Swan upping is an annual ceremony in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in which mute swans on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

are rounded up, caught, ringed, and then released.

History

By prerogative right, the British Crown enjoys ownership of all unmarked mute swans in open water. Rights over swans may, however, be granted to a British subject by the Crown (accordingly they may also be claimed by prescription). The ownership of swans in a given body of water was commonly granted to landowners up to the 16th century. The only bodies still to exercise such rights are two livery companies of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

. Thus the ownership of swans in the Thames is shared equally among the Crown, the

Vintners' Company The Worshipful Company of Vintners is one of the oldest Livery Companies of the City of London, England, thought to date back to the 12th century. It is one of the "Great Twelve" livery companies of London, and its motto is ''Vinum Exhilarat A ...

and the

Dyers' Company The Worshipful Company of Dyers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Dyers' Guild existed in the twelfth century; it received a Royal Charter in 1471. It originated as a trade association for members of the dyeing industry ...

. The Crown's swans are recorded by the Marker of the Swans who is rowed in a skiff by oarsmen from the Company of Watermen and Lightermen.

Description

Swan upping is the traditional means by which the swans on the Thames are apportioned among the three proprietors. Its main practical purposes today are to conduct a

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of swans and check their health. It occurs annually in the third week of July. Over five days, the Crown's, Vintners' and the Dyers' respective swan uppers row up the river in skiffs (in recent centuries from Sunbury-on-Thames to Abingdon on Thames). Swans caught by the Crown's swan uppers under the direction of the Swan Marker are left unmarked, except for a lightweight ring linked to the database of the British Trust for Ornithology. Those caught by the Dyers and Vintners receive a similar ring on the other leg. Originally, rather than being ringed, swans' bills would be nicked using a metal implement, a practice reflected in the pub name '' The Swan with Two Necks'' in the City connected with the Vintners, a corruption of "The Swan with Two Nicks". On 20 July 2009, Queen Elizabeth II, as "Seigneur of the Swans," attended the Swan Upping ceremony for the only time in her reign. This was the only time that the monarch had personally watched the ceremony in centuries.

Cancellations

In 2012, exceptional high river flows for summer prompted a partial cancellation: between Sunbury-on-Thames and

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

, the first definitively known cancellation (albeit partial) in its 900-year history. The first known full cancellation took place in 2020 due to COVID-19 social distancing measures. File:Life on the upper Thames - swan-upping (1875).jpg, "Swan Upping on the Thames", from Henry Robert Robertson's ''Life on the Upper Thames'', (1875) File:Swan upping at Henley.jpg, A Queen's swan upper with a mute swan during 2010 swan upping at Henley-on-Thames File:Vintners' swan marker.jpg, Swan marker of the Worshipful Company of Vintners, in his blue uniform, during 2011 swan upping, Abingdon. File:Swan Upping at Cookham.jpg, ''Swan Upping at Cookham'', by Stanley Spencer, oil on canvas, 1915–19

References

* Norman Frederic Ticehurst, ''The Mute Swan in England: Its History, and the Ancient Custom of Swan Keeping'' (1957).

External links

The Royal Windsor website

The official British Monarchy website - Swan Upping

Vintners' Company website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swan Upping British monarchy Swans Culture associated with the River Thames English traditions Ceremonies in the United Kingdom July events

History

Description

Cancellations

See also

References

External links