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Varsity Athletics Match is an annual athletics (track and field) match between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge held annually since 1864.

Exeter College, Oxford, were the first to hold college sports, in 1850. Other colleges followed suit in quick succession and sometime in 1856 a committee was formed under Robert Barclay of Trinity College, Cambridge, and the first inter-college athletic sports were held at Fenner's, the Cambridge University cricket ground, from 16 to 18 March 1857. These would come to be known as the Cambridge University Sports. Oxford University emulated that in 1860 and the first athletics match between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge took place on the Christ Church College cricket ground in Oxford, on Saturday 5 March 1864. There were eight events on the programme and the match ended in a draw, with each team winning four events. There not being any women at either university at the time the meet was open to men only, and women did not participate until 1975.

Athletics was not the first sport to establish a match between Oxford and Cambridge. They had played cricket in 1827, rowing started in 1829, rackets in 1855, and tennis in 1860. That's real tennis, lawn tennis was not developed until the 1870s. They also played billiards in 1860, had their first rifle shooting match in 1862, and had a steeplechase match in 1863.

The only field events on the programme that first year were the long jump and high jump, both of which were won by Francis Gooch, Merton College, Oxford. Benjamin Darbyshire, Wadham College, Oxford, won both the 100 yards and 440 yards, while four different Cambridge athletes, all from Trinity College, won their four events. Charles Lawes won the 1 mile, Arthur Daniel the 120 yard hurdles, Edward Wynne-Finch won the 200 yard hurdles, the only time the event has ever been held in the match, and Richard Garnett won the steeplechase. Unlike a modern steeplechase held on the track, this was held over 2 miles of rough country, with the athletes twice negotiating a 12-foot brook and several hedges before returning to finish on the track.

In 1867 the authorities at Oxford University refused permission for the match to be held there and the venue switched to Beaufort House in West London. The Civil Service Sports had been held there since 1864, the Amateur Athletic Club Championship had been held there in 1866, it was the premier athletics venue in London and the change of venue established the varsity match as an important part of the social calendar of the day. By 1876 fifteen thousand spectators came annually to watch the match.

The 1868 edition saw five world best performances. John Tennent of Wadham College, Oxford, equalled the world best of 10 seconds for 100 yards; John Ridley of Jesus College, Cambridge set new figures of 51 seconds for 440 yards; William Gibbs, also of Jesus College, Cambridge, established new best figures of 4:28 4/5 for 1 mile; John Morgan of Trinity College, Oxford ran 15:20 1/5 for 3 miles, the first time the event had been held in the match, and Thomas Batson of Lincoln College, Oxford, threw the hammer 99ft 6in (30.34m).[1]

In 1864 and 1865 Francis Gooch (Merton, Oxford) won both the high jump and long jump events, for a total of four event wins, a record that was not broken until 1913 when Henry Ashington (King's, Cambridge) won five events in two years and seven events in three years. After finishing last in 1 mile in 1911 he won the 120 yard hurdles and long jump in 1912, the same two events plus the 880 yards in 1913, the first to win three events in one year, and won the high jump and long jump in 1914. He died in action on 31 January 1917.

