1 EXHIBIT 23.1 CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS We hereby consent to the incorporation by reference in the Prospectus constituting part of this Amendment No. 1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-4 of our report dated January 27, 1998, which appears on page 47 of the 1997 Annual Report to Stockholders of Trenwick Group Inc., which is incorporated by reference in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1997. We also consent to the incorporation by reference of our report on the Financial Statement Schedules, which appears on page S-4 of such Annual Report on Form 10-K. We also consent to the reference to us under the heading "Experts" in such Prospectus. /s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP New York, New York August 18, 1998