User:Hemmers/sandbox
| Hemmers/sandbox | |
|---|---|
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Sporting event |
| Date(s) | July |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Venue | National Shooting Centre |
| Location(s) | Bisley, Surrey, England |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Years active | 163–164 |
| Inaugurated | July 1860 |
| Area | Worldwide |
| Organised by | National Rifle Association |
| Website | nra |
The Imperial Meeting is a major annual target shooting competition hosted by the National Rifle Association on the historic Bisley Camp in England.
The Meeting lasts for 3 weeks each July, encompassing inter-service military matches; cadet shooting competitions; the Schools Meeting (culminating in the Ashburton Match); Historic Arms; as well as civilian Match Rifle and Target Rifle competitions. The Meeting closes with the King's Prize (also known as the Queen's Prize depending on the incumbent British monarch).
History[edit]
The first Imperial Meeting was contested on Wimbledon Common in 1860.[1] The National Rifle Association had been founded the previous year with the express purpose of running such a competition to improve the standard of marksmanship. Queen Victoria fired the first shot and awarded her "Queen's Prize" of £250 (~£38,000 in 2023)[2] to the best individual marksman. Seventeen year old Edward Ross of the 7th North Yorkshire Volunteers was the first winner.[3] The Meeting was initially open to members of the Volunteers movement who would have used the issued service rifle of the day, such as the Snider–Enfield and Martini–Henry.[1][4]
The Imperial Meeting quickly gained significance in high society. In 1878 Edward Walford wrote "These annual gatherings are attended by the élite of fashion, and always include a large number of ladies, who generally evince the greatest interest in the target practice of the various competitors, whether it be for the honour of carrying off the Elcho Shield, the Queen's or the Prince of Wales's Prize, or the shield shot for by our great Public Schools, or the Annual Rifle Match between the Houses of Lords and Commons."[5] Key matches such as the Elcho were significant social occasions on par with The Boat Race. Shooters and officials were often household names, and featured or even caricatured in society publications such as Vanity Fair.
The Association moved from Wimbledon to Bisley Camp in 1890 after housing development around Wimbledon caused concerns about the ongoing ability to safely operate the ranges.[6]
The NRA and the Imperial Meeting heavily influenced the development of shooting sports around the world, particularly in the British Empire. The formation of the National Rifle Association of Australia was prompted in part by a desire amongst regional associations to send an Australian team to compete at Wimbledon.[7] In 1897 the Dominion of Canada Rifle Association built a pavilion on Bisley Camp specifically to accommodate the Canadian national team whilst competing at the meeting.[8]
In the first half of the twentieth century, the Meeting was extensively covered by newsreels including Pathé and Movietone, resulting in an unusually rich heritage of archival footage.[9][10][11]
The sport became significantly more civilian-oriented through the second half of the twentieth century. Where competitors had typically shot accurised military surplus rifles such as Lee–Enfields, dedicated target rifles such as the Swing were developed, with the Swing becoming the first rifle not of a military design to win the Queen's Prize.[4] The military models were largely consigned to specific Service and Historic arms matches.
In 2019, the NRA celebrated the 150th Imperial Meeting (this was 159 years since 1860, as a result of the Meeting's cancellation during the World Wars).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 meeting was postponed. However, wishing to keep intact the record of only being interrupted by two World Wars, a "miniature Imperial" was held in stages through September and October.[12] This included the Queen's Prize, which featured a reduced number of finalists qualifying to allow wider spacing on the firing point.[13]
Programme[edit]
The Imperial Meeting predominantly takes place during the first three weeks of July, although there is typically a build-up of inter-services matches through late June, not all of which are run by the NRA.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M | T | W | T | F | Sa | Su | M | T | W | T | F | Sa | Su | M | T | W | T | F | Sa | |
| F-Class | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Historic Arms | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Match Rifle | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Schools | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Gallery Rifle | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sporting Rifle | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Target Rifle | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Pre-Grand | Grand Aggregate | King's Prize | ||||||||||||||||||
Match Rifle Imperial[edit]
Competitors firing "Match Rifles" between 900-1200yards. Match Rifle is a less restricted form of Target Rifle, permitting the use of telescopic sights and other advancements. Competitors may shoot prone or supine (lying on their back). The Elcho Shield is contested on the last day (Wednesday).
