The Founding Sires of Thoroughbred Racing in the UK | UK Horse Racing History | HorseRacing.co.uk Want your site listed here? Contact Us . The Founding Sires of Thoroughbred Racing in the UK Thoroughbred racing got its name for a reason – only those horses bred from a select stock are permitted to run in Thoroughbred races. What you may find surprising is that there were a core 3 sires brought to England in the 17th and 18th centuries that were most responsible for the foundation of Thoroughbred racing . These foreign horses were bred with local mares, and careful selection eventually led to three more legendary sires that the modern Thoroughbred is based on. The original 3 were the Darley Arabian, the Byerley Turk, and the Godolphin Arabian. They were foreign warhorses, already bred for power and speed, but not fine-tuned for racing. A few generations of breeding led to 3 sires that would truly define the Thoroughbred for centuries to come – Matchem, Eclipse, and Herod. All modern Thoroughbreds trace their lineage back to these foundation sires.

The Sire-Line Founders The Darley Arabian The Darley Arabian was bought by Thomas Darley in 1704 during his time in Syria. He was chosen more for his aesthetic appeal than anything else, standing 15 hands tall and considered exceptionally beautiful. Nevertheless, he was a popular stud at Aldby Park and his influence on horse breeding cannot be overstated. It has been estimated that around 95% of male Thoroughbred racehorses can trace their lineage back to the Darley Arabian. This is likely due to the success of Eclipse, one of the Darley Arabian’s descendants and one of the later foundation sires. The Byerley Turk The Byerley Turk was the first of the influential foundation sires brought back to England, and his story is quite interesting. Captain Robert Byerley is said to have captured the horse at the Battle of Buda in 1686, and it served as his warhorse at the Battle of the Boyne. The horse’s origin is not entirely certain, but he served his master faithfully until retirement, when the Byerley Turk was put to stud.

His sire-line almost petered out in the mid-18th century, but the dominant Herod revived the line. Nowadays, few Thoroughbreds trace their line back to the Byerley Turk, making him the least influential of the 3 foundation sires in the modern era of horse racing, though this line was one of the most dominant in earlier times. The Godolphin Arabian The Godolphin Arabian, or the Godolphin Barb as he has also been known, is the most controversial of these first foundation sires. Named for the Earl of Godolphin, his most well-known owner, the Godolphin Arabian was responsible for founding a line that has led to many champions. Interestingly, many great horses have the Godolphin Arabian in their dam line, but sire-lines are more likely to trace back to the Darley Arabian. Not much was expected of the Godolphin Arabian when he first started breeding, and he was only used after the prize horse of his stable had failed to stud. After producing Lath and then Cade by the same mare, both champion racehorses of their day, the quality of the Godolphin Arabian became widely known.

Founders of the Modern Thoroughbred Matchem Matchem was the product of Cade, one of the most successful sons of the Godolphin Arabian. Matchem was highly sought after for breeding after attaining a record of 10-2-0 in 12 races, including wins in the some of the most important races of the day against the best competition. Luckily for racing, he was a terrific stud, and produced more champions such as: Conductor, who was also a quality sire; Hollandaise, a filly that won the St. Leger Stakes ; and Pumpkin, a great racer of his era. Eclipse Everyone knows of Eclipse thanks to the phrase “Eclipse first and the rest nowhere”. It is estimated that 80% of modern Thoroughbreds can trace their line to Eclipse, and this is likely why the Darley Arabian had such a strong influence on breeding. Eclipse was the great grandson of the Darley Arabian via his sire-line, and the sire of his damsire was the Godolphin Arabian. From such excellent stock, it is hardly surprising that Eclipse was known as the most dominant racehorse of his day.

Undefeated in 19 races, Eclipse was retired due to a lack of competition. When he went to stud, he produced champions in abundance, siring hundreds of champion horses including winners of the Epsom Derby and the Epsom Oaks . His most famous progeny was Pot-8-os, winner of 34 races, and sire to further champions. Herod Herod, also known as King Herod, was a product of the Byerley Turk line, and single-handedly kept that sire-line alive. While his own racing career was not as good at that of Matchem or Eclipse, his breeding success was extraordinary. He was the leading sire in Great Britain for 8 years running, and that success was compounded when his get Highflyer and Sir Peter Teazle also dominated as leading sires for long stretches. The leading sire is determined by the amount of prize money won by the offspring of a horse, and few factors are better at determining a stallion’s breeding value. Sadly, few modern racehorses belong to Herod’s sire-line, but there are a few notable exceptions, such as Notnowcato.

