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Thames sailing barges, with typical red-brown sails, in the East Swin.
Thames sailing barges, with typical red-brown sails, in the East Swin.

A Thames sailing barge was a type of commercial sailing boat common on the River Thames in London in the 19th century. In some cases less is more The purpose of this article is to give an overview The Thames ( is a major River flowing through southern England. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar The flat-bottomed barges were perfectly adapted to the Thames Estuary, with its shallow waters and narrow rivers. The Thames Estuary is the area in which the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea.

The barges also traded much further afield, to the north of England, the South Coast and even to continental European ports. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Cargoes varied enormously: bricks, mud, hay, rubbish, sand, coal and grain, for example. A brick is a block of Ceramic material used in Masonry construction laid using mortar. In computer gaming, a MUD ( Multi-User Dungeon, Domain or Dimension) is a multi-player computer game that combines elements of Hay is a generic term for grass or Legumes that have been cut dried and stored for use as animal feed, particularly for grazing animals like WASTE is a Peer-to-peer and Friend-to-friend protocol and software application developed by Justin Frankel at Nullsoft in 2003 that features Sand is a naturally occurring Granular material composed of finely divided rock and Mineral particles Due to the efficiency of a Thames barge's gear, a crew of only two sufficed for most voyages, although by today's standards it would have been hard physical work at times. A crew comprises a body or a class of people who work at a common activity generally in a structured or hierarchical organization

Contents

Build and rigging

The vast majority of barges were wooden hulled (although a significant number were also built in steel), between 80 and 90 feet (25 to 30 m) long with a beam of around 20 feet (6 m). Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs A hull is the body of a Ship or Boat. It is a central concept in floating vessels as it provides the Buoyancy that keeps the vessel from sinking Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0 The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point or at the mid-point of its length The hull form was as distinctive as their rig, being flat-bottomed with a degree of flair to the sides and plumb ends. The stern was a transom, shaped like a section through a champagne glass, on which was hung a large rudder. The hull was mainly a hold with two small living areas in the bow and stern, and access was through two large hatchways, the smaller before the main mast and a much larger aperture behind.

They were usually spritsail rigged on two masts. The spritsail is a form of three or four-sided fore-aft Sail and its Rig. Rigging (from Anglo-Saxon wrigan or wringing, "to clothe" is on Sailboats and Sailing ships the collection of The mast of a sailing ship is a tall vertical or near vertical Spar, or arrangement of Spars which supports the Sails Large ships have several masts Most had a topsail above the huge mainsail and a large foresail. A topsail is a Sail set above another sail on square-rigged vessels further sails may be set above topsails A mainsail is the most important sail raised from the main (or only mast of a sailing vessel A foresail is one of a few different types of Sail set on the foremost mast ( foremast) of a Sailing vessel: A The mizzen was a much smaller mast on which was set a single sail whose main purpose was to aid steering when tacking. The mast of a sailing ship is a tall vertical or near vertical Spar, or arrangement of Spars which supports the Sails Large ships have several masts Sail areas varied from 3000 to 5000 square feet (300 to 500 m²) depending on the size of the barge. The typical, attractive rusty-red colour of the flax sails was due to the dressing used to waterproof them. Flax (also known as common flax or linseed) (binomial name Linum usitatissimum) is a member of the genus Linum No auxiliary power was used originally but many barges were fitted with engines in the later years.

In good conditions, sailing barges could attain speeds over 12 knots, and their leeboards allowed them to be highly effective windward performers. A leeboard is a lifting foil used by a sailboat much like a Centerboard, but located on the Leeward side of the boat The unusual sprits'l rig allowed any combination of sails to be set: even the topsail on its own could be effective in some conditions.

History

The flat-bottomed hull made these craft extremely versatile and economical. They could float in as little as 3 feet (1 m) of water and could dry out in the tidal waters without heeling over. This allowed them to visit the narrow tributaries and creeks of the Thames to load farm cargoes, or to dry out on the sand banks and mudflats to load materials for building and brickmaking (it was no coincidence that their use peaked while London was expanding rapidly). The main mast could be lowered to clear bridges. Furthermore, unlike most sailing craft, these barges could sail completely unballasted — a major saving in labour and time. Ballast is used in Sailboats to provide moment to resist the lateral forces on the Sail.

Their heyday came at the turn of the 20th century when over 2000 were on the registry. That century saw a steady decline in their numbers. The last Thames barge to trade entirely under sail was the Everard-built Cambria in 1970, owned by Captain A. W. (Bob) Roberts. Bob Roberts (1907 – 1982 was a British Folk singer, Songwriter, Storyteller, bargeman Author, and Journalist. Roberts had sailed the Cambria for more than twenty years, and gained a reputation for hard sailing and fast passages in other Everard barges.

Cambria's last mate was Dick Durham from Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, with whom Bob carried the last freight under sail alone: a 100 tons of cattle cake from Tilbury Dock to Ipswich in October 1970. Dick wrote Bob Roberts' biography: The Last Sailorman and is planning a lecture on the barge to coincide with her restoration.

There was never a shortage of youths ready to sail in the barges, but few could put up with the workload, the weather conditions and the sparse income of the "mate's berth". Following the Second World War, the coastal barge trade diminished as the nation became more mechanised. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Cargoes went by road instead of by sea, squeezing the purses of the barge owners, until most of the once-handsome barges were given motors and relegated to short, lightering passages within the Thames Estuary. For other uses see Lighter (disambiguation. A lighter is a type of flat-bottomed Barge used to transfer goods to and from moored

Today, a small number of sailing barges remain, converted to pleasure craft and commonly sailed in the annual races which take place in the Thames Estuary.

The matches

The barges' performance was perfected through the annual sailing matches, in which they competed for trophies and cash prizes. The matches are credited with encouraging improvements in design, leading to the craft's highly efficient final form. They were begun in 1863 by a wealthy owner called Henry Dodd. Dodd was a plough boy from Hackney, London, who made his fortune carrying the city's waste to the country on the barges. }The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney was a Metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965 London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. He may well have been the model for Charles Dickens' character the Golden Dustman, in Our Mutual Friend. Our Mutual Friend (written in the years 1864–65 is the last novel completed by Charles Dickens and is in many ways one of his most sophisticated works combining On his death in 1881, Dodd left £5000 for future match prizes.

The matches have ceased and been reinstituted several times, and are now considered the world's second oldest sailing race (after the America's Cup). The America’s Cup is the most prestigious Regatta and Match race in the sport of Sailing, and the oldest active Trophy in international The course was originally from Erith downstream, but as of 2006 is from Gravesend into the Estuary and back to Hope Point on the Hoo Peninsula. Erith ( ˈɪərɨθ is a place in the London Borough of Bexley, south east London on the River Thames. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. The Hoo Peninsula is a Peninsula in England separating the estuaries of the rivers Thames and Medway.

See also

References

External links

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