A HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX 



drawing the long bow embossed thereon, and 

 having the inscription ' Reginae Catherinae 

 Sagitarii,' and the arms of England and 

 Portugal, supported by two bowmen. 



In pursuance of a deed executed by Sir 

 William Wood on 6 July, 1691, this badge 

 now known as the Catherine of Braganza 

 Shield passed after his death into the custody 

 of the stewards of the society for the time 

 being, and, after the dissolution of the Fins- 

 bury Archers, it and other articles belonging 

 to that body were transferred by Mr. Con- 

 stable, the last captain of the Easter Targets 

 in 1757, to the Royal Toxophilite Society 

 which he joined at its first establishment in 

 i78o. 35 



The Royal Toxophilite Society, the oldest 

 and most important of English archery clubs, 

 was established in 1780 by Sir Ashton Lever, 

 representative of an old Lancashire family and 

 a great sportsman, in conjunction with Mr. 

 Waring, the curator of his museum of col- 

 lections, who had studied bow-making under 

 Mr. Constable and the survivors of the Fins- 

 bury Archers. 36 At its first institution, which 

 marks the revival of archery, the society shot 

 in the grounds of Leicester House which stood 

 in Leicester Square close to the site of the 

 present Empire Theatre. 37 In 1784, however, 

 it obtained leave from the Honourable Artillery 

 Company to shoot in the Artillery Ground, and 

 on 14 July of that year the Earl of Effingham 

 and other members of the latter body sub- 

 scribed to the rules of the society and formed 

 an Archers' division of the Company, under 

 the captaincy of Lord Effingham. In 1787 

 H.R.H. the Prince of Wales became patron 

 of the society and sometimes shot with its 

 members. In 1791, when these numbered 

 1 68, the society rented grounds in Gower 

 Street near Torrington Square, and it was 

 not until after two successive moves to High- 

 bury, in 1820, and to Westbourne Street, 

 Bayswater, in 1825, that it eventually suc- 

 ceeded, in 1833, in obtaining a lease from 

 the Crown of its present grounds, some 6 acres 

 in extent, at Archer's Lodge in the Inner 

 Circle at Regent's Park. 38 



The position occupied by the Royal Toxo- 

 philite Society is, as pointed out by Colonel 

 Walrond, an important one. 



It certainly is the leading body of archery, and, 

 though the existence of the Grand National Society 

 prevents its wielding the authority over the sport 

 that is exercised by the M.C.C. over cricket, its 

 influence over archery is great and far reaching. 



K Archery (Badminton Library), 168-9. 

 * Ibid. 227-8. " Ibid. 



K Ibid. 230-4. 



Its members are scattered all over England, and it 

 is the only society which can really claim to be the 

 nursery of shooting among men, as no society 

 which does not practise the York Round can be look- 

 ed upon, from an archery point of view, as more than 

 a social gathering." 



The high standard that the society has 

 maintained as regards shooting is shown by 

 the fact that since the institution, in 1 844, of the 

 Grand National Championship it has only been 

 held by three gentlemen who were not past or 

 present members of the Royal Toxophilite 

 Society. 40 



Most of the Thursdays during the session 

 are Target and Extra Target Days ; and 

 there are Summer and Autumn Handicap 

 Meetings. There is also a Ladies' Day in 

 July when ladies compete, by invitation, for 

 prizes given by members of the society. The 

 club house contains an interesting collection 

 of historical English bows and of those of all 

 other nations, as well as of pictures and relics 

 connected with archery, such as the Catherine 

 of Braganza Shield. 41 



The Archers' Register for 1864 shows the 

 existence of two other archery societies which 

 have since ceased to exist. These were the 

 Enfield Archers, established in 1857, which 

 then had from fifty to seventy members and 

 met in Enfield Old Park ; and the Harrow 

 Archers, with respect to which no details are 

 given. 42 The only other society besides the 

 Royal Toxophilite Society mentioned in the 

 Archers' Register for 1906 is the Pinner 

 Archery Society, the date of foundation and 

 membership of which are not recorded. 43 



ROWING 



As it is stated in the recital of the first char- 

 ter of incorporation, granted to the Company 

 of Watermen and Lightermen in 1514 by 

 Henry VIII, that ' it had been a laudable cus- 

 tom and usage tyme out of mind to use the 

 river in barge or wherry boat,' 44 rowing in 

 Middlesex may be said to date from time im- 

 memorial, but until the beginning of the 



39 Ibid. 238. The York Round was first insti- 

 tuted in 1 5 56. It consists of 72 arrows at 100 yds., 

 48 at 80 yds., and 24 at 60 yds. Ibid. 240. 



40 Ibid. 238. 



41 Cf. The Archers' Register, 1906. 

 "Ibid. (1864), 56,75. 



43 Ibid. (1906), 54. 



44 Humpherus, Hist, of the Origin and Progress of the 

 Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River 

 Thames (1514-1859), i, 212. 



286 