Annual and cumulative scores

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Annual and cumulative scores
  Annual score Cumulative score  
Date Venue Oxford Cambridge Tie Oxford Cambridge Tie source
5 March 1864 Christ Church College cricket ground, Oxford 4 4 1 [2][3]
25 March 1865 Fenner's cricket ground, Cambridge 3 6 1 1 [4][5]
10 March 1866 Christ Church College cricket ground, Oxford 3 5 1 2 1 [6][7]
12 April 1867 Beaufort House, Walham Green, London 3 6 3 1 [8][9]
3 April 1868 Beaufort House, Walham Green, London 5 4 1 3 1 [10][11]
18 March 1869 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 3 5 1 1 4 1 [12]
7 April 1870 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 7 1 1 2 4 1 [13]
31 March 1871 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 5 3 1 3 4 1 [14]
25 March 1872 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 3 5 1 3 5 1 [15]
31 March 1873 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 6 3 4 5 1 [16]
27 March 1874 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 5 4 5 5 1 [17]
19 March 1875 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 6 3 6 5 1 [18]
7 April 1876 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 6 3 7 5 1 [19]
23 March 1877 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 4 5 7 6 1 [20]
12 April 1878 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 4 5 7 7 1 [21]
4 April 1879 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 4 5 7 8 1 [22]
19 March 1880 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 3 6 7 9 1 [23]
7 April 1881 Lilliie Bridge, West Brompton 5 4 8 9 1 [24]
31 March 1882 Lilliie Bridge, West Brompton 4 5 8 10 1 [25]
16 March 1883 Lilliie Bridge, West Brompton 3 6 8 11 1 [26]
8 April 1884 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 6 3 9 11 1 [27]
27 March 1885 Lilliie Bridge, West Brompton 5 3 1 10 11 1 [28]
2 April 1886 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 6 3 11 11 1 [29]
25 March 1887 Lillie Bridge, West Brompton 3 6 11 12 1 [30]
23 March 1888 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 5 11 13 1 [31]
29 March 1889 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 5 11 14 1 [32]
22 March 1890 Queen's Club, West Kensington 3 6 11 15 1 [33]
20 March 1891 Queen's Club, West Kensington 3 5 1 11 16 1 [34]
8 April 1892 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 5 11 17 1 [35]
23 March 1893 Queen's Club, West Kensington 7 2 12 17 1 [36]
17 March 1894 Queen's Club, West Kensington 6 3 13 17 1 [37]
3 July 1895 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 5 13 18 1 [38]
27 March 1896 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 5 13 19 1 [39]
2 April 1897 Queen's Club, West Kensington 5 4 14 19 1 [40]
29 June 1898 Queen's Club, West Kensington 7 2 15 19 1 [41]
24 March 1899 Queen's Club, West Kensington 5 5 15 19 2 [42]
30 March 1900 Queen's Club, West Kensington 6 4 16 19 2 [43]
29 March 1901 Queen's Club, West Kensington 6 4 17 19 2 [44]
21 March 1902 Queen's Club, West Kensington 5 4 18 19 2 [45]
28 March 1903 Queen's Club, West Kensington 2 8 18 20 2 [46]
26 March 1904 Queen's Club, West Kensington 2 8 18 21 2 [47]
31 March 1905 Queen's Club, West Kensington 6 3 1 19 21 2 [48]
24 March 1906 Queen's Club, West Kensington 7 3 20 21 2 [49]
22 March 1907 Queen's Club, West Kensington 8 1 1 21 21 2 [50]
28 March 1908 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 6 21 22 2 [51]
19 March 1909 Queen's Club, West Kensington 6 4 22 22 2 [52]
19 March 1910 Queen's Club, West Kensington 3 7 22 23 2 [53]
25 March 1911 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 6 22 24 2 [54]
23 March 1912 Queen's Club, West Kensington 5 5 22 24 3 [55]
14 March 1913 Queen's Club, West Kensington 5 5 22 24 4 [56]
27 March 1914 Queen's Club, West Kensington 4 6 22 25 4 [57]
1915-1919 no contest due to World War I
1920

History of the London to Brighton

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The Prince of Wales visited Brighton, then called Brighthelmston, regularly from 1783 when he obtained his majority, originally renting a modest former farmhouse that he remodelled, extended, and enlarged so that by 1822 it had became a royal residence known as the Brighton Pavillion. This made Brighton a fashionable resort not just with the English but nobles and gentry from the continent came over for the entertainments, parties and for the horse races at Brighton race course. This meant that getting there was important.[58][59]

At the beginning of the nineteenth century there were two roads from London to Brighton, both turnpikes, with toll gates, one by way of Lewes and one by way of Horsham.[60] By 1804 there was a post chaise service between the two towns and in May 1810 a daily mail coach service commenced, taking eight hours to cover the approximately fifty-eight miles.[61] By July 1811 there were two competing passenger coach services, the Royal Blue Coach Company, and William Pattenden of Brighton departing the White Lion, Gracechurch Street, at eight o'clock every morning, Sundays excepted. This competition encouraged speculation as to the best route.[62]

In 1813 Matthew Phillips, an engineer and surveyor from Yorkshire, undertook a survey of the route and in January 1814 there was a meeting at the London Coffee-House, Ludgate-Hill, to discuss a proposal based on his survey to re-draw the route to make it shorter and more efficient. The discussion included details of the channel coast fishing industry and the valuable commercial consequences of their plan. Brighton alone had sent 850,000 mackerel to London the previous year.[63][64]

Work on the route actually commenced at Gatton Lodge, two miles north of Reigate and Redhill, in September 1816, and by 1825 the route was complete. This remained the main route from London to Brighton until extensive construction at Gatwick Airport in the 1950s.

