Jeu de paume

Jeu de paume is the French word used to designate an indoor tennis court. This game was so popular at one time that facilities were built in nearly every quarter of Paris to facilitate playing it in all weather and seasons, and a separate guild was formed to make balls and other equipment. The sport lost much of its popularity in the early years of the seventeenth century because the activities of the upper strata of society tended to center more and more around the king as time progressed, and…