Swimming
the 21 miles of the English Channel is now quite a regular event, with a large
number of successful crossings made every year, whether as solo, team or relay
attempts. However, this feat was believed by many people to be impossible
before Matthew Webb achieved it in 1875.
Matthew
Webb’s early years
Matthew
Webb was born on 18th January 1848 at Dawley, Shropshire, which is
not far from Ironbridge on the River Severn. He was one of twelve children born
to a country doctor, also named Matthew, and his wife Sarah.
He
learned to swim in the river at the age of eight and, when not much older,
rescued his younger brother who had got into difficulties.
He was
only twelve years old when he became a cadet on a Merchant Navy training ship
on the River Mersey. He was noted as being a strong swimmer who could swim for
an hour without a break, but not with any great speed.
As a
merchant seaman he used his swimming ability to good effect, for example in recovering
some cargo that had been lost overboard in heavy seas off South Africa. In 1874
he was awarded a gold medal for attempting to rescue a passenger who had fallen
into the Atlantic from a ship, although the attempt was unsuccessful.
In 1875
he became captain of the “Emerald of Liverpool”. Although he only held the post
for a short time he was always known from this point on as Captain Webb. He
left the ship’s service when he read about a failed attempt to swim the English
Channel and he determined to try this feat for himself.
His
Channel swim
He
spent several weeks in training, being accompanied in his swims along the south
coast by Robert Watson, a journalist, who was rowed along beside Webb, who used
a slow breaststroke.
Webb’s
first attempt from Dover was on 12th August 1875, but he abandoned
his swim having covered more than half the distance, due to bad weather which
threatened to swamp the accompanying boat.
He
tried again on 24th August, and this was the swim that achieved its
aim. He started from Dover’s Admiralty Pier at 1 pm, wearing a red silk
costume. During the night he was spotted by the crew of the “Maid of Kent” who
hung a lamp overboard so that the passengers could cheer him on by singing
“Rule Britannia”.
Unfortunately,
the tide turned before Webb was able to reach the French side, with only seven
miles to go. He appeared to be swept backwards and he was forced to swim much
further than he had anticipated. It is estimated that the actual distance swum
by Webb was more than 40 miles, or nearly double the shortest possible distance
between the two shores. He took 22 hours to complete the crossing, but
recovered quite quickly.
Captain
Webb became an overnight sensation, with huge celebrations held in his honour.
He was invited to give talks about his exploit all over the country, which
should have made him a small fortune, but he was never adept at handling money and
it was not long before poverty forced him into undertaking other feats and
exhibitions. For example, he allowed himself to become an exhibit as he floated
in a tank of water for up to 60 hours. He took part in race challenges, even
though his forte was endurance rather than speed.
A
forced challenge that proved to be fatal
He
married Madeleine Chaddock on 27th April 1880 and started a family.
This made his financial situation even worse and he could see no way of
avoiding destitution other than to undertake another dangerous feat, the
opportunity for which arrived in 1883. This was to swim the Niagara River below
the Falls, which would involve negotiating the rapids and a quarter-mile wide
whirlpool. He hoped to earn $10,000 from the swim. However, he was now aged 35
and past his best as an athlete. He was advised against the attempt by friends
and doctors but he ignored all their warnings.
He
sailed the Atlantic with his family in July and spent a few days training off
Nantucket, although he had not told his wife what he was intending to do. He
therefore travelled to Niagara alone, having arranged to make the swim on 21st
July. The date was put back to 24th July because the railway
companies wanted time to put on extra trains to take the expected 10,000
spectators to the event.
At 4 pm
Webb was rowed to the centre of the river and dived in, wearing the same red
costume that he had used for his Channel swim. It was clear that he knew just
how dangerous this swim was because his last words to the boatman were to ask
for his wife and children to be provided for should he not survive. Although he
negotiated the first part of the swim without apparent problems, when he reached
the whirlpool he was soon pulled under.
It was
several days before Matthew Webb’s body was recovered, much battered by the
ordeal. His skull had been fractured by being smashed against the rocks and his
famous red costume was cut to ribbons. His body was buried in the “Stranger’s
Rest” plot of Oakwood cemetery, close to the river.
His
legacy
Captain Matthew Webb will always have the honour
of being first to achieve the notable feat of swimming the English Channel,
although his performance has been outdone many times since. His time of 22
hours has been beaten by most of his followers, with the current record being
under seven hours. Other swimmers have crossed the Channel on multiple
occasions (Alison Streeter has made 43 crossings) and some have even swum
“there and back” (with several three way swims also being recorded). However,
only one person can be first!
It is also inconceivable that, had Matthew Webb
been around today rather than in Victorian times, he would have been forced by
poverty to attempt the exploit that cost him his life. The modern cult of
celebrity has much in its disfavour, but at least it keeps most of its
“victims” in a healthy financial state.
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