In 1819 Mr Matthews, of Bethnal Green, London, patented some improvements in the design of the four-horse coach and the time for the stage coach journey to Brighton came down to around six hours. Royal Blue were not able to compete and switched to a freight service three times a week with their vans, "locked, lighted and guarded for the safe conveyance of goods of every description," departing 35 Camomile Street at half-past five on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, taking between ten and twelve hours to reach Brighton.[65][66] Other coach companies started working the route and by 1831 passenger services regularly took five hours and Red Rover, a coach operated by Robert Nelson of Brighton, had covered the route in a few minutes over four and a half hours.[67]

In August 1825 The Vacuum Tube Association announced that when completed their service would offer transport from London to Brighton in one hour.[68][69][70] By September 1827 this had become The London, Brighton, and Shoreham Pneumatic Conveyance Company who submitted to Parliament that, "the principle of transmission by atmospheric pressure being incontrovertible, and its practicability having been demonstrated to the conviction of every one who has examined it, advantage may be taken of an opportunity for putting it profitably into practice." They estimated that, "the expence of power to convey 300 people and 50 tons of goods from London to Brighton and back every day," would be no more than 20 pounds Sterling per day, and passengers could profitably be charged two shillings for the journey, compared with the stage coach fare of twelve shillings.[71][72] Parliament was not convinced and they were not granted a licence to commence public trials.

In January 1825 the Surrey, Sussex, and Hants Rail Road Company was formed with a view to creating a rail road service from London to Brighton, Lewes, Shoreham, and Portsmouth. They estimated their capital requirement at 700,000 pounds Sterling and offered shares for sale at one hundred pounds each.[73][74] The reasons are not clear but this came to nothing. In January 1831 the London and Brighton Railway Company announced that they had commisisoned G. and J. Rennie to survey a route suitable for a rail road line from London to Brighton. They estimated this would cost 650,000 Sterling which they proposed to raise by selling 6,500 shares at one hundred pounds each, and that this would reduce the travelling time to Brighton to two and a half hours.[75][76]

In the age before mechanical transport there were clearly many people who had walked from London to Brighton for various purposes. As part of the French Revolution, the monarchy was abolished in September 1792, and in January 1793 the last French king Louis XVI was beheaded in Paris. Britain expelled the French ambassador from London and France declared war on Great Britain. In the following weeks large detachments of artillery marched from Woolwich with their field-pieces for south coast ports, particularly Brighton, Yarmouth, Dover and Hythe, until every port of any consequence opposite the French coast had forces stationed there ready to respond should any French privateers approach the coast.[77][78]

The first person recorded to have covered the route for what might be considered sport was Captain Robertson of the South Gloucester Militia who walked from Brighton to London and back in September 1803. He wagered forty guineas that he could do it within forty-eight hours and won his bet handsomely, arriving back at his camp in Brighton after 45 hours and 20 minutes on the road.[79][80][81] The following July John Bell walked from Brook Green, Hammersmith, to Brighton for a wager of 200 guineas that he could do it in fourteen hours, and won his bet with fifteen minutes to spare.[82][83][84]

Some sources claim that in May 1809 an anonymous gent rode a horse from London to Brighton in five hours, and offered that he could, for a sufficient wager, do it in less. There is no evidence anyone took him up on this.[85] In June 1819 Mr. T. Alford, and three friends travelled from London to Brighton on velocipedes in 9 hours.[86][87][88]

In November 1822 a pedestrian called Wright covered the route on each of four consecutive days. Starting on Tuesday 5 November he walked from London to the Elephant and Castle in Brighton in a little less than fourteen hours, and the next day he walked back. On Thursday and Friday he repeated the walk finishing at the Crown and Barley Mow, Gray's Hill Lane, at seven o'clock in the evening having covered 216 miles in a total walking time of two days, seven hours and eleven minutes.[89][90][91]

The first man to run between London and Brighton was the, "celebrated runner" Tomlinson, who made a match for 100 guineas that he could go from "the extremity of Brighton," to the Quadrant Coffee House, Regent Street, London, in less than ten hours. On Monday 19 December 1825 he covered the first twenty miles in a few minutes less than three hours, and after twenty-six miles he stopped and had a short nap on some straw in a covered van that accompanied him. He got to the top of Ryegate Hill, thirty one miles, in four and a half hours, stopped at Tooting for half-an-hour for a mutton-chop supper and won the match with a leisurely ten minutes to spare.[92][93][94]

steeplechase in other media

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Since the event began there has been a debate as to whether athletes should train as hurdlers who can run a long way, or as middle-distance runners who can also hurdle. Technical books and training guides tend to include the steeplechase in amongst the other middle-distance events and there are to date no books specifically about the steeplechase. There is at least one film about a steeplechaser, Paan Singh Tomar was a soldier in the Indian army and was seven times national steeplechase champion, then he did something, different. There is also a song Hey There Delilah by American pop rock band the Plain White T's about American steelechaser Delilah DiCrescenzo.