Other sires also made an impact, but these are considered the core founders of the modern Thoroughbred horse. With over half a million Thoroughbreds in the world, it is staggering to think that so many horses can trace their pedigree back to just a handful of sires. Why Frankel is the greatest horse racing has ever seen - Telegraph Horse Racing Why Frankel is the greatest horse racing has ever seen In the 473 years since racing was first recorded, on the Roodee at Chester, the Turf has not come up with a more poignant story than Britain’s greatest trainer fighting stomach cancer while brilliantly marshalling the career of the ultimate horse. Image 1 of 2 Flying machine: Frankel and jockey Tom Queally can seal victory number 14 on Saturday Photo: GETTY IMAGES By Paul Hayward , Chief Sports Writer 11:59PM BST 19 Oct 2012 Follow Frankel, who has been nicknamed ‘Usain Colt’ and seeks his 14th victory from as many starts in his final outing, at Ascot today, was described by one bloodstock agent this week as “the point to which the thoroughbred has evolved”.

Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil, whose talent for understanding horses is Dr Doolittle-ish, admits that the best animal he has handled in 44 years on the Newmarket gallops has sustained him through his latest struggle against cancer. “I am so lucky to have been allocated Frankel to train. He has been an inspiration and challenge, which I really needed so badly,” Cecil said after the horse’s final pre-Ascot gallop. “Through my illness, I feel that the help from my wife Jane and the determination to be there for Frankel has helped me so much to get through the season.” On the human level alone, the final chapter in that sacred union between man and horse explains the stampede for tickets for Qipco British Champions Day, in which Frankel will face five rivals (one is his half-brother and pacemaker, Bullet Train), in the £1.3 million Qipco Champions Stakes over a mile and a quarter today. Flat racing’s heyday was evoked by Ascot posting a “sold-out” notice two weeks ago.

A crowd of 32,000, up 20 per cent on last year, will hope to witness Cecil’s crowning glory before he returns to the ancient heaths of Suffolk to resume a more private battle. Related Articles Frankel team emotional about race 19 Oct 2012 But while Cecil is the two-legged hero of this tale, Frankel’s four limbs have carried him to hallowed ground. A ninth consecutive triumph at Group One level will affirm him as the greatest thoroughbred of all time and send off him to stud with an unprecedented £100 million stallion valuation. Only more heavy rain and a deterioration in the Ascot going report to ‘heavy’ stands between this aristocratic four-year-old and the £737,000 first prize. Frankel is the world’s highest-rated horse at 140 and defers only to the 1986 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner, Dancing Brave (141), in the international rankings, which were introduced in 1977. Both horses, remarkably, have raced in the colours of the Saudi prince Khalid Abdulla.

To match Dancing Brave’s figure, Frankel will need to beat Cirrus des Aigles by just over six lengths in today’s feature race. On official calculations he is already the equal of Shergar and Alleged, a dual Arc winner. The respected Timeform organisation rate Frankel at 147, clear not only of Dancing Brave but Sea Bird, Brigadier Gerard and Tudor Minstrel. But today’s final challenge is not about mathematical kudos. The imagination fixes itself instead on the devastating exuberance of Frankel’s 13 wins, by an aggregate of 74½ lengths: an almost ludicrous margin for a horse campaigned mostly over a mile. Dr Jeremy Naylor, a racehorse trainer and veterinary qualified exercise physiologist, says: “One of the fundamental reasons why human times have improved more than horse times is that the thoroughbred breed has been developed over the last three centuries from a fairly narrow base. There is less room for genetic improvement. “What’s different about this horse is that he’s demolished his other high-class rivals. I think he’s genuinely superlative.

It comes down to the three key areas: 1) The horse has to be physiologically well above average – the muscles and ratios of fibre types, the cardiovascular system, the lungs. It has to have a well-developed engine; 2) How they move. Locomotion. The arrangement of limbs and its back will determine how it moves; 3) A huge factor is the psychology of the horse. “We’ve been selecting horses for the last three centuries for their athletic ability but also their attitude to running. Most thoroughbred horses want to run but there aren’t many who will push themselves consistently the way this horse has. He will not only tolerate high-intensity exercise but he revels in it. To do that time after time is where he’s really understanding.” As an illustration of how hard it is to catch lightning in a jar in racing’s covering sheds, another of Frankel’s half-brothers made his debut on Wednesday in a £5,000 race at Nottingham. He was called Morpheus and he finished seventh. In Cecil’s Newmarket yard, with its exquisite rose gardens and commanding view of the town, Morpheus’s older sibling is the undisputed king of the thoroughbred realm.

