Sir Thomas Lipton and the America Cup

In June 1931, Sir Thomas Lipton (1848 – 1931), the self-made man of the tea company‘s fame was presented with the Freedom of Rothesay in recognition of his services to yachting on the Clyde.

From a boy in the Gorbals to global trader and philanthropist, Sir Thomas Lipton ended up mixing with the higher echelons of society and his friendship with the Prince of Wales, soon to be Edward VII, strengthened a passion for their shared interest of yacht racing.

Over thirty years he competed five times in the America’s Cup, the world’s oldest international sporting trophy. His yachts were all named Shamrock in recognition of his Northern Irish heritage, but he never managed to "lift that auld mug - surely the most elusive piece of metal in all the world so far as I am concerned", he is said to have quipped.

He was presented however by American well-wishers with a gold 'loving cup' decorated with shamrocks to celebrate his perseverance and sportsmanship and a donors' book in which the mayor of New York called him 'absolutely the world's most cheerful loser!'

At home however, one of the Shamrocks would usually claim a trophy during the Clyde Yacht week and Lipton, whose luxury steam yacht would often cruise the Clyde even makes an appearance in Neil Munro's Para Handy Tales where Shamrock snatches victory from the White Heather!

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