The Royal Irish Yacht Club was founded in The Gresham Hotel, Dublin in 1831. Within one year the club moved into the premises of Alexander's Bank at Upper Sackville Street, Dublin.[3] By 1832, the club was granted a white ensign by the Admiralty on the top left canton the union flag incorporating the flags of St. George, Patrick and Andrew. St George's cross is repeated in the middle of the flag. in the centre there is a crest featuring the Irish harp, surmonuted by the British crown, and above that is a triple tower from the portal of which a hart is springing argent and hoofed.[4] The club relocated to No. 59 or No. 200 Great Brunswick Street in 1832.[5] this club folded in 1844 due to financial mis-management.[6]
Revived Royal Irish Yacht Club
In 1846 a completely different club was created out of what had been the Hibernian Yacht Club. This club had a blue ensign[7] with the Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Ireland beneath the Union Jack in canton.[8] In the club's constitution, it was unique amongst yacht clubs in that it required yacht owners to provide the club's commodore with information about the coast and any deep sea fisheries they encountered on all of their voyages.[9] In 1846, the club was granted permission to use the Royal prefix by Queen Victoria.[10] The club built a new clubhouse in 1851.[11] Despite the Republic of Ireland breaking away from the United Kingdom, the Royal Irish Yacht Club elected to retain its Royal title.[12][13][14]
In 1848, a yachting trophy called "Her Majesty's Plate" was established by Queen Victoria to be contested at Kingstown where the Royal Irish Yacht Club is based. The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at the time, George Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon suggested it should be contested by the Royal Irish Yacht Club and the Royal St. George Yacht Club in an annual regatta,[10] a suggestion that was approved by both clubs with the Royal St. George hosting the first competitive regatta.[10]
John Skipton Mulvany designed the Kingstown clubhouse [15] consisting of hall, billiard room, museum, library, drawing room, private dining room, dining room and bar.[16] It which still retains a number of original architectural features since being opened in 1851.[11]
Original Ensign
Original ensign of the RIYC, used from 1831-1846.
The club's original British white ensign was granted by Royal Warrant in 1831.
Ensign of the Second Club
The Ensign of the second club consisted of a blue flag with the Union flag in the top left canton and the Winged Nike and harp in the fly. The Union flag was replaced by the Irish Tricolour after Irish independence.[17]
Though the Royal Irish Yacht Club later changed the ensign to remove the St George's Cross and replace the Union Jack with the flag of the Republic of Ireland in canton, the original ensign may still be used by British members of the Royal Irish Yacht Club.[18]
Notable former members
John Jameson II, son of the founder of the Distillery.
Hon. Robert King of Rockingham, Co. Roscommon (Now Lough Key forest Park).
Charles Anderson Pelham, 1st. Lord Yarborough founder of the Royal yacht Squadron (Cowes).
John Dawson, 2nd Earl of Portarlington, of Emo Court.[19]
^Perrin, William (2013). British Flags; Their Early History and their Development at Sea, with an Account of the Origin of the Flag as a National Device. CUP archive. p. 138. ISBN978-1313168175.
^Douglas, James (1884). American Yachts: Their Clubs and Races. C. Scriber's & Sons. p. 6. ISBN0342328549.
^Kenny, Mary (2009). "60 Years on: the "Southern Unionists", the Crown and the Irish Republic". Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review. Jstor. 98 (390): 197–206. JSTOR25660660.
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