In the middle third of the 19th century, the clippers which carried cargoes of tea from China to Britain would compete in informal races to be first ship to dock in London with the new crop of each season. The Great Tea Race of 1866 was keenly followed in the press, with an extremely close finish. Taeping docked 28 minutes before Arielafter a passage of more than 14,000 miles. Ariel had been ahead when the ships were taken in tow by steam tugs off Deal, but after waiting for the tide at Gravesend the deciding factor was the height of tide at which one could enter the different docks used by each ship. The third finisher, Serica, docked an hour and 15 minutes after Ariel. These three ships had left China on the same tide and arrived at London 99 days later to dock on the same tide. The next to arrive, 28 hours later, was Fiery Cross, followed, the next day, by Taitsing.
Given the close finish, and fearing that the consignees might find reason to avoid payment, the prize, or "premium", was claimed by Taeping but shared between them and Ariel, by agreement of their agents and owners. 1866 was the last time that a premium was written into the bill of lading of a tea clipper for docking in London with the first of the new crop. Though clippers raced with cargoes of tea for a few more years, the only commercial advantage was in the reputation as a fast ship, thereby securing a better rate of freight in the future.
Whilst the outcome thrilled its followers, it was clear to some that the days of the tea clipper were numbered. The auxiliary steamer Erl King had sailed from Fuzhou (Foochow) 8 days after Ariel, carrying both passengers and a cargo of tea. She arrived in London 15 days before the sailing ships.Paisley Herald and Renfrewshire AdvertiserSaturday 25 August 1866, page 4, column 3 The SS Agamemnon, a much more fuel efficient ship than her contemporaries, had just made the fastest ever outward passage to China of 65 days and was on her way to London with a cargo of tea that was two or three times larger than a clipper could carry. The Suez Canal was under construction (and opened in 1869). This would give a much shorter route (a reduction of about or nearly a quarter less distance), so favouring the steamships, as the Canal was not a practical option for sailing vessels.
Background Tea was introduced from China to Europe in the 17th century, but, as a luxury item, was not transported in significant quantities until the 19th century. China was the main centre of production until late in the 19th century. The British East India Company's monopoly of the tea trade from China to Britain ceased in 1834. This opening to competition meant that faster ships were needed, as merchants vied to be first in the market with each new crop of tea. Unlike the slower East Indiamen that had carried tea during that company's monopoly, the tea clippers were designed for speed. Those that had achieved particularly fast passages could usually command a higher freight (the price paid to transport the cargo) than others. Tea wholesalers would mention in advertisements which ship had carried the different batches being sold.for example: Adverts, 2 June 1865, Leicester Journal p. 5, column 4 It was often the case that tea that was loaded early in China was of somewhat poorer quality than that which became available a few weeks later in the season. Yet this was what was carried by the first ships home and sold to the public with the cachet of a fast passage.
The first cargo of tea landed could be very profitable for tea merchants, so they introduced incentives. In 1854, Vision had a premium of an extra £1 per ton included in her bill of lading, payable if she was the first to dock. In 1855 Maury and Lord of the Isles raced for a premium of £1 per ton, with the latter the winner through getting a better tug to get up-river. Note that the premium did not simply reward the fastest passage, since rapid loading of a cargo and a prompt departure were important factors. In 1861, the consignees offered a premium of 10s per ton to the first ship to dock in London. This was won by the Fiery Cross, who also went on to win in 1862, 1863 and 1865.
At this time, anyone with a particular interest in shipping or business could easily follow the performance of tea clippers through the "Shipping Intelligence" column of their newspaper — and trade in tea was discussed in the commodities section of the business column.for example: "Shipping Intelligence", 11 Sep 1865, Liverpool Daily Post, pg 11 (third edition), column 2 The "news" sections of newspapers started to comment on the first ship to dock from 1857."Condensed News", 7 October 1857, Dumfries and Galloway Standard, page 3, column 7 By 1866, newspaper interest was at its height, with speculation, updates and detailed reports.for example: "The Great Ocean Race from China", 11 August 1866, Western Daily Press pg 2, column 2"The Great Ocean Race from China", 1 Aug 1866, Glasgow Herald, pg 4, column 4 Many bets were placed on the outcome of the race, in London, Hong Kong, and the ports of Britain, and by the captains and crews of the vessels involved.
Contenders
The tea trade from China was a large undertaking. MacGregor lists 57 ships sailing in the 1866-67 tea season, with a clear caveat that not every ship is listedonly the ones that he had researched. Over the season, these sailed from several ports: Fuzhou, Hankou (Hankow), Shanghai, Wusong (Woosung), Canton and Hong Kong. Most departure dates stretch from the end of May 1866 through to February 1867. In May 1866, 16 of the best clippers had assembled at the Pagoda Anchorage on the Min River, downriver from Fuzhou. The quickest ships, as judged by the agents based in China, would be loaded first. However, it was not always the fastest that sailed firstmuch depended on the tonnage of the vessel and the standing and influence of the local agent.
