The Meeting lasts for 3 weeks each July, encompassing inter-service military matches; cadet shooting competitions; the Schools Meeting (culminating in the Ashburton Match); Historic Arms; as well as civilian Match Rifle and Target Rifle competitions. The meeting closes with the Sovereign's Prize.
History
Queen Victoria firing the first shot, Wimbledon 1860
The first Imperial Meeting was contested on Wimbledon Common in 1860.[1][2] The National Rifle Association had been founded the previous year with the express purpose of running such a competition to improve the standard of marksmanship. Queen Victoria fired the first shot and awarded her "Queen's Prize" of £250 (~£38,000 in 2023)[3][2] to the best individual marksman. Seventeen-year-old Edward Ross of the 7th North Yorkshire Volunteers was the first winner.[4] The meeting was initially open to members of the Volunteers movement, who would have used the issued service rifle of the day, such as the Snider–Enfield and Martini–Henry.[1][5]
Caricature of an Elcho Shield competitor from a society magazine.
The Imperial Meeting quickly gained significance in high society. In 1878, the society biographer and journalist Edward Walford wrote:
These annual gatherings are attended by the élite of fashion, and always include a large number of ladies, who generally evince the greatest interest in the target practice of the various competitors, whether it be for the honour of carrying off the Elcho Shield, the Queen's or the Prince of Wales's Prize, or the shield shot for by our great Public Schools, or the Annual Rifle Match between the Houses of Lords and Commons.[6]
Key matches such as the Elcho were significant social occasions on par with the Boat Race.[7] Shooters and officials were often household names, and featured or even caricatured in society publications such as Vanity Fair.
The association moved from Wimbledon to Bisley Camp in 1890 after housing development around Wimbledon caused concerns about the ongoing ability to safely operate the ranges.[8][9]
Canada House, National Shooting Centre, England
The NRA and the Imperial Meeting heavily influenced the development of shooting sports around the world, particularly in the British Empire. The formation of the National Rifle Association of Australia was prompted in part by a desire amongst regional associations to send an Australian team to compete at Wimbledon.[10] In 1897 the Dominion of Canada Rifle Association built a pavilion on Bisley Camp to accommodate the Canadian national team whilst competing at the meeting.[11]
In the first half of the twentieth century, the meeting was extensively covered by newsreels including Pathé and Movietone, resulting in an unusually rich heritage of archival footage.[12][13][14]
1966 was the last meeting at which the Army provided personnel to mark targets and perform other duties. From 1967, the military operated their own Service competitions, with the Imperial Meeting itself being purely civilian - although many service personnel continued to compete in a private capacity.[15]
The sport became significantly more civilian-oriented through the second half of the twentieth century. Where competitors had typically shot accurised military surplus rifles such as Lee–Enfields, dedicated target rifles such as the Swing were developed, with the Swing becoming the first rifle not of a military design to win the Queen's Prize.[5] The military models were increasingly consigned to specific service rifle and historic arms matches.
In 2019, the NRA celebrated the 150th Imperial Meeting (this was 159 years since 1860, as a result of the Meeting's cancellation during the World Wars).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 meeting was postponed. However, wishing to keep intact the record of only being interrupted by two World Wars, a "miniature Imperial" was held in stages through September and October.[16] This included the Queen's Prize, which featured a reduced number of finalists qualifying to allow wider spacing on the firing point for social distancing.[17]
Programme
The Imperial Meeting officially takes place during two weeks of July, although there is a build-up of other events including inter-services matches through late June, not all of which are run by the NRA.[18]:331–350
The match rifle meeting is conducted at ranges between 1000 and 1200 yards during the first week.[18]:189- Match rifle is a less restricted form of target rifle, permitting the use of telescopic sights and other advancements. Competitors may shoot prone or supine (lying on their back). The Elcho Shield is contested on the penultimate day (usually First Wednesday),[18]:198 followed by the Humphry match between Oxford and Cambridge universities on the final day.[18]:199
The discipline of target rifle attracts the largest entry of the meeting. The Target Rifle Imperial runs for nine days through Middle Weekend and Week 2, and is attended by international teams from around the world, with a particular emphasis on Commonwealth nations.
Individual competitors have three main blocks of competition -
The "Pre-Grand" - an aggregate of matches shot over middle weekend.
Grand Aggregate - an aggregate shot second Monday to second Thursday
Sovereign's Prize - contested at the end of Week 2, with the Final on the last day (Saturday).
There are a number of significant team matches, including:
The Mackinnon - International Teams of 12 firers (1+10 at 900 & 1000yards). British shooters compete for either England, Scotland, Wales or Ireland[18]:316–317
The Kolapore - International Teams of 8 firers (1+10 at 300, 500 & 600yards). British shooters compete as Great Britain[18]:316
The National Trophy - Teams of 20 firers from the Home Nations (2+7 at 300, 500 & 600yards).[18]:318
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is the governing body for full bore rifle and pistol shooting sports in the United Kingdom. The Association was founded in 1859 with the founding aim of raising funds for an annual national rifle meeting to improve standards of marksmanship. Today the NRA continues this objective as well as organising civilian target shooting and selecting British teams to contest the ICFRA World Championships. The National Shooting Centre at Bisley is a wholly owned subsidiary of the association.
Thomas Francis Fremantle, 3rd Baron Cottesloe, 4th Baron Fremantle was a British peer and rifle shooter. Regarded among the foremost marksmen of his day, he competed for Great Britain in the 1908 Summer Olympics, and captained Great Britain in several international matches. He was also a long-time member of the English Eight Club, shooting, coaching and captaining England in the Elcho match for a total of more than sixty years.
