Czesław Antony Marchaj (9 July 1918 – 21 July 2015), often known in the West as C.A. Marchaj or Tony Marchaj, was a Polish-British

yachtsman A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

whose published scientific studies of the

aerodynamics Aerodynamics, from grc, ἀήρ ''aero'' (air) + grc, δυναμική (dynamics), is the study of the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dyn ...

and hydrodynamics of

sailing boats A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

have been influential on

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

, sail and rig designers. He was the author of ''Sailing Theory and Practice'' and approximately 60 other publications on

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cou ...

. He was a member of the

Royal Institute of Naval Architects The Royal Institution of Naval Architects (also known as RINA) is an international organisation representing naval architects. It is an elite international professional institution based in London. Its members are involved worldwide at all levels ...

(RINA), and he was awarded the Silver Medal of The International Sailing Federation (ISAF).

Early life and education

His original youth interest and professional career choice was

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air ...

, with emphasis on

gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is al ...

. After studying at the State Academy of Mechanical and Electrical EngineeringPaństwowa Wyższa Szkoła Budowy Maszyn i Elektrotechniki im. H. Wawelberga i S. Rotwanda w Warszawie in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, he joined the

Warsaw University of Technology The Warsaw University of Technology ( pl, Politechnika Warszawska, lit=Varsovian Polytechnic) is one of the leading institutes of technology in Poland and one of the largest in Central Europe. It employs 2,453 teaching faculty, with 357 professor ...

. Led

wind tunnel Wind tunnels are large tubes with air blowing through them which are used to replicate the interaction between air and an object flying through the air or moving along the ground. Researchers use wind tunnels to learn more about how an aircraft ...

testing of combat airplanes. During the German and Soviet occupation of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he was a soldier of the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa). Also, during the war years, Czesław Marchaj studied philosophy (clandestinely, as higher education was suppressed by occupation authorities) under

Władysław Tatarkiewicz Władysław Tatarkiewicz (; 3 April 1886, Warsaw – 4 April 1980, Warsaw) was a Polish philosopher, historian of philosophy, historian of art, esthetician, and ethicist. Early life and education Tatarkiewicz began his higher education at ...

.Professor Czeslaw Marchaj visiting National Sailing Centre
www.zagle.com.pl, 2008 December 04 In the postwar years his interest had turned towards sailing. This resulted (in 1949) in a sentence in a politically motivated process to a prison termThis is disputed - possibly what sources call "prison term" was a lengthy arrest under these charges. There is no dispute as to the fact of arrest. under false charges of espionage and "trying to escape to the West" and subsequent long term harassment.Czesław Marchaj was one of the country's top Finn class competitors, but was blocked by the Polish authorities from international competitions for political reasons. He also was blocked from work in state-controlled establishments, which - under the communist system - made any research or advanced technology related work a near impossibility.

Career

In 1953, drawing on his professional background in aerodynamics, Czeslaw Marchaj designed modifications (within class rules) to his Finn class racing boat and subsequently sailed it to a surprising win in a multiday Warsaw-Gdańsk river regatta. Asked by the Warsaw sailing clubs community about his race performance, he prepared and presented a series of lectures on sail aerodynamics during 1953/54 winter off-season. These lectures had been edited into the first version of the book ''Sailing Theory and Practice''. This work had been well received and published in Poland and abroad.Czesław Marchaj made a stand for his rights by demanding (and succeeding) royalties from a Soviet publishing house for (published with no concern to copyright, as was the Soviet practice at the time) Soviet edition of this work, not a commonly assumed attitude under communist rule. On the strength of ''Sailing Theory and Practice'', in 1969, Czesław Marchaj was granted a two-year scholarship by the

University of Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

. In 1970 he decided to live in the United Kingdom (which was considered

defection In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state in exchange for allegiance to another, changing sides in a way which is considered illegitimate by the first state. More broadly, defection involves abandoning a person, ca ...

by the Polish authorities and resulted in a long-term separation from his family, which was barred from leaving Poland to join him). In the years 1969-1990, Czesław Marchaj continued research at the University of SouthamptonUnclear at what position (only graduation record from this institution regarding Czesław Marchaj is accessible, possibly a contamination in newspaper sources cited. and was a visiting lecturer at multiple top-ranking academic institutions. At the University of Southampton he pioneered wind tunnel testing of (scaled) sailing ships His work included books ''Aero-Hydrodynamics of Sailing'' (1979), ''Seaworthiness: The Forgotten Factor'' (1986) and ''Sail Performance: Techniques to Maximize Sail Power'' (1996). In 1979, after many boats were sunk with a loss of life in the Admirals Cup regatta Fastnet race Czesław Marchaj was commissioned to investigate the problem of dynamic instability of yachts in foul weather.Analysing and pointing to dangerous compromises in

seaworthiness Seakeeping ability or seaworthiness is a measure of how well-suited a watercraft is to conditions when underway. A ship or boat which has good seakeeping ability is said to be very seaworthy and is able to operate effectively even in high sea stat ...

of racing yachts. He was also involved in the America's Cup competition bid preparations for the British team.''Lionheart'', 1980 His books contain a rigorous theoretical and experimental approach to issues in the design and operation of sailing vessels, resulting in detailed analysis, confirmation or debunking of many previously assumed facts in sailing practice.

Later life

In the 1990s, Czesław Marchaj moved to a rural retreat in France. He died on 21 July 2015, aged 97.

Bibliography

* ''Sailing Theory and Practice'',

Adlard Coles Nautical Adlard Coles Nautical is a nautical publisher, with over 300 books in print. The company publishes books on topics of interest to sailors and motorboaters and also ‘landlubbers’ with an interest in the sea. Their list includes almanacs, cruis ...

, 1964, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 64-13694. * ''Aero-hydrodynamics of sailing'', * ''Aerodynamik und Hydrodynamik des Segelns'', * ''Sail performance: techniques to maximize sail power'', * ''Seaworthiness: the forgotten factor'', * ''Teoria żeglowania: aerodynamika żagla'', Alma-Press,

Warszawa Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

2004, * ''Teoria żeglowania: aerodynamika żagla'', 6th edition, Alma-Press,

2009, * ''Dzielność morska: zapomniany czynnik '', Alma-Press,

2002,

References

Notes

External links

Czesław Marchaj - Polish Sailing Encyclopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marchaj, Czeslaw 1918 births 2015 deaths Polish male sailors (sport) People from Kraków County