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National Union of Track Statisticians [5]

Horsebread

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The making and selling of horse bread was controlled by law. In 1389 an act of parliament, The Statute of Victuallers and Hostellers (13 Richard II c. 8.) specified that hostelers and inn keepers were not permitted to make horse bread for sale, but that it could only be made by certified bakers, and that the weight and price of loaves should be, "Reasonable after the price of Corn in the Market."[95] No punishment was specified for offenders, but in 1402 under king Henry IV (4 Henry IV c. 25.) the fine was set at three times the value of the bread sold.[96]

In 1540 under king Henry VIII (32 Henry VIII c. 41) these terms were amended so that any hosteller or inn keeper in a town where there had been no baker for seven years was permitted to make horse bread for sale as long as the price was reasonable, according as the price of the graynes of corn that now is.[97] And this was confirmed in 1623 by a further act under king James I, An Acte Concerning Hostlers or Inholders (21 James 1. c. 21) where justices of the peace were given authority to set the fine as they saw fit.[98]

References

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  1. ^ Richard Hymans "World Record Progressions" International Amateur Athletics Federation (2015)
  2. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 12 Mar 1864 p. 7
  3. ^ Sporting Life, Sat 5 Mar 1864 p. 4
  4. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 1 Apr 1865 p. 7
  5. ^ Field, Sat 1 Apr 1865 p. 21
  6. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 17 Mar 1866 p. 9
  7. ^ Sporting Life, Wed 14 Mar 1866 p. 3
  8. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 13 Apr 1867 p. 8
  9. ^ Field, Sat 13 Apr 1867 p. 24
  10. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 4 Apr 1868 p.\ 7
  11. ^ Field, Sat 4 Apr 1868 p. 16
  12. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 20 Mar 1869 p. 6
  13. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 9 Apr 1870 p. 3
  14. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 1 Apr 1871 p. 3
  15. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 30 Mar 1872 p. 5
  16. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 5 Apr 1873 p. 9
  17. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 28 Mar 1874 p. 3
  18. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 20 Mar 1875 p. 12
  19. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 8 Apr 1876 p. 11
  20. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 24 Mar 1877 p. 3
  21. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 13 Apr 1878 p. 3
  22. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 5 Apr 1879 p. 10
  23. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 20 Mar 1880 p. 9
  24. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 09 Apr 1881 p. 10
  25. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 1 Apr 1882 p. 8
  26. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 17 Mar 1883 p. 11
  27. ^ Bell's Life, Wed 9 Apr 1884 p. 1
  28. ^ Bell's Life, Sat 28 Mar 1885 p. 8
  29. ^ Field, Sat 3 Apr 1886 p. 34
  30. ^ Field, Sat 26 Mar 1887 p. 37
  31. ^ Field, Sat 24 Mar 1888 p. 25
  32. ^ Field, Sat 30 Mar 1889 p. 39
  33. ^ Field, Sat 29 Mar 1890 p. 42
