15 Metre
# 15 Metre

The IYRU Fifteen Metre class yachts are constructed to the First International rule of 1907. A total of twenty 15mR yachts were built between 1907 and 1917, the four that have survived are still actively raced.

## History

The IYRU International Rule was set up in 1907 to replace the YRA 1901 revised Linear Rating Rule. The IYRU 15mR boats would replace the YRA 52-raters and open competition to foreign nations, replacing local or national systems with a unified rating system across Europe. The rule changed several times, but the 15mR boats only raced in the first rule of 1907. The twenty boats that were built, were raced in Spain, France, Britain and Germany. The rule was proposed for competition in the 1908 Olympics but there were no entries.

## 1907 Rule

The 15-Metre class is a construction class, meaning that the boats are not identical but are all designed to meet specific measurements in a formula. In their heyday, Metre classes were the most important group of international yacht racing classes, and they are still actively raced around the world. "Metre" does not refer to the length of the boat, but to her rating; the length overall of 15mR boats measuring almost 30 metres (98 ft).

The 15mR formula used in the First International Rule from 1907 to 1920:

$15~{\mbox{m}}={\frac {{\textrm {L}}+B+{\frac {1}{2}}G+3d+{\frac {1}{3}}{\sqrt {S}}-F}{2}}$

where

* L = load waterline length in metres
* B = beam in metres
* G = chain girth in metres
* d = difference between girth and chain in metres
* S = sail area in square metres
* F = freeboard in metres

## Boats

| Launch | Yacht | Sail no. | Sail no. | Sail no. | Designer | Shipyard | First owner | Details |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1907 | Ma'oona | | | | Alfred Mylne | Robert McAlister & Son | J. Talbot Clifton | later sold to Almeric Paget |
| 1907 | Shimna | | | | William Fife III | Alexander Robertson & Sons | William Yates | later rechristened Slec, and Yildiz in 1938. damaged and broken up in Turkey 1949. |
| 1908 | Mariska | D1 | D1 | D1 | William Fife III | Fife & Son | A. K. Stothert | restored by the Charpentiers Réunis de Méditerranée in 2009 |
| 1909 | Ostara | D2 | D2 | D2 | Alfred Mylne | Robert McAlister & Son | William P. Burton | |
| 1909 | Anémone II | | | | C. Maurice Chevreux | Chantier Vincent, Cannes | Philippe de Vilmorin | |
| 1909 | Encarnita | | | | Joseph Guédon | Karpard de Pasajes | Marquis of Cuba | |
| 1909 | Hispania | D5 | D5 | D5 | William Fife III | Karpard de Pasajes | King Alfonso XIII | restored by the Astilleros de Mallorca in 2012 |
| 1909 | Tuiga | D3 | D9 | 1 | William Fife III | Fife & Son | 17th Duke of Medinaceli | owned in the 1920s by Warwick Brookes. rechristened Betty IV, Dorina, Kismet III. restored by Fairlie Restorations in 1993 |
| 1909 | Vanity | D4 | D4 | D4 | William Fife III | Fife & Son | W. & Benn Payne | |
| 1910 | Paula II | D2 | D8 | D8 | Alfred Mylne | Robert McAlister & Son | Ludwig Sanders | |
| 1910 | Tritonia | D3 | D3 | D3 | Alfred Mylne | Alexander Robertson & Sons | Graham C. Lomer | later rechristened Jeano, Gerd II, Rinola, Fortuna II, Cisne Branco and Albatroz. served in the Gremio de Vela da Escola Navala in Brazil until 1986 |
| 1910 | Sophie-Elisabeth | D6 | D4 | D4 | William Fife III | Fife & Son | L. Biermann | 1913/1914 sold to G.Eyde, Norway, and rechristened Beduin, later Magda X |
| 1911 | Senta | | | | Max Oertz | Max Oertz | Duke of Saxe-Altenburg | |
| 1912 | Istria | D7 | D7 | D7 | Charles E. Nicholson | Camper & Nicholsons | Charles C. Allom | World's first Marconi topmast. broken up in Norway 1924. |
| 1912 | The Lady Anne | D10 | D10 | D10 | William Fife III | Fife & Son | George Coats | restored by fairlie Restorations in 1999 with her 1914 rig configuration |
| 1913 | Pamela | D1 | D1 | D1 | Charles E. Nicholson | Camper & Nicholsons | S. Glen L. Bradley | |
| 1913 | Paula III | D2 | D8 | D8 | Charles E. Nicholson | Camper & Nicholsons | Ludwig Sanders | |
| 1913 | Isabel Alexandra | D5 | D5 | D5 | Johan Anker | Anker & Jensen | E. Luttrop | |
| 1913 | Maudrey | D3 | D3 | D3 | William Fife III | Fife & Son | W. Blatspiel Stamp | |
| 1917 | Neptune | | | | Johan Anker | Mandrup Abel | S. Klouman | |