School's Imperial[edit]
Contested by school-based Combined Cadet Forces, using the L81 Cadet Target Rifle (not the SA80-derived L98 Cadet Rifle). Culminates in the Ashburton Shield Match.
Target Rifle Imperial[edit]
The largest entry of the meeting. The Target Rifle Imperial runs for nine days and is attended by international teams from around the world, with a particular emphasis on Commonwealth nations.
Individual competitors have three main blocks of competition -
- The "Pre-Grand" - an aggregate of matches shot over the first weekend.
- Grand Aggregate - an aggregate shot Monday-Thursday
- King's Prize - contested on the final Friday and Saturday.
There are a number of significant team matches, including:
- The MacKinnon - Teams from Commonwealth nations (British shooters compete as Home Nations)
- The Kolapore - International Teams (British shooters compete as Great Britain)
- The National Trophy - Teams from the Home Nations
- The Vizianagram - teams from the House of Commons and House of Lords.
Trophies and Prize Money[edit]
The NRA awards a significant number of trophies over the course of the meeting, including examples donated from across the former British Empire.
Aside from the King's Prize, most events to not attract prize money, although sweepstakes are attached to several competitions.
See Also[edit]
- Palma Match
- Bisley – The Queen's Prize – a BBC film following the 1986 Imperial Meeting and Queen's Prize, presented by Brian Glover.
References[edit]
- ^ a b "The Imperial Meeting". National Rifle Association. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
- ^ "U.K. Inflation Rate Calculator". Officaldata.org. Official Data Foundation. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ "Roger Fenton (1819-69) Mr Ross Junr., the Winner of the Queen's Prize Jul 1860". Royal Collection Trust. July 1860. Archived from the original on 17 May 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
Edward Ross was the winner of the Gold Medal for the Queen's Prize at the first meeting of the National Rifle Association. The prize, worth £250, was open only to Volunteers. Ross was a member of the 7th North Yorkshire Volunteers. In 1865, Ross won the Silver Medal for the Queen's Prize.
- ^ a b Brian Glover (presenter) (1986). Bisley - The Queen's Prize (Television production). Bisley Camp: British Broadcasting Corporation. Event occurs at 29:26. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ "Putney". Old and New London: Volume 6. London: Cassell, Petter & Galpin. 1878. pp. 489–503. Archived from the original on 2 September 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2014 – via British History Online.
- ^ . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 5.
BISLEY, a village of Surrey, England, 3 1/2 m. N.W. of Woking. The ranges of the National Rifle Association were transferred from Wimbledon here in 1890.
- ^ Andrew J. Kilsby. THE RIFLEMEN: A History of the National Rifle Association of Australia 1888-1988 (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
- ^ "The Macdonald Stewart Pavilion". Historic England. Historic England. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ ""See The Conquering Heroine Comes" Again!". Pathé News. British Pathé. 21 July 1930. Archived from the original (Video) on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
- ^ "BISLEY - THE QUEEN'S PRIZE" (Video). Movietone News. British MovieTone News. 23 July 1964. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ "Uk: Canadian Wins Queen's Prize At Bisley Shooting". Pathé News. British Pathé. 16 July 1966. Archived from the original (Video) on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ Andrew Mercer (Winter 2020). Fallon, Colin (ed.). "CEO's Welcome" (PDF). NRA Journal. XCIX (4). Future Publishing: 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ Alun Lewis (Winter 2020). Fallon, Colin (ed.). "Conquering Hero - Report Queen's Prize" (PDF). NRA Journal. XCIX (4). Future Publishing: 10–12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2023.