Where and when was the game of Badminton invented?

Answer 1

Badminton as we know it was invented in India by a group of British soldiers, who took a champagne cork and attached feathers to it, and started hitting it back and forth with the bottles. Official rules for the game were written around 1873. This game then went to England and was eventually called "Badminton" from "Badminton House" in what is now known as Avon. Prior to the name change it was called "poona", named after the place in India where it was first played.

Variations of the theme (hitting an object and keeping it from touching the ground) were played in ancient Greece and China centuries earlier, but the game of badminton as we know it had its beginnings in the city of Pune near Mumbai.