Valkyrie III (yacht)
Valkyrie III was the unsuccessful British challenger yacht ( challenger ) in the ninth America's Cup competition in 1895 against the American defender yacht ( defender ) Defender.
Portrait Valkyrie III
Valkyrie III was a gaffelgeriggter racing cutter, designed by the renowned Scottish yacht designer in his time George Lennox Watson, the owner in the construction of a completely free hand left. It was like its predecessor Valkyrie II in 1895 at the shipyard D. & W. Henderson & Company in Partick on the Clyde built on the River Clyde in Scotland. Valkyrie III was a Eignergemeinschaft consisting of Lord Dunraven ( Windham Thomas Wyndham- Quin, 4th Earl of Dunraven and Mount - Earl ), Lord Londsale, Lord Wolverton, and Captain Henry McCalmont, all members of the Royal Yacht Club Royal Yacht Squadron on the Isle of Wight.
The yacht Valkyrie III had a wooden hull made of elm wood in the hull and teak wood above the waterline on steel frames ( composite construction) and a deck of Whitepine (pine). The launch took place on 27 May 1895.
After first sailing tests on June 1, 1895, started three times against Britannia and lost twice. After raising the keel ballast to 12 tons at the shipyard, Valkyrie III defeated the rivals Britannia and Ailsa ( built in 1895, designed by William Fife III. ) In a race and Ailsa again in a private race.
9 America's Cup
After these few races with varying degrees of success Valkyrie III crossed the North Atlantic to North America as a British challenger in the 9th America's Cup in New York from 7 - September 12, 1895 to present. Later, accused the owner of Community Valkyrie III, have not adequately prepared in local waters with strong opponents on the competition ahead of New York.
Valkyrie III lost all three races of the next five races regatta of the ninth America's Cup against the designed by Nathanael Herreshoff and sailing under the pennant of the New York Yacht Club Yacht Defender Defender.
Management team of Valkyrie III:
- Skipper: William Cranfield assisted by Captain Edward Sycamore
- Afterguard ( tactics and navigation): H. Maitland Kersey, Arthur Glennie, George L. Watson, Thomas W. Ratsey, Lady Rachel Wyndham- Quin, Lady Eileen Wyndham- Quin.
1st race
The first race was held on September 7, 1895 with one ( as usual today in the America's Cup) Up-and -down course ( windward-leeward course) instead of 15 nautical miles from the starting point Scotland Lightship (Scotland Lightship ) windward ( upwind ) and back. The U.S. Yacht Defender defeated Valkyrie III with 8 minutes and 49 seconds on corrected time.
2nd race
The second race started on 10 September 1895 as Triangle Race ( equilateral triangle) over a distance of 30 nautical miles. Valkyrie III won by a margin of 47 seconds ahead of Defender, but was disqualified from the Regattakommittee and explains Defender winner.
3 race
The third race on September 12, 1895 was an up-and -down course over 40 miles and was started by the lightship from Sandy Hook. Defender was declared by Regattakommittee the winner, since Valkyrie had not gone to the starting line III.
Aftermath and consequences
During the races, the owner, Lord Dunraven was very irritated, he accused the Americans that they had cheated at the races. He launched a major journalistic controversy that beat so high waves that you could imagine a future of the America's Cup not to continue at that time.
After Lord Dunraven had lost twice in the America's Cup and was defeated in the ensuing debate, he ended his sailors career, transferred the yacht Valkyrie III to the UK, put the yacht for the next few years to a mooring buoy and not sailed it.
Further use
1899 Valkyrie III was completely overhauled and modernized ( Refit ) and sailed as a sparring partner and training yacht against the Yacht Shamrock I by Sir Thomas Lipton, who challenged the Americans in the 10th America'c Cup in 1899 and lost.
In 1901, the AC yacht Valkyrie III has been scrapped.