Saving Lives At Sea for 200 Years!

 

Sir William Hillary

Britain is an island nation. Since ancient times, our commerce and defence depended on the sea. But our treacherous waters exacted a terrific toll of ships and passengers every year. Victims often lost their lives within sight of shore because no vessel was strong enough to reach them safely. 

The late eighteenth century witnessed the earliest recorded attempts at organized rescue efforts.  At Formby, Lancashire, a boat was kept on shore specifically to aid shipwrecked persons as early as 1776. The notoriously dangerous Mersey estuary had shifting sandbanks, and the Liverpool Dock Trustees founded several coastal lifeboat stations. The crews manning the boats were rewarded for every life they saved. 

Sir William Hillary founded the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck in 1824. Hillary, who lived on the Isle of Man, had personally witnessed several shipwrecks in Douglas Bay, and helped save some victims.

I was very interested to discover that Jane Austen's sailor brothers, Frank and Charles, were keen supporters of the Institution. You can find out more in my latest article for the March issue of Jane Austen's Regency World magazine, which features the amazing story of the birth of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

Images: Sir William Hillary, shown wearing the robes and cross of a Knight of the Order of St John of Jerusalem, commonly known as a Knight of Malta. Artist unknown, English School, mid 19th Century. Courtesy of the RNLI Archive.

Author’s Collection: Captain Marryat’s design for a new lifeboat, Gentleman’s Magazine, May 1820.

Saving Lives At Sea - Ancestors

Marryat's lifeboat, 1820. 

My latest feature for Discover Your Ancestors online magazine is on the history of the lifeboat service.

The RNLI’s orange-and-blue lifeboats are a familiar sight on our coastline – and on TV. Its brave crews have saved lives at sea for almost two centuries.


Often several generations of the same family have served on lifeboat crews, and my article includes tips for researching your lifeboat ancestors. You can also find out more about lifeboat history here on the RNLI website. The RNLI even has its own archive and library, and you can also visit one of its six museums.

Image from author's collection: 'Captain Marryat’s design for a new lifeboat', Gentleman’s Magazine, May 1820.