Rowing in Britain – 24 July 2012 English edition by Julie Summers

 

Rowing in Britain Paperback – 24 July 2012

English edition  by Julie Summers (auteur)

Boat races and regattas are mainstays of the British summer — but where did these races originate and how have they become so important a part of our culture? Historian, writer and novice sculler Julie Summers here explains the history of British rowing as a competitive sport from the early nineteenth century to the present day. She then profiles the three most famous rowing events: the Boat Race, rowed on the incoming tide from Putney to Mortlake in spring; Henley Royal Regatta, which takes place on the first weekend of July; and the Olympic Games, which have yielded some of the greatest British Olympians of all time, including Sir Steve Redgrave, Sir Matthew Pinsent and Jack Beresford.

 

Rowing in Britain

A brief history of rowing over the last 200 years

This book was commissioned by the Shire Library in January for a summer publication date so it was written at indecent speed but with great passion. Rowing is in our family’s blood and although I came to it late, I have a great affection for it. This book charts, in briefest form, the history of rowing in Britain since it was first practised at the public schools in the late eighteenth century. It opens with a show-stopping race at Henley Royal Regatta in 2007 when Shrewsbury School beat the Canadian champions by one foot in the final of the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. Five years on a member of that school boy crew stroked the Harvard first Eight to victory in the Ladies Challenge Plate. They beat Leander by … One Foot.