Ashburton Shield
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 (previously the Public 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.[1][2][note 1]
 The Ashburton Shield | |
| Sport | Fullbore target rifle |
|---|---|
| Competition | Ashburton VIII, Schools Imperial Meeting |
| Awarded for | Winning Team of VIII |
| Location | Bisley Camp |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Presented by | National Rifle Association |
| History | |
| First award | 1861 |
| Editions | 151 |
| First winner | Rugby School |
| Most wins | Epsom College (15) |
| Most recent | Victoria College (2023) |
History
The Ashburton Shield was presented by Lord Ashburton in 1861 for competition between the Junior Officers' Training Corps that were run within public schools. This remained the case until the 1948 merger of school cadet units into the Combined Cadet Force.[3] The shield was first contested at the National Rifle Association's second Imperial Meeting.[4] It was mentioned by Edward Walford in 1878 when he wrote of the Meeting, then at Wimbledon:
"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 [Ashburton] shield shot for by our great Public Schools, or the Annual Rifle Match between the Houses of Lords and Commons."[5]
The runner-up team is awarded the Montague-Jones Challenge Trophy, which was first presented in 1947 by the OTC Officers Club in memory of Major Montague-Jones OBE TD, and eight NRA bronze medals. The third place team are awarded eight NRA bronze medals.[6] The Allhallows Salver, presented in 1987 by Allhallows College, is awarded to the coach of the winning school.
The Public Schools' Meeting is considered the pinnacle of inter-school shooting in the UK, and British Pathé featured the event in multiple newsreels.[7][8][9] It has been held annually, with the exception of 1915–18 and 1940–45 due to the outbreak of war, and 2020–21 when the meeting was placed in abeyance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Epsom College hold the record for the most wins, at 15.[10]
Notable winners include 2018 ISSF World Champion Seonaid McIntosh, who was a member of the 2013 winning team from Dollar Academy.[11] McIntosh individually won the Schools Hundred competition.[12]
Results by year
Scores in bold indicate a record for that competition format.
Performances
Schools in bold competed for the Ashburton Shield at the 2023 Schools' Meeting.[16]
| Wins | School | Years |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | Epsom College | 1973, 1990–94, 1998–99, 2002, 2004, 2006–08, 2010–11 |
| 13 | Charterhouse School | 1882–83, 1889–92, 1895–96, 1898, 1920, 1931, 1948, 1988 |
| 11 | Harrow School | 1862, 1864–67, 1969, 1870, 1875, 1879, 1905, 1908 |
| 9 | Winchester College | 1871–73, 1876, 1904, 1919, 1930, 1937, 1955 |
| 8 | Eton College | 1863, 1868, 1878, 1880, 1887, 1901, 1923, 1947 |
| Uppingham School | 1957, 1969, 1976, 1978, 1981–82, 1995, 2001 | |
| 7 | Rugby School | 1861, 1894, 1907, 1909, 1912, 1924, 1979 |
| Allhallows College | 1951, 1954, 1960, 1963–65, 1977 | |
| 6 | Clifton College | 1884–85, 1888, 1926, 1928, 1974 |
| 5 | Sedbergh School | 1914, 1921, 1996–97, 2018 |
| 4 | Glenalmond College | 1929, 1933, 1949, 1952 |
| Oakham School | 1966, 1972, 1975, 1987 | |
| Bradfield College | 1970, 1980, 1985, 2022 | |
| Wellington College | 2012, 2014, 2016–17 | |
| 3 | Cheltenham College | 1877, 1881, 1902 |
| Bradford School | 1893, 1897, 1910 | |
| King's College School | 1932, 1934, 1938 | |
| 2 | Marlborough College | 1874, 1935 |
| Dulwich College | 1886, 1900 | |
| Repton School | 1913, 1958 | |
| Lancing College | 1922, 1925 | |
| Brighton College | 1927, 1936 | |
| Blundell's School | 1946, 1956 | |
| The Leys School | 1950, 1953 | |
| Victoria College | 1961, 2023 | |
| Gresham's School | 1968, 2009 | |
| RGS Guildford | 1986, 2019 | |
| Stamford School | 2000, 2003 | |
| Dollar Academy | 2005, 2013 | |
| 1 | Rossall School | 1899 |
| Tonbridge School | 1903 | |
| Dover College | 1906 | |
| Edinburgh Academy | 1911 | |
| Cranbrook School | 1939 | |
| St Lawrence College | 1959 | |
| Ardingly College | 1962 | |
| Cranleigh School | 1967 | |
| Merchant Taylors' | 1971 | |
| Malvern College | 1983 | |
| Bedford School | 1984 | |
| Elizabeth College | 1989 | |
| Ellesmere College | 2015 |
References
Notes
- A separate competition is held the week prior for cadet units not attached to a school (such as the Army Cadet Force), as part of the Inter-Services Cadet Rifle Meeting (ISCRM).
Citations
- "Schools Imperial Meeting". National Rifle Association. Archived from the original on 24 March 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- David James (15 July 1949). "Ashburton Day". The Spectator. p. 10. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- "The History of the Combined Cadet Force". 1260sqn.co.uk. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014.
- Edward Walford, (2006 reprinted), Greater London. A Narrative of Its History, Its People, and Its Places. Volume 2, page 508, (Adamant Media Corporation)
- "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.
- NRA Handbook Competitions 2021 (PDF). National Rifle Association of the UK. 2021. pp. 217–218.
- "Schools Day At Bisley". British Pathé. 16 July 1934. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- "News In A Nutshell 1935". British Pathé. 15 July 1935. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- "Ashburton Shield Competition 1938". British Pathé. 11 July 1938. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- "Another Ashburton win for target rifle team". Epsom College. 14 July 2011.
The College Target Rifle VIII saw off strong competition at the National Rifle Association's Schools' Meeting at Bisley last week to retain the prestigious Ashburton Shield in the 150th year of the competition. This was the 15th time overall and the 14th time in the past 22 years that Epsom has won the blue riband event of the school target rifle shooting calendar.
- "Ashburton Shield Prizelist 2013" (PDF). 21 July 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- "Schools Hundred Prizelist 2013" (PDF). 30 October 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 October 2016. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- "Charterhouse School Win Ashburton Shield Bisley - 1948 Clip". Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- Elizabeth College: A Rifle-Shooting Century (1 ed.). UK: OE Rifle Club. 2022.
- Guillomot-Bonnefond, Aurore; Woodward, Charlotte (7 December 2022). "Ashburton". The A-Z of Oakham School. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- "The NRA 154th Imperial Meeting - The Ashburton" (PDF). National Rifle Association of the UK. 2023.