The 120-year comeback story

Written by Roxanne Hughes

Over 120 years since her launch, the commission that gave Charles E. Nicholson one of the most important opportunities in his career not only survives, but sails on.

Black Swan was designed by Charles E. Nicholson and built at the esteemed Camper & Nicholsons shipyard. She represents one of the most important yachts in the Nicholson story, and is a vessel admired by classic yacht afficionados around the world.

Launched in 1899 and refit multiple times to ensure her continued seaworthiness, the 40.2m sailing yacht Black Swan has been returned to her full original glory and is now offered for charter, presenting an incredible opportunity to step aboard a piece of maritime history and a verifiable icon of the classic fleet.

Charles E. Nicholson was brought up in Gosport, where the Camper & Nicholsons shipyard and the yachting businesses that surrounded it dominated much of the town. Inevitably, the young Charles messed about in boats and tried his hand at designing for his family’s enterprise.

In 1887 his first yacht, Lucifer, was built, and she impressed his father enough for him to speculatively build more of his son’s designs. In 1889, Nicholson had his first commission for a racing yacht and with its success Nicholson developed a small following. In 1892, another of Charles’ designs, Dacia, burst on to the yachting scene, beating all those she came up against and the yacht made front page news when her owner sold her for twice what she had cost him, halfway through her first season.

Black Swan began life as Brynhild, a design commissioned by John Selwin Calverly who had heard of Nicholsons’ success designing racing yachts and his desire to conceive a larger cruising vessel. The brief was for a yacht that was an all-rounder, not designed for racing but able to participate in the handicap classes. Unconstrained by any rating rule and able to design a yacht that truly reflected his ideas on yacht design, Nicholson excelled.

Brynhild was launched in May 1899 and Calverly immediately took to racing, demonstrating that his yacht was still a formidable competitor as well as an able cruiser.

Sadly, Calverly’s ownership was not to last and he died after just two seasons’ sailing.

Such was her reputation, however, that Brynhild was quickly acquired by Sir James Pender who continued to champion her and ensured that her reputation as a race winner only grew.

Brynhild changed hands several times through the 1920s and ‘30s. An engine was installed in 1923, and then in 1937 she was converted from a yawl to a ketch under the ownership of H. S. Bomford, and then sold to Frederick J. McEvoy who renamed her Black Swan.

After World War II, Black Swan was sold to the Frenchman George Guérin who had her refitted at Camper & Nicholsons with John Nicholson, son of Charles E. Nicholson, managing the work.

In 1958 Guérin sold Black Swan to Mexico-based Turkish businessman Felix Mechoulam and and she stayed in the Mechoulam family’s ownership for some 40 years. During this time, her rig was modernised and her bowsprit was removed. A major refit was carried out in Turkey during 1984/85 and although this ensured her immediate future, the quality of the work was poor.

In the early 1990s, Black Swan found a new owner in Mr Satori and she underwent significant works at the Beconcini yard in La Spezia. She was restored to a gaff rig, albeit ketch, and the current deckhouse was installed. But this period of investment was not to last and, soon after passing into the hands of fellow Italian Mr Matassena, she was soon mired in financial troubles and seized by the bank to be laid up ashore at Valdettaro in La Spezia from 2008 to 2015.

To the good fortune of the maritime industry Edouard Poullain, her current owner, recognised Black Swan as the important classic she is and under his ownership, the years of neglect have been addressed.

Over 120 years since her launch, Black Swan sails again and is now offered for charter with Camper & Nicholsons. The yacht has accommodation for eight guests in four double cabins, and her traditional yachting style runs throughout the interior. This rare and important vessel is today equipped with all-modern essentials for onboard comfort, safety, and ease of handling.