Deed of Gift of the America's Cup
| Deed of Gift of the America's Cup | |
|---|---|
| Created | July 8, 1857 (original) February 2, 1882 (amended) October 24, 1887 (amended) December 17, 1956 (amended) April 5, 1985 (amended) |
| Location | Albany, New York |
| Author(s) | George L. Schuyler |
| Purpose | Promote friendly competition among nations |
The Deed of Gift of the America's Cup is the primary instrument that governs the rules to make a valid challenge for the America's Cup and the rules of conduct of the races. The current version of the deed of gift is the third revision of the original deed. The original deed was written in 1852 and forwarded to the New York Yacht Club on July 8, 1857.
The surviving members of the syndicate which owned the yacht America, the first winner of what would become the America's Cup (née “Royal Yacht Squadron Cup” or the “RYS Cup for One Hundred Sovereigns”), donated the America's Cup through a deed of gift to the New York Yacht Club on July 8, 1857. The cup would be held in trust as a “challenge trophy" to promote friendly competition among nations, with the deed of gift being the primary instrument governing the rules to make a valid challenge for the America’s Cup and the rules of conduct of the races.
After the 1881 Cup match, the New York Yacht Club officially returned the Cup to George L. Schuyler, the sole surviving member of the syndicate that owned America to rewrite the deed to discourage inland-based yacht clubs from challenging the Cup. This revised Deed incorporated, among other things, the following rules: the challenger’s yacht club's annual regatta must take place on the sea or on an arm of the sea, and the challenging boat must sail to the site of the contest on her own bottom, as the yacht America did when first winning the cup in England.
In 1887, the challenging yacht’s hull was much longer than originally stated by the challenger, a potential advantage. The difference alarmed the N.Y.Y.C., but they rectified the situation by handicapping the challenger. Although the N.Y.Y.C. successfully defended the Cup that year, the problem spurred them to rewrite the Deed. Once again the club officially returned the Cup to Schuyler. The third Deed is much longer and couched in legal terminology. The third Deed tightened the rules for challenging; for example, it stated explicitly that the challenger must not exceed the dimensions provided to the holder of the Cup. The new version of the rules created an uproar among many British yachtsmen, who claimed that the new rules made it impossible to challenge. No one challenged until six years later, when British railroad tycoon James Lloyd Ashbury set forth his first of two challenges.
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