Every biographical detail marks him out as No 1. Born at Banstead Manor Stud in Newmarket on Feb 11, 2008, Frankel was named after the popular American trainer Bobby Frankel, who died from cancer in 2009. His namesake has the largest feet and the biggest appetite of all Cecil’s horses. He covers a huge 22 feet with each stride and is thought to possess an unusually big heart. Most top racehorses gallop on size-five feet or thereabouts. Frankel’s are size 7½ in front and seven behind. The 23lb of Canadian oats he consumes each day are the equivalent of 600 Weetabix. To watch him in the sunlight picking grass is to observe the perfect racing specimen. He is built for beautiful propulsion. As a two year-old, or rookie, his four wins were increasingly spectacular and alerted the racing world to the emergence of a possible wonder horse. In his first race at three, he shredded conventional wisdom about the first colts’ classic, the 2,000 Guineas, exploding from the stalls and winning the one-mile race by six lengths as if it were a six-furlong sprint.

So free and exuberant was Frankel that spring day that some experts wondered whether he would be burnt out by his own enthusiasm. With the mile and a half of the Derby considered beyond his stamina, Frankel stuck to a mile for the rest of his three-year-old career, annihilating the best of the crop before extending his reign into a third year on the track. At Royal Ascot in June, he put an astounding 11 lengths between himself and the high-class Excelebration in the Queen Anne Stakes. In his most recent rampage, Frankel stepped up to a mile and quarter for the first time and was not inconvenienced. More settled with every race, his speed stretched to an easy seven-length win in the Juddmonte International Stakes at York. Though a worldwide phenomenon in his sport, Frankel’s is a curiously English narrative. His 13 wins have all come at York, Goodwood, Ascot, Newbury, Newmarket and Doncaster. There is no stain on his reputation from not having raced abroad. “It’s like looking at a piece in a museum. I just watch him and I think he’s the best there’s been,” says André Fabre, France’s foremost trainer.

“He has a combination of power and charm and has a great personality. For me Mill Reef was the ultimate thoroughbred so far but Frankel is better.” These eulogies are not superficial. While jump racing is adept at rolling out winter heroes – Desert Orchid and Kauto Star are two – Flat racers seldom attract armies of disciples. They disappear to stud too quickly for deep allegiances to form. The physical sacrifices required to win a big race at the Cheltenham Festival lend a melodrama to National Hunt racing that the Flat cannot hope to match. But the Cecil-Frankel combination is an unsurpassable blend of human defiance and equine brilliance. Today’s big race is a national event. If there is a comparison with Frankel’s domination it might be Eclipse, the best horse of the 18th century. He won all his 18 races and scared off most opposition. More than 90 per cent of all modern thoroughbreds are descended from him in the male line. Curiously, Frankel appears doomed not to produce a son or daughter who is superior to him.

The Racing Post’s bloodstock expert, Tony Morris, writes: “No horse rated 138 has ever sired a horse rated 138 or above. Frankel may well get plenty of good runners, and I hope he does, but I can guarantee he will never sire his equal; he is the ceiling, and regression to the mean dictates that all his stock will be inferior to him.” Next month the Racing Post will publish a book on his great career: Frankel – The Wonder Horse. For now, though, the question is whether any horse will ever be better than Frankel, who is highly unlikely to run as a five year-old, despite his owner leaving that door fractionally ajar. In an age when racing habitually frets about its popularity, this beautiful conker-coloured creature returns the sport to a golden age when the British public thronged to see great equine champions on the racetracks of England. If he is the ultimate racehorse – the end of the line for evolution – breeders, owners and trainers will face a problem as the Ascot crowd disperses and a new life of amorous engagements opens up for Frankel. What should they all do next?

Start the search again, of course, but there may never be a more moving story on the Turf. The most famous racehorses in history | betHQ Home / Blog / The most famous racehorses in history The most famous racehorses in history By Captain Thomsen on 21 Jul 2015 It has been over three hundred years since thoroughbred horses were introduced to the West from the Middle East, revolutionising the sport of horseracing. Yet of the tens of thousands of horses that have been bred and raced across the world in this time, only a handful are counted among the most famous racehorses in history. Eclipse via CTG Publishing 1764-1789 Eclipse was arguably the greatest racehorse of the 18th century, racing in an era when the sport held little resemblance to modern horseracing. Eclipse won every race of his 18-race career, running distances of between 2 and 4 miles. His dominance was so marked that it led to the coining of the phrase "the rest were nowhere" in relation to decisive victories.

