With the speech of John Fitzgerald Kennedy at the Berlin Wall on June 26, 1963 at the latest, the American President became one of the most popular statesmen of his time in Germany. To understand JFK, his actions and the magic he spread all over, one must also know the passion of the Kennedy family for sailing and the sea.
The day after his assassination in Dallas on November 22, 1963, a sketch of a sailboat that JFK had drawn during his stay there was found at the Rice Hotel, just hours before his death.
The Kennedy family, descendants of Irish immigrants owned a beach house in Hyannis, on Cape Cod in the North East of the USA. For his 15th birthday, JFK was given the dinghy VICTURA, a small boat not even 8 meters long with gaff rig. John and his brothers Edward and Robert did not miss any opportunity to sail the boat at regattas. When John survived the sinking of his patrol boat in the Second World War, his family was convinced that without his experience on the VICTURA he would not have escaped with life. The home story with the bride Jacqueline Bouvier, also on the sea and, of course, on the VICTURA, the high-gloss pictures of the later married couple on board the motor yacht HONEYFITZ and their accompaniment of the Americas Cup of 1962, when Australia with the 12mR race yacht GRETEL aimed for the “Cup” for the first time, underline the importance of sailing for the Kennedys. His instruction that the yacht MANITOU, built at Sparkman & Stephens in 1937, was to be converted into a sort of floating White House, from which he could take his official business at sea, is another proof of this enthusiasm. John F. Kennedy was born 100 years ago on May 29, 1917. With the exhibition “Kennedy – the sailing President” the YACHTING HERITAGE CENTRE would like to pay tribute to the President of the USA, the charismatic politician, but especially the enthusiastic sailor. The exhibition is daily open from May 2 – July 10, 2017 (assembly works, holidays excluded) from 11h00 – 18h00.
