5000 BC
Egyptians engage in a variation of bowls;
in the modern day, bowling artifacts have been
found in tombs in Egypt.

13th Century
King Henry 3rd bans bowls because
his archers are being distracted by the game.

1511
Henry the 8th discourages lawn bowls,
associating the game with gambling.

1588
Sir Francis Drake insists on finishing his game of
bowls before defeating the Spanish Armada.

1670
King Charles the 2nd, the Duke of York, and the
Duke of Buckingham draw up the earliest known rules.

1840
A set of rules are established in Scotland to standardize
the game; these rules have changed very little since then.

1848
Glasgow solicitor William Mitchell
draws up a standard bowls code.

1871
Thomas Taylor of Glasgow constructs the first testing table.

1893
The Scottish Bowling Association is formed.

1903
England formd the country's first lawn bowling association
with the help of W.G. Grace,
the English cricket player who also became the
English Bowling Association's (EBA's) first president.

1905
The International Bowling Board is formed.

1930
Lawn bowling is introduced at the Hamilton Commonwealth Games.

1945
The English Bowling Federation is formed.

1966
The World Bowls Championship is introduced.