Fullbore Target Rifle (TR) is a precision rifle shooting sport discipline governed by the International Confederation of Fullbore Rifle Associations (ICFRA). The sport evolved as a distinct British and Commonwealth of Nations discipline from Service rifle (SR) shooting in the late 1960s. Its development was heavily influenced by the British National Rifle Association (NRA). Due to this history, it is usually contested amongst the shooting events at the Commonwealth Games, although not at the Olympics. World Championships are held on a four-year cycle. The annual NRA Imperial Meeting at Bisley in the UK is globally recognised as an historic annual meeting for the discipline.
The National Small-bore Rifle Association (NSRA) is the national governing body for all small-bore rifle and pistol target shooting in the United Kingdom, including airgun and match crossbow shooting.
The Elcho Shield is an annual long range shooting competition between national teams of eight from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. The trophy holder was originally able to choose the venue of the competition, however, since the NRA's move to Surrey from Wimbledon in 1890, the competition has been held at National Shooting Centre, Bisley in Surrey, England. It is usually contested during the NRA Imperial Meeting.
Parag Patel FRCS is a British sport shooter who works as an ear, nose and throat consultant at Kingston Hospital in London.
The National Shooting Centre is the UK's largest shooting sports complex, comprising several shooting ranges as well as the large Bisley Camp complex of accommodation, clubhouses and support services. The centre is located near the village of Bisley in Surrey, from which it takes its colloquial name "Bisley ranges". The site is wholly owned by the National Rifle Association (NRA). The NSC is the trading name of the facility.
Andrew St George Tucker (1937–2003) was a Scottish-born, sports shooter who represented England and Great Britain shooting smallbore and fullbore target rifle. He won the Queen's Prize at Bisley twice, medalled at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland as well as winning the NSRA Lord Roberts Trophy for smallbore, He also won the Grand Aggregates at both the NRA Imperial Meeting and NSRA National Smallbore Meeting. He is the first and only person to win the "big four" of both British titles and both Grand Aggregates. He ran Andrew Tucker Gunsmiths, manufacturing firearms and target shooting equipment including jackets, rifle slings and gloves.
The Ashburton Shield is an historic trophy for target rifle shooting in the British Isles. It is awarded annually to the winning team of VIII at the Schools' Meeting, held at Bisley by the National Rifle Association. The competition is open to teams of cadets from, predominantly, Combined Cadet Force units based in public and private schools.
The Sovereign's Prize is a British fullbore target rifle shooting competition. It is the climax of the National Rifle Association's annual Imperial Meeting and is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious prizes in the sport globally. The prize is typically referred to as the Queen's Prize or the King's Prize depending on the incumbent British monarch.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2018.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2019.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2014.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2010.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2021.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2017.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2016.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2013.
This article lists the main target shooting events and their results for 2012.
The sport of rifle shooting at Cambridge University has been practised since at least the early 19th century. Beginning as part of the military training of the Cambridge University Rifle Volunteers, it has since been conducted by a number of student clubs, and is currently carried out predominantly by the Cambridge University Rifle Association and Cambridge University Small Bore Club, with some participation by the Cambridge University Revolver and Pistol Club for the discipline of gallery rifle.
↑ "Roger Fenton (1819-69) Mr Ross Junr., the Winner of the Queen's Prize Jul 1860". Royal Collection Trust. July 1860. Archived from the original on 17 May 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2023. Edward Ross was the winner of the Gold Medal for the Queen's Prize at the first meeting of the National Rifle Association. The prize, worth £250, was open only to Volunteers. Ross was a member of the 7th North Yorkshire Volunteers. In 1865, Ross won the Silver Medal for the Queen's Prize.
↑ "Putney". Old and New London: Volume 6. London: Cassell, Petter & Galpin. 1878. pp.489–503. Archived from the original on 2 September 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2014– via British History Online.
↑ "Bisley". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol.4 (11thed.). 1911. p.5. BISLEY, a village of Surrey, England, 3 1/2 m. N.W. of Woking. The ranges of the National Rifle Association were transferred from Wimbledon here in 1890.
↑ Duke of Cambridge (8 August 1887). "The National Rifle Association— Proposed Removal—Wimbledon Common—Observations". Hansard - Parliament.uk. Column 1503: UK Parliament. Retrieved 30 May 2023. I can assure my noble Friend that I entirely agree with him that the National Rifle Association has taken most extraordinary precautions to prevent accidents, and I believe there has been no external accident, ... Wimbledon is really now becoming London. Not only is London growing in that direction, but the villa, and even the town, population are extending in every direction. If the National Rifle Association expect long to remain at Wimbledon I believe they will find themselves very much mistaken, because the neighbourhood must extend and houses must be built;{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
↑ Andrew Mercer (Winter 2020). Fallon, Colin (ed.). "CEO's Welcome"(PDF). NRA Journal. XCIX (4). Future Publishing: 5. Archived from the original(PDF) on 21 August 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
↑ Alun Lewis (Winter 2020). Fallon, Colin (ed.). "Conquering Hero - Report Queen's Prize"(PDF). NRA Journal. XCIX (4). Future Publishing: 10–12. Archived from the original(PDF) on 21 August 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
↑ "Queen's Prize Win Repeated". The Daily Telegraph and Morning Post. 23 July 1956. p.9. The annual match between the House of Lords and the House of Commons for the Vizianagram Cup was won by the House of Commons.
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