The front runners of the 1866 Tea Race were: Ariel, launched in 1865. She was thought to be the fastest of her day, being designed for excellent performance in light winds. The downside to this was that in a strong gale, sail had to be reduced rapidly or the ship even hove to, as her extreme lines left her susceptible to being pooped or, if going to windward, damage would be caused by waves sweeping the deck. She was of composite construction (wooden planking on an iron framework), built at the yard of Robert Steele & Company in Greenock on the Clyde. She carried 100 tons of fixed iron ballast, moulded to fit low in the hull and a further 20 tons of moveable iron ballast. This gives an indication of the "yacht like" nature of her design. Fiery Cross had been the first tea clipper home in 1861, 1862, 1863 and 1865. As a slightly older ship, built in 1860, she predated the widespread acceptance of composite construction, so was built of wood. Nevertheless, she was full of the latest technology; for example steel masts and Cunningham's patent roller reefing topsails and t'gallants. Serica, launched in 1863, was another ship built by Robert Steele & Company, and the penultimate wooden clipper from that yard before they moved to composite construction. She was the first ship home from China in 1864, and was closely beaten (through lack of a tug) by Fiery Cross in 1865. Taitsing was another Clyde-built ship, of composite construction. She was launched from the yard of Charles Connell & Co. of Glasgow in 1865, so was on her first trip to China. Taeping was the first composite ship built by Robert Steele & Co (the third from this yard out of the five ships listed here), being launched in 1863. On her maiden voyage she was dismasted in a typhoon off Formosa, losing her foremast and main and mizzen topmasts. After repairs in Amoy, she then made a remarkably fast passage of 89 days to London.
Loading
The race was not only a test of sailing, but also of efficient management at the port of departure. Each ship needed to be ready to receive her cargo. The hold was prepared by spreading a layer of clean shingle across the bottom to act as ballast. This was additional to the iron ballast carried by these extreme clippers. Between 150 and 200 tons of shingle was needed, and it was levelled to follow the curve of the deck above, at a distance precisely measured to be an exact number of tea chests. The tea arrived in lighters called "chop boats" (taking their name from the identifying marks on each batch of tea they carried). Lower value chests were loaded first as a layer across the ballast, with some shingle being packed between the chests and side of the hold. Then the main cargo was loaded in further layers, being carefully packed in with dunnage by the excellent Chinese stevedores.
Despite the care taken, loading could be done quickly. In the 1850s, a ship loaded 8,000 chests of tea and 1,141 bales of silk in 17 hours work spread over two days.
On 24 May, the first lighters arrived with tea, packed in chests, ready for loading. On Ariel, the first layer of 391 chests and 200 half-chests were loaded. By 27 May, she had 16 lighters alongside, with the Chinese stevedores working round the clock to stow the main part of the cargo. At 2 pm on the 28th, the job was done, giving a total of 1,230,900 lbs of tea. Ariel was first to complete loading. At 5 pm, she unmoored and moved down-river to anchor for the night, ready for an early start.
The same task was underway on other ships in the anchorage. Fiery Cross was next to finish, some 12 hours later, loading 854,236 lbs. Her master, Captain Robinson, in his haste to sail, neglected to complete his paperwork or sign his bills of ladingto the fury of Captain Innes of Serica. Taeping and Serica were able to get away together, having loaded 1,108,700 lbs and 954,236 lbs respectively. Taitsing, with 1,093,130 lbs, was a day behind.
To sea Ariel started to raise her anchor at 5 am on the 29th and with the paddle steamer Island Queen towing alongside, headed down-river for the sea. The river pilot left and the tug was sent ahead to tow. The fast flowing River Min then presented problems for the under-powered tug as they met eddies and Ariel had to anchor to regain control of the situation. By this time it was low tide. With a mean draft of 18 ft 5.5 ins., there was not enough water for her to get over the bar. Captain Keay's frustration was increased by Fiery Cross, with a more powerful tug and drawing significantly less, towing past her and getting out to sea. Then the weather closed in: poor visibility preventing safe departure on the next tide. On the morning of the 30th, Ariel finally got to sea, but with Taeping and Serica only a few minutes behind and Fiery Cross 14 hours ahead. In a final delay, Ariel could not leave her pilot on Island Queen, as the tug's boat capsized on launching (the boat crew eventually being rescued)so a pilot boat had to be summoned.
Three of the front runners now had as level a start in the race as a spectator could hope for. There was a moderate northeast wind and the course set was "South by East a half East" (163 degrees on a modern compass). All three had set their main skysails and fore topmast and lower stunsails. Ariel was slowly over-hauling the other two ships, but then the weather closed in and they lost sight of each other, racing on unseen in the rain.
Newspaper reports