Name Consuta

What is the vessel’s ability to demonstrate history in her physical fabric?

CONSUTA’s physical significance can be found in her name which means ‘stitched together’ and derives from the revolutionary technique used in constructing her lightweight hull. In the absence of waterproof glues, four veneers of mahogany planking were hand sewn together with copper wire stitches, laid in approximately 40,000 inch long grooves in the outer lamination. This became known as the ‘Consuta Method’ and was patented by the builder, remaining in wide use until the 1950s and becoming the forerunner of later cold moulded plywood hulls. CONSUTA has no ribs and her small frames are only used to spread the load of the steam machinery, giving her an extremely light, but strong hull. CONSUTA’s original steam engine was built by G.F.G Des Vignes and was capable of producing 100 hp. This was replaced by a petrol engine in 1923, but the original steam plant was reinstated during conservation work in the late 1990s.

What are the vessel’s associational links for which there is no physical evidence?

Contemporary reports compiled from club minutes and letters indicate that the vessel was hired as the Henley Royal Regatta umpire launch for a number of years and seen as very ‘satisfactory’ with ‘far less roll caused by her than any other boat hitherto used’. She carried the Prince of Wales in 1912 and later acted as umpire launch for the annual Oxford and Cambridge boat race on the Thames, being used for the first ever live TV broadcast of this iconic event in 1949. Today, CONSUTA continues to be presented at Thames regattas and festivals where she has been used once more as an umpire’s launch.

How does the vessel’s shape or form combine and contribute to her function?

CONSUTA was commissioned to be driven at high speeds of up to 23 knots whilst producing minimal wash. Her lines were drawn to achieve this and she was the first vessel to be built with a tunnel stern, which is still adopted by GRP-constructed umpire launches today. CONSUTA’s ability to travel at speed is integral to her significance. The decision to return her to operational use through conservation has meant some loss of original material, but allows her to demonstrate her original purpose as she is seen steaming along her home river, the Thames. This heritage setting adds to her significance as a surviving representative of the growth in sporting and leisure boating on the Thames at the end of the 19th Century.

Source: Hannah Cunliffe, Policy & Project Manager, National Historic Ships, May 2011.