The Great Tea Race of 1866 is…

The Great Tea Race of 1866 is an unofficial competition between the fastest clipper ships of the China tea trade to bring the season's first crop of tea to London in 1866.

Fierce competition exists year round to be the vessel first back to London with the new shipment of tea; extra incentives are added in 1866, when heavy bets are made in England on the winner.

The tea clipper races have by this time become a tradition in the tea trade between Britain and China.

The winning vessel is awarded an extra pound sterling for every ton of freight delivered, and the captain of the winning tea clipper is given a percentage of the ship's earnings.