150 years ago: Captain Matthew Webb conquered the English Channel
On 25 August 1875, maritime history was made when Captain Matthew Webb became the first person to swim across the English Channel. His achievement marked the beginning of long-distance open-water swimming and remains a milestone in the relationship between seafaring and human endurance.
In brief
Master mariner Matthew Webb became the first person to swim across the English Channel on 25 August 1875. Matthew Webb set off from Dover at 1:00 p.m. and reached the coast near Calais after 21 hours and 45 minutes, covering more than 60 kilometres using breaststroke in water at a temperature of 19 degrees Celsius. Eight years later, at the age of 35, Matthew Webb died while attempting to swim the rapids below Niagara Falls. The record holder for the Dover to Calais route is Germany's Andreas Waschburger, with a time of 6 hours and 45 minutes set in 2005.
Although the Channel narrows to just 32 kilometres at the Strait of Dover, treacherous currents extend the swimmer’s route far beyond that distance. Webb departed Dover at 1 p.m. and, after battling tides for 21 hours and 45 minutes, landed near Calais at 10:41 the following morning. In total, he covered more than 60 kilometres, maintaining a steady rhythm of 20 strokes per minute – and notably, he swam breaststroke throughout the entire crossing.
The crossing was no small test of resilience. With water temperatures at 19°C, Webb protected himself with a coating of grease against hypothermia. A support boat accompanied him, carrying provisions of broth, tea, brandy, and cod-liver oil. His feat, completed without the benefit of modern equipment or wetsuits, set the standard for all future Channel swimmers.
Webb had already captured public admiration two years earlier when, during a transatlantic voyage, he leapt into the sea at night upon hearing a cry for help. Though he was unable to save the victim, the daring act established his reputation for courage.
Tragically, Webb’s life ended just eight years after his Channel triumph. In 1883, at the age of 35, he died attempting to swim the rapids below Niagara Falls.
Today, the English Channel remains the most coveted route for open-water swimmers worldwide. The current record belongs to German swimmer Andreas Waschburger, who completed the Dover–Calais crossing in 6 hours and 45 minutes in 2005. For Poland, the most distinguished achievement belongs to Teresa Zarzeczańska-Różańska, who in 1975 – exactly a century after Webb – became the first Pole and the fourth woman in the world to conquer the Channel, finishing in 11 hours and 10 minutes.
Matthew Webb’s legacy endures not only in the record books but also in the spirit of maritime challenge. His crossing symbolises the unyielding determination of those who dare to pit human strength against the sea.
Source: Gazeta Morska / PAP · Compiled by: Kamil Kusier
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