On 23-24 July 1821 — four days after George IV's coronation — the MCC played Sussex at Brighton in a fixture timed to coincide with the new king's expected arrival at the Royal Pavilion. The king did not attend, but the match drew an exceptional crowd and is the most celebrated of the coronation-summer cricket fixtures.
George IV had been crowned at Westminster Abbey on 19 July. He was expected at Brighton — his favoured residence — within the week. The MCC v Sussex match on 23-24 July was scheduled as the major Brighton fixture of the season. The crowd numbered around 6,000. The king did not arrive (he reached Brighton on 28 July) but the fixture was reported nationally. Sussex won by four wickets.
19 Jul 1821
George IV crowned
23-24 Jul 1821
MCC v Sussex at Brighton
28 Jul 1821
King arrives at Brighton Pavilion
The most celebrated coronation-summer cricket fixture and a measure of Brighton's status in the early roundarm era.
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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.