Some History About The Club

One of the founder members, Gordon Mellor, had a keen interest in history and knew that the land was once part of the great Enfield Chase, a vast area of forest used in the distant past as a Royal hunting ground. It was also a popular hideout for outlaws and the ghost of Dick Turpin is said to haunt part of The Chase. At just half a day ride from the City of London, it was Henry VIII´s favourite haunt too. He loved the area so much that he enclosed several acres within walls and stocked it with deer to provide excellent hunting for himself and his friends.

Given the area´s links with Henry, Gordon suggested the club be called The Cloth of Gold. The name refers to a luxurious fabric popular with royalty that was used for clothing or as a ceremonial cloth to form a canopy above a throne. It was made by weaving strands of real gold amongst more traditional threads such as silk.

The young kings were long-standing personal and political rivals and each was determined to out-do the other in displaying their wealth and importance. Their tented camps included vast pavilions designed to serve as halls and chapels, swathed in Cloth of Gold and hung with rich tapestries. As a result, the summit became known as The Field of the Cloth of Gold.