1860-2010
What else
happened in
1860?
Shipbuilding on the Tyne become fashionable after the effect of Reed, one of the founding members of
In 1860, John Wigham Richardson, the visit of the AMERICA in 1851. the Institution.
purchased a small Neptune Works She became the most famous In 1863, at the fourth annual meeting
shipyard at Walker-on-Tyne, and Victorian yacht and was bought by of the Institution of Naval Architects,
formed the Wigham Richardson Ltd the Prince of Wales in 1888 when she John Scott Russell, builder of the Great
shipyard, later to become Swan Hunter was still competitive and she no doubt Eastern, made an impassioned plea
Shipbuilders. encouraged him to build BRITANNIA for a new British School. The Council
in 1893. agreed and a sub-committee was formed
T h e S c o t t i s h S h i p b u i l d e r s I would welcome suggestions for to “draw out a scheme with a view to
Association other world-wide significant maritime the formation of a School of Naval
events in 1860 – please send to hq@ Architecture.” It proposed a three-year
The Scottish Shipbuilders Association rina.org.uk course with alternating periods of six
was established in September 1860 to Chief Executive months at the School and six (Summer)
perfect, as far as possible, the art and months at either naval dockyards or
science of shipbuilding. It also gave in private shipyards. The School was
early proof of its value when one of the established in 1804 at South Kensington
members read a paper on river steamers 1860 – 2010: under the control and management of
and put forward proposals for the the Science and Art Department. This
fitting of deck saloons. The Association Some Notable was considered by the INA to be much
followed this with an approach to the preferable than having the School under
Board of Trade - then the statutory Events the control of the Admiralty, under
authority - and got its agreement that whom the first two schools had been
deckhouses used as shelter would not The Royal School of Naval short-lived, and who considered that “
be measured and added to the tonnage Architecture 1864-1873 the school should have been situated at
of the hull. From then onwards the In the quadrangle of the Victoria and a seaport, preferably Portsmouth, that
misery of pleasure sailing on wet days Albert Museum, South Kensington, the instruction would be too theoretical
was gone. there is a plaque commemorating the and not sufficiently practical and that
In 1864, it joined with the Institution Centenary of the Royal School of Naval future naval architects would learn
of Engineers in Scotland, formed earlier Architecture. more by being sent to sea”!
in 1857, to become the Institution The plaque was unveiled by the The School closed in 1873 and
of Engineers and Shipbulders in Institution’s President, Viscount Simon, students transferred to the Royal Naval
Scotland. on 4 November 1964. College, Greenwich. However, in its
The Royal S cho ol of Naval short life, the school trained many fine
F a i r f i e l d S h i p b u i l d i n g a n d Architecture was the third government naval architects, including Sir William
Engineering Company school, and was the first to accept White, and amply justified the initiative
private students from the shipbuilding and persistence of the INA.
The Fairfield Shipbuilding and industry. The two earlier schools had
Engineering Company built their first been confined to apprentices in the
ships, at their Govan yard. Royal Dockyards.
The first government school was Membership
Schooner ALINE launched established in Portsmouth Dockyard
in 1811, and was termed, “The Central Fees in 1860
In 1860, Camper & Nicholsons launched School of Mathematics and Naval
the 216 ton schooner ALINE for Charles Construction” but closed in 1832. The Members may be interested to learn
Thellusson. Designed by Ben Nicholson second school was also established in that the annual membership fee in
she was an instant success winning the Portsmouth Dockyard in 1848, and was 1860 was 2 guineas (= £2 + 2 shillings
Queen’s Cup on her first outing. She closed some five years later. During (pre-decimalisation) = £2.10), which is
was also the first schooner to be rigged this short period, some 20 Students approximately equivalent to equivalent
without steeply raking masts which had were trained, including Sir Edward to £148 in 2009. RA
Rina affairs June 2009 9
RA JUNE 09.indd 9 02/06/2009 12:00:02
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