Chapter 1 Introduction to Clubs

Abstract

Private clubs have existed for as long as people have desired to gather in groups to do things together. It has been suggested that private clubs (and their predecessors) date to the Roman baths but probably pre-date even those. It is doubtful that the Roman baths represented the first time people congregated in groups to socialize, discuss commerce, politics, or just engage in a mutually agreeable activity.
Certainly, most agree that the ‘modern’ clubs (in the English speaking world) originated in England, were limited to ‘gentlemen’ and organized for social, political, business and/or pleasure reasons. The concept was then ‘exported’ along with ex-patriots all around the world. Clubs have since evolved to the point where they exist in countries around the world although they are embraced to a greater or lesser extent in different places. Examples of private clubs can be found in such countries as England (and the greater UK), Ireland, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, South Africa, Switzerland, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan, Japan, Singapore, and the UAE. Perhaps no country has adopted the idea of clubs as much as the USA, where they have evolved into a veritable industry, are protected by law, and number into the thousands.
Humans, being social creatures, long to spend quality time with others – ‘others’, historically, representing those of their own kind. Perhaps it is for this reason that clubs have, rightly or wrongly, developed a reputation for being discriminatory. People generally find benefits from spending time with others. These benefits may accrue in many forms, including personal, professional, and political.