  34. ^ Field, Sat 21 Mar 1891 p. 38
  35. ^ Field, Sat 9 Apr 1892 p. 46
  36. ^ Field, Sat 25 Mar 1893 p. 32
  37. ^ Field, Sat 24 Mar 1894 p. 60
  38. ^ Field, Sat 6 Jul 1895 p. 68
  39. ^ Field, Sat 28 Mar 1896 p. 40
  40. ^ Field, Sat 3 Apr 1897 p. 38
  41. ^ Field, Sat 2 Jul 1898 p. 30
  42. ^ Field, Sat 25 Mar 1899
  43. ^ Field, Sat 31 Mar 1900 p. 45
  44. ^ Field, Sat 30 Mar 1901 p. 44
  45. ^ Sporting Life, Sat 22 Mar 1902 p. 7
  46. ^ Field, Sat 4 Apr 1903 p. 41
  47. ^ Field, Sat 2 Apr 1904 p. 47
  48. ^ Field, Sat 1 Apr 1905 p. 44
  49. ^ Field, Sat 31 Mar 1906 p. 48
  50. ^ Field, Sat 23 Mar 1907 p. 38
  51. ^ Field, Sat 4 Apr 1908 p. 39
  52. ^ Field, Sat 20 Mar 1909 p. 40
  53. ^ Field, Sat 26 Mar 1910 p. 51
  54. ^ Field, Sat 1 Apr 1911 p. 57
  55. ^ Sporting Life, Mon 25 Mar 1912 p. 7
  56. ^ Sporting Life, Sat 15 Mar 1913 p. 7
  57. ^ Sporting Life, Sat 28 Mar 1914 p. 2
  58. ^ Derby Mercury, Thu 5 Aug 1784 p. 3
  59. ^ Sussex Advertiser, Mon 8 Aug 1785
  60. ^ Sussex Advertiser, Mon 27 Jan 1823 p. 3
  61. ^ Morning Herald (London), Fri 4 May 1810 p. 1
  62. ^ Sussex Advertiser, Mon 8 July 1811 p. 3
  63. ^ Morning Post, Fri 14 Jan 1814 p. 4
  64. ^ Sussex Advertiser, Mon 14 Feb 1814 p. 3
  65. ^ Oxford University and City Herald, Sat 10 Apr 1819 p. 4
  66. ^ Johnson's Sunday Monitor, Sun 16 Apr 1826 p. 5
  67. ^ Sussex Advertiser, Mon 11 Apr 1831 p. 3
  68. ^ Globe, Tue 30 Aug 1825 p. 3
  69. ^ Berkshire Chronicle, Sat 3 Sep 1825 p. 2
  70. ^ Manchester Guardian, Sat 3 Sep 1825 p. 3
  71. ^ Sun (London), Mon 24 Sep 1827 p. 4
  72. ^ Watchman, Sun 30 Sep 1827 p. 8
  73. ^ Public Ledger and Daily Advertiser, Thu 13 Jan 1825 p. 1
  74. ^ New Times (London), Thu 13 Jan 1825 p. 1
  75. ^ Morning Herald (London), Sat 4 Dec 1830 p. 1
  76. ^ Globe, Sat 4 Dec 1830 p. 1
  77. ^ Ipswich Journal, Sat 23 Feb 1793 p. 2
  78. ^ Bath Journal, Mon 25 Feb 1793 p. 3
  79. ^ True Briton, Sat 17 Sep 1803 p. 4
  80. ^ Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette, Thu 22 Sep 1803 p. 3
  81. ^ Gloucester Journal, Mon 26 Sep 1803 p. 3
  82. ^ Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette, Thu 26 Jul 1804 p. 3
  83. ^ London Chronicle, Thu 26 Jul 1804 p. 2
  84. ^ London Courier and Evening Gazette, Thu 26 July 1804 p. 3
  85. ^ Sun (London), Wed 31 May 1809 p. 3
  86. ^ Windsor and Eton Express, Sun 6 Jun 1819 p. 3
  87. ^ Saint James's Chronicle, Thu 10 Jun 1819 p. 1
  88. ^ Cambridge Chronicle and Journal, Fri 11 Jun 1819 p. 1
  89. ^ Commercial Chronicle (London), Sat 9 Nov 1822 p.\ 2
  90. ^ Bell's Life, Sun 10 Nov 1822 p.\ 8
  91. ^ Morning Advertiser, Tue 12 Nov 1822 p.\ 3
  92. ^ Sun (London), Tue 20 Dec 1825 p.\ 3
  93. ^ Evening Times 1825, Tue 20 Dec 1825 p.\ 3
  94. ^ Morning Post, Tue 20 Dec 1825 p.\ 3
  95. ^ [1] Statutes of the Realm Vol 2 (1377-1509) p. 83.
  96. ^ [2] Statutes of the Realm Vol 2 (1377-1509) p. 160.
  97. ^ [3] Statutes of the Realm Vol 3 (1509-47) p. 856
  98. ^ [4] Statutes of the Realm Vol 4 part 2 (1586-1625) p. 476.


Category:1864 establishments in England Category:Annual events in London Category:Athletics competitions in England Category:Recurring sporting events established in 1864 Category:Sport at the University of Oxford Category:Sport at the University of Cambridge Category:Sports competitions in London

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