The 2nd Boat Race took place on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

on 17 June 1836. It was the first of the University Boat Races to be held in London, on a five-and-three-quarter-mile stretch between

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

and

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

. For the first time, Cambridge sported light blue livery in the form of a ribbon on their boat while Oxford rowed in dark blue jerseys. In a race umpired by Lord Loftus and Mr Hiceson, Cambridge won the race by 20 lengths to level the overall record at 1–1.

Background

The Boat Race The Boat Race is an annual set of rowing races between the Cambridge University Boat Club and the Oxford University Boat Club, traditionally rowed between open-weight eights on the River Thames in London, England. There are separate men's ...

is an annual

rowing eight An eight is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing (crew). It is designed for eight rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars, and is steered by a coxswain, or "cox". Each of the eight rowers has one oar. The rowers, who sit in ...

competition between the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

and the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

. First held in 1829, no attempt was made to organise the second race until 1834. Cambridge had initially proposed a race from

Westminster Bridge Westminster Bridge is a road-and-foot-traffic bridge over the River Thames in London, linking Westminster on the west side and Lambeth on the east side. The bridge is painted predominantly green, the same colour as the leather seats in the ...

to Hammersmith, while Oxford suggested Maidenhead. Although Cambridge agreed to compromise to race on any stretch of the Thames between Westminster and

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

, no agreement was reached until 1836. This year, both universities issued a challenge to one another, and arrangements for the event were made in a meeting at the Star and Garter pub in Putney on 16 June 1836.MacMichael, p. 47 According to a journalist for ''

The Morning Post ''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''. History The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning Po ...

'', there was disagreement over the length of the race, with Oxford preferring a short course of a mile and a half, while Cambridge opted for the same course as the previous year. It was agreed that the race was to take place the following day along the stretch of river between Westminster Bridge and

Putney Bridge Putney Bridge is a Grade II listed bridge over the River Thames in west London, linking Putney on the south side with Fulham to the north. The bridge has medieval parish churches beside its abutments: St Mary's Church, Putney is built on the so ...

, a championship course for professional scullers. It was also agreed that both boats would be steered by university men rather than professional coxes. The second Boat Race in the history of the event, it was the first to be conducted in London, with the inaugural race taking place at Henley-on-Thames. Oxford went into the race as reigning champions, having won the 1829 race "easily". Cambridge were coached by their

cox Cox may refer to: * Cox (surname), including people with the name Companies * Cox Enterprises, a media and communications company ** Cox Communications, cable provider ** Cox Media Group, a company that owns television and radio stations ** ...

Thomas Selby Egan Thomas Selby Egan (25 December 1814 – 11 May 1893) was a coxswain, a rowing coach, and a German scholar. As a coxswain for Cambridge University, he coxed the first Cambridge boat to win The Boat Race. Egan was born in London, the son ...

. The

umpires An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

for the race were both Oxonians: Lord Loftus, of

Balliol College Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the ...

and Mr Hiceson (or Mr Hickson) of Christ Church. According to author and former Oxford rower George Drinkwater, this was the first year that Cambridge adopted light blue as their racing colours: an R. N. Phillips provided a strip of

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

blue ribbon "which was fixed to the bows" of the boat. Oxford wore white jerseys with dark blue stripes, as they had done for the 1829 race.

Crews

The Cambridge crew weighed an average of 11 st 8.625 lb (73.6 kg), per rower more than their opponents. None of the competitors had taken part in a previous Boat Race,Burnell, p. 53 while all participants were registered as British. George Carter followed his brother J. Carter who had rowed for Oxford in 1829 race.

Race

Oxford were favourites to win the race; Cambridge won the toss. Heavy rain began to fall two hours before the start of the race, yet "although the rain descended in torrents, all were gay". The race was started by the umpires at 4:20 p.m., with Cambridge starting well, taking an early lead. By

Vauxhall Bridge Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a southeast–northwest direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank. Opened in 1906, i ...

Cambridge's lead was significant.MacMichael, p. 49 Rowing "gallantly", author and former Light Blue rower William MacMichael noted that Cambridge had the race "all their own way" and passed under

about one minute and 20 lengths ahead of Oxford in a time of around 36 minutes. The victory levelled the series at 1–1. Sports writer Gordon Ross described the race as "a very hollow affair" in which Cambridge "completely outclassed their rivals".Ross, p. 40 Drinkwater noted that the quality of rowing "was a good deal criticised by the

watermen A waterman is a river worker who transfers passengers across and along city centre rivers and estuaries in the United Kingdom and its colonies. Most notable are those on the River Thames and River Medway in England, but other rivers such as th ...

and amateurs of the

Tideway The Tideway is a part of the River Thames in England which is subject to tides. This stretch of water is downstream from Teddington Lock. The Tideway comprises the upper Thames Estuary including the Pool of London. Tidal activity Depending on ...

".Drinkwater, p. 16 According to the reporter for ''

'', "the Oxonians never stood a shadow of a chance, although they looked bigger men". The author of ''The Sportsman'' claimed that "Cambridge had the best boat. The one rowed by the Oxonians is too flat-bottomed for the Thames".

References

Notes Bibliography * * * * *

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boat Race 1836 1836 in English sport The Boat Race June 1836 events 1836 in London