Royal Calpe Hunt

Royal Calpe Hunt

Meet of the Calpe Hunt in the Cork Woods, George Cole Prince George, Duke of Cambridge (left) and the Calpe Hunt
First event	1812 (1812)
Last event	1939 (1939)
Purpose	Fox hunt; initially civilian, then military
Headquarters	Gibraltar
Master of the Hunt	Charles Elphinstone Fleeming (first)

The Royal Calpe Hunt of the British Crown Colony of Gibraltar originated in 1812 as the Civil Hunt. The fox hunt was initially a civilian endeavour that began when a pair of English foxhounds were imported to Gibraltar. The hunts took place across the border, in the Campo de Gibraltar area of Spain. However, in 1814, the membership of the Hunt underwent a substantial change. Many officers of the Gibraltar garrison joined the Hunt, which shifted from a civilian to a military enterprise. That year, the name was changed to the Civil Calpe Hunt. It retained that title until 1817, after which it was known as the Calpe Hunt. The first Master of the Hunt was Charles Elphinstone Fleeming. However, the Master most associated with the Hunt was Pablo Larios, Marquis of Marzales, who held that title for forty-five years. His election to that position in 1891 was not only historic, but strategic. His appointment represented only the second time that the position had not been filled by a member of the military. In addition, his Spanish heritage and influence in the Campo de Gibraltar, where he owned extensive estates, garnered him the loyalty of the local Spanish farmers, and therefore eased the ever-present tensions between the military and the farmers over the crop damage that was inherent to the Hunt. In 1906, King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and King Alfonso XIII of Spain became joint Patrons of the Hunt, after which it was known as the Royal Calpe Hunt. The tradition of the Hunt continued for more than a century, until 1939, and the onset of the Second World War

Gibraltar, the then British colony at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, generally had few opportunities for outdoor recreational activities at the turn of the nineteenth century. In 1812, the Reverend Mackareth, the garrison chaplain and former chaplain to the Duke of Kent, imported with a colleague a pair of English foxhounds. The hounds were Rookwood and Ranter and, after their arrival, other civilians obtained hunting dogs. The huntsmen who started the pack formed a club, the Civil Hunt, whose members wore blue uniforms with silver buttons. The hunting took place in Spain, in the Campo de Gibraltar area of Andalusia, with the furthest hunts about fourteen miles from Gibraltar. The hunts started in November, after the first rains, and ended in March when the ground became too dry. The hunts took place twice a week and many women participated.