 | 34th Royal Escape Race - May 26th - 31st 2010
Join many of the Classic yachts in the South as they take part in this famous re-enactment of Charles II's flight to France.
Click here for the official Royal Escape Race Website
It will be reputations and hopefully not necks on the line when the race fleet sets off across the channel to Fecamp in the 2010 Royal Escape Race, which was not the case when the original Royal Escape was made to France.
This annual recreation of Charles II’s flight from his puritan pursuers, now in its 34th year, has become a well-established part of the Sussex sailing calendar. It draws large mixed fleets of hard-core racers, family cruisers and gaff rigged classics, all eager to take part in the celebration of our proud nation’s sailing and Royalist traditions.
The fun started back in 1976, when Linda Morgan, the PR Officer for Brighton’s Old Ship Hotel called the Sussex Yacht Club with the idea for a race across the Channel. Tony Boysons, now the SYC Admiral recalled Linda wanting to see every yacht in Sussex on the line and took some calming down to recognise that with the limited facilities then available perhaps it should be scaled down a bit to just include SYC yachts.
Tony went on to organise this first race of 40 yachts, won by SYC member Harold Wilson in Wendy Caroline. The great popularity of the event led to it becoming an annual institution and Tony carried on to organise no less than 7 races and compete in 17 of them, so he has a few tales to tell.
The historical backdrop
Following the first English Civil war, in January 1649 Charles I was executed for high treason. The King had refused to properly recognise the power of Parliament and the House of Commons, faced with a King who seemed bent on raising another Royalist army, decided on regicide and signed his death warrant.
Just before Charles I climbed the Whitehall scaffold to face the executioners axe, Parliament rushed through an emergency bill to make it an offence to proclaim a new King and to declare the House of Commons as the source of all just power. England effectively became a republic, lead by Oliver Cromwell.
Which just left the royal problem of the Kings son, Charles II, who had made his way north to Scotland, which was then still a separate Kingdom. In 1649 the Scottish Parliament proclaimed Charles II King of Scots and he set about raising his Royalist Scots army to move against Parliament, which culminated in the Battle of Worcester. On the afternoon of September 3rd 1651, Cromwell’s Roundheads routed the Royalist army in a brutal clash, with the Royalists being chased and cut down through the narrow streets of Worcester, so bringing the Civil War to a final and bloody conclusion.
The King flees for his life
Charles’ supporters fled into hiding and he had no choice but to follow, for capture would have inevitably meant following his father noble footsteps for appointment with the executioners axe. Hunted by a vengeful Cromwell, Charles fled south, eventually evading a detachment of troops in Sussex blocking the bridge at Bramber.
Now in the company of Lord Wilmost and a Colonel Gounter, they hid themselves in the fishing village of Brighthelmstone (now Brighton). The party took rooms at the George Inn in West Street where Colonel Gounter started looking for a way out. Through his acquaintance, a French merchant, he found himself in conversation with Nicholas Tattersell, captain of a filthy little 31ft coaster named the Surprise, which was lying in the mud of Southwick. Her normal trade was lugging coal from Newcastle round to Poole, but Captain Tattersell sniffed out the value of these secretive passengers and agreed to give them passage to France.
The final itinerary is yet to be decided but we will make our way along the coast to Brighton Marina ready for the start on Friday 28th May. Race to Fecamp, enjoy the party and then sail back to the Solent (with our cups and medals!!!) - what a great holiday!
This year heralds a new 'Classic Class' which means lots of gaffers should be attending which will help ake the racing even more fun.
Price £530 per head including mooring fees, fuel, and meals onboard
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