Newbiggin RNLI celebrates RNLI’s 200th anniversary
Today (4 March) the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) will celebrate 200 years of saving lives at sea – thanks to volunteers, like those at Newbiggin lifeboat station, giving their time to save others, all funded by voluntary public donations.
Newbiggin RNLI lifeboat station was officially established during 1851 following a fishing disaster here on 18 March that year and in that time its crews have launched the lifeboats 822 times and saved 485 lives.
The decision to have a lifeboat station followed the intervention of Rear Admiral, His Grace the Duke of Northumberland who, realising the risk the east coast fisheries were enduring, set about to equip the Northumberland coast with lifeboats and boathouses. One of those ‘new Lifeboats’ with ten oars was seen as essential to mitigate the risks of inshore fishing, hence, in 1851 local action was successful in efforts to establish Newbiggin Lifeboat Station. It was only months after the disaster that the Duke accepted the office of President of the RNLI, contributing 100 guineas to general funds as well as undertaking to complete the coast of Northumberland with Lifeboats including a Lifeboat for Newbiggin all at his own expense.
A Service of Thanksgiving to mark 200 years of the RNLI will take place at Westminster Abbey in London on 4 March. It will be attended by representatives from RNLI lifesaving communities around the UK and Ireland, including representatives from the Newbiggin volunteer team.
Two centuries have seen vast developments in the lifeboats and kit used by the charity’s lifesavers – from the early oar-powered vessels to today’s technology-packed boats, which are now built in-house by the charity; and from the rudimentary cork lifejackets of the 1850s to the full protective kit each crew member is now issued with.
The RNLI’s lifesaving reach and remit has also developed over the course of 200 years. Today, it operates 238 lifeboat stations around the UK and Ireland, including four on the River Thames, and has seasonal lifeguards on over 240 lifeguarded beaches around the UK. It designs and builds its own lifeboats and runs domestic and international water safety programmes.
While much has changed in 200 years, two things have remained the same – the charity’s dependence on volunteers, who give their time and commitment to save others, and the voluntary contributions from the public which have funded the service for the past two centuries.
For further information about the RNLI’s 200th anniversary, visit RNLI.org/200.
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 142,700 lives.
Learn more about the RNLI
For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.
Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.