On 14 February 1829 a cricket match was played at Georgetown, Demerara, between officers of the colonial garrison and a civilian side — the earliest documented cricket fixture in the West Indies and the foundation entry of West Indian cricket history.
Britain had taken Demerara from the Dutch in 1796 and consolidated control after 1814. By the 1820s a substantial British civilian and military population was resident at Georgetown. The February 1829 cricket match — reported in the Royal Gazette of British Guiana — was the earliest documented in the colony. The Officers won by 47 runs in a single-innings match. Cricket continued in Demerara through the nineteenth century; the colony eventually became part of the West Indies Test side in 1928.
1796
Britain takes Demerara from the Dutch
14 Feb 1829
First documented cricket in the West Indies
1928
West Indies plays first Test match
The founding entry of West Indian cricket — and the earliest documented Caribbean cricket fixture.
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1811-07-04
The 1811 Lord's season was the leanest of the Middle Ground years. With the Napoleonic blockade at its tightest, willow scarce, professionals diverted to militia service and the betting public's purses thin, only fourteen major matches were played at Lord's all summer. The 1811 season is the clearest measure of cricket's wartime contraction.
Officers vs Civilians
1812-12-15
By the close of 1812 cricket was being played regularly in both Madras and Bombay — the earliest documented fixtures in either Presidency. Garrison officers and civilian East India Company servants ran the matches; the Madras Gazette and Bombay Courier preserved the earliest scoresheets. The Calcutta game (documented 1804) had been joined by all three Presidency capitals.
Kent vs MCC
1813-09-09
On 9-10 September 1813 Kent played the MCC at the Vine, Sevenoaks — the first post-war major match at the historic Kent ground and the start of the Vine's revival as a regular major venue. The Vine had hosted little major cricket since 1808; the September 1813 fixture marked its return to the front rank.