Origins & Early Life

William Webb Ellis (24 November 1806 – 24 February 1872) was an English Anglican clergyman who has been credited as the inventor of rugby football while a pupil at Rugby School. According to accounts by Matthew Bloxam, Webb Ellis caught the ball and ran with it during a school football match in 1823, thus creating the "rugby" style of play. The first accounts of the origins of rugby football appeared in 1876 and were investigated by the Old Rugbeian Society in 1895, producing a report in 1897 supporting Matthew Bloxam's accounts. These accounts are now discounted by some rugby historians as an origin myth.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The Webb Ellis Cup is presented to the winners of the Rugby World Cup. William Webb Ellis was born in Salford, Lancashire, and was the youngest of three sons of James Ellis, a cornet in the 7th Dragoon Guards. The eldest son, James, died aged three, and the second son, named Thomas, was of Dunchurch, Warwickshire, and he became a surgeon. William's father James was married for a second time in Exeter in 1804 to Ann, daughter of William Webb, a surgeon, of Alton, Hampshire. His paternal grandfather was from Pontyclun in South Wales, a descendant of the Ellis family...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

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