Cowes for the use of Queen Elizabeth I sowed the seed for Cowes to grow into a world-renowned centre of boat-building. However, seafaring for recreation and sport remained the exception rather than the rule until much later. It was not until the reign of keen sailor George IV that the stage was set for the heyday of Cowes as 'The Yachting Capital of the World.' In 1826 the Royal Yacht Squadron organised a three-day regatta for the first time and the next year the king signified his approval of the event by presenting a cup to mark the occasion. This became
Cowes Week winner on points. An historic event occurred in the 2012 Cowes Week when Mrs Gillian Smith became the very first female Principal Race Officer to oversee the racing in the 200-year history of the event. French painter Raoul Dufy has depicted the races and Royal Yacht Squadron in several works of the late 1920s and early '30s, the most famous one of which is now in the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. J.M.W. Turner also made a series of paintings, watercolours and pencil sketches of the regatta while visiting Cowes Castle in 1827. Cowes Week Cowes Week (