| East India Club |
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Information AboutEast India Club |
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| londons gentlemens clubs | |
| 1849 establishments | |
| SHOPPER'S DELIGHT | |
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The East India, Devonshire, Sports and Public Schools' Club, usually known as the '''East India Club''', is a Gentlemen's Club founded in 1849 and situated on St. James's Square in London . Membership of the club is open to male former pupils of British Public Schools , (those Independent School s which are members of the Headmasters' Conference ), if they have been proposed by their Headmaster. Other men may join if they have been proposed and seconded by an existing member. Founded in the middle of the 19th Century , its original members were "the servants of the East India Company and Commissioned Officers of Her Majesty's Army and Navy". The Club still provides meeting and social facilities for business and leisure, but it lost its military flavour early in the twentieth century. Since then, the club has amalgamated with the Devonshire , the Sports and the Public School’s Clubs, all of which ran into financial trouble in the 1970s and were forced to close. With the disappearance of the East India Company, the public school influence has recently become an important one. Its facilities include dining rooms, bars, a library, lounges, a gymnasium, snooker rooms and 67 bedrooms. The East India Club is also a private venue and offers conference facilities. The club has a restaurant, drawing room for after-dinner port and cigars, and a small library of both antequarian and contemporary books. Most Public Schools offer membership of the club at a reduced rate for seven years to students leaving school. Other members gain membership through being nominated and seconded by existing members. The Clubhouse is situated in St James's Square , close to the West End . The club does not admit women members, and women visitors are banned from some parts of the building. However, several equivalent clubs exist which do admit women, including the University Women’s Club in Mayfair , often considered the female equivalent of the East India Club. SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS |