-class cricketer for Somerset and Cambridge University Cricket Club.

Cricket, and hence English amateur cricket, probably began in England during the medieval period but the earliest known reference concerns the game being played c.1550 by children on a plot of land at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, Surrey. It is generally believed that cricket was originally a children's game as it is not until the beginning of the 17th century that reports can be found of adult participation.

The Cambridge University Golf Club is the golf club for the University of Cambridge, England. It comprises the Blues team, the second-team Cambridge University Golf Club Stymies, and the Ladies team. The club was founded in 1869, and the first University Golf Match was played against Oxford in 1878. Members who play in the University Golf Match are awarded a Full Blue, while those who play against Oxford for the Stymies are awarded Second Team Colours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vincent's Club</span> Private members club in Oxford

Vincent's Club, popularly known as Vinnie's, is a private members' club in Oxford. The club's membership consists predominantly, but not exclusively, of sporting blues of the University of Oxford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge University R.U.F.C.</span> English rugby union club, based in Cambridge

The Cambridge University Rugby Union Football Club, sometimes abbreviated "CURUFC", is the rugby union club of the University of Cambridge. The team plays Oxford University RFC in the annual Varsity Match at Twickenham Stadium every December.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liam Mooney</span> Ireland international rugby union player

Liam Thomas Mooney is a former professional rugby union footballer who played at prop. He is now an entrepreneur living in Guernsey with his wife and son.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge University Handball Club</span> English handball club

Cambridge University Handball Club (CUHC) was founded and registered as a club at the University of Cambridge in 2013. CUHC runs competitive men’s and women's teams playing in national competitions. It is a member of the England Handball Association and the Association of British University Handball Clubs. Both the men's and the women's teams are currently holding their Varisity Trophy against Oxford (2020).

References

  1. ↑ "About the Club – Hawks' Club" . Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  2. ↑ "History – Hawks' Club" . Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  3. ↑ "Introduction – Hawks' Club" . Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  4. ↑ "Cambridge University students swoop in for Hawks Club grants". Cambridge Independent. 28 April 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  5. ↑ "About The Trust – Hawks' Club" . Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  6. ↑ Bursaries & Sponsorship Archived 2007-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ "Clubhouse Facilities – Hawks' Club" . Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  8. ↑ "Hawks' clubhouse set to open its doors to Ospreys". Varsity Online. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  9. ↑ "Hawks vote sees club move closer to opening clubhouse doors to Ospreys". Varsity Online. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.