Cutty Sark: Fastest Ship in the World
With thousands of square feet of canvas capturing every breath of the trade winds, a 19th-century tea clipper was the absolute pinnacle of sailing evolution. The Cutty Sark was just such a ship, carrying tea and then wool across the far-flung outposts of the British Empire. The Cutty Sark gained the record as the fastest ship in the world in the 1880s thanks to its sleek design and 32 sails. This literal speed merchant could breeze past the very latest steamships, but the age of sail was coming to an end as steam engine technology improved. Today Cutty Sark, fully restored after a 50-year career at sea, is a museum on the River Thames.
The Clippers
Clippers were ships of the 18th and 19th centuries, specifically built for speed. With slim, streamlined hulls and an absolute forest of masts and sails, clippers carried cargo across the Atlantic Ocean and up and down the east coast of the United States. The clippers broke all speed records and began to be used for much longer runs, particularly across the British Empire. Clippers carried commodities like opium, wool, and, most famously, tea.
The largest producers of tea in the mid-19th century were India and China, and the demand in Britain and its colonies was practically insatiable. A competitive tradition arose between importers as to which could ship the first tea of the season to British merchants in London. With tea the height of fashion, wealthy customers were willing to pay high prices to enjoy the drink before everyone else. Import companies could make a killing in sales if they could get just a few days ahead of their rivals. As speed became the absolute priority, clippers were crewed and captained by the very best seamen available. The press covered the clippers' voyages, and people even laid bets on which particular clipper would arrive home first. The Cutty Sark was one such tea clipper.
The Cutty Sark was a latecomer to the tea trade, indeed, by the time it first set sail in February 1870, destination Shanghai, the tea trade had already been turned upside down by the opening of the Suez Canal the year before. No longer necessary to round the Cape of Good Hope, the clippers faced stiff competition from rival ships that had a 3,000-mile shorter voyage. Fortunately for the Cutty Sark and its contemporaries, the winds around the Suez Canal were unpredictable, unlike the trade winds the clippers harnessed with their giant sails. Time may have been running out, but the Cutty Sark still had a chance to make history, and tea was still big business: Britain imported 28 million kilograms of tea in 1869 alone.
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⇒ Cutty Sark: Fastest Ship in the World