His exploits are remembered to this day and the Group 1 Eclipse Stakes, France's Prix Eclipse and the US Eclipse Horse Racing Awards, are named in his honour. West Australian via Rehs Galleries 1850-1870 West Australian's career didn't have an auspicious start - he lost the first race of his career. However, this unremarkable juvenile turned into a champion, reserving his finest performances for his season as a three-year-old. In 1853, West Australian became the first racehorse in history to claim the UK Triple Crown, winning the 2,000 Guineas, Epsom Derby and St. Leger Stakes. As a four-year-old, he also claimed the Ascot Gold Cup. Flying Fox via Farsettiarte 1896-1911 Flying Fox was one of the most celebrated racehorses of the Victorian era. He was notorious for his poor temperament and, as a result, was raced for just two years. During this time he dominated his opponents. As a three-year-old, he went unbeaten, claiming the Triple Crown along with the Eclipse Stakes and Princess of Wales's Stakes.

Flying Fox went on to become an important sire, with descendants including the US Triple Crown champion, Coaltown. Man O' War via Venture Galleries 1917-1947 Man O' War battered his way into the history books with some of the most powerful performances in the history of American racing. He won nine of his ten races as a juvenile, and went on to draw national attention by destroying the field in some of the country's most popular races. His feats included winning the Belmont Stakes by 20 lengths and the Kenilworth Park Gold Cup by an astonishing 100 lengths. Towards the end of his career, it became increasingly difficult to find trainers willing to pit their horses against him, and he was retired in 1920 after receiving the Horse of the Year Award. Today many racing experts consider Man O'War to be the finest racehorse of all time. Phar Lap via The ABC 1926-1932 Phar Lap was the first racehorse to put Australasian horse racing on the map.

Foaled in New Zealand, he spent the majority of his career racing in Australia, where he won a selection of the country's most prestigious races, including the Melbourne Cup, Victoria Derby and Cox Plate. He was famous for his imposing physique, standing 17 hands tall and powered by a heart that weighed almost twice that of the average racehorse. His career had a tragic end - Phar Lap died of a suspected arsenic poisoning shortly after beating a selection of America's most highly rated racehorses in the Agua Caliente Handicap in Mexico. Seabiscuit via Wikipedia 1933-1947 Seabiscuit's rag to riches story is the stuff of legend. A descendent of the famous Man O' War, he appeared to have inherited none of his grandsire's fire or passion when he began his racing career. In fact he lost his first 17 races, finishing most of these at the back of the field. He was eventually sold off to trainer, Tom Smith, who recognized the horse's potential and used his innovative training techniques to turn him into the most dominant handicap racehorse in the United States.

The defining moment of Seabiscuit's career was his match race against Triple Crown winner, War Admiral. Watched by 40,000 race goers, Seabiscuit defeated the ¼ favourite by four lengths and was rewarded with the US Horse of the Year Award for his heroism in the race. Arkle via Style Reins 1957-1970 No racehorse has captured the imagination of the Irish public in quite the way Arkle did. Known for his versatility, he won races over a variety of distances and ground conditions, taking the Cheltenham Gold Cup three years in succession, the Hennessy Gold Cup twice, the King George V Chase and the Punchestown Gold Cup. His incredible stamina was highlighted at the Irish Grand National, where he won Ireland's most gruelling handicap chase despite carrying two and half stone more than any other horse in the field. At his peak, Arkle carried a Timeform rating of 212, the highest Timeform rating that has ever been awarded to a steeplechaser.

Sea-Bird via Albatroz Bloodstock 1962-1972 In recent years a couple of French Group 1 races have become important proving grounds for top rated British thoroughbred talent. However, prior to the 1960s races across the pond rarely captured the attention of the British racing public. This changed in 1965 when Sea-Bird won two French Group one races in a row and then crossed the Channel to win the Epsom Derby. Sea-Bird went on to win another two Group 1 races later that season, including a famous win in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomph, where he put away a field including the winners of the Irish Derby, Preakness Stakes and French Derby by six lengths. Red Rum © ColorSport 1965-1995 If Seabiscuit's heroism stole the hearts of Americans during the depression era, Red Rum did the same during the darkest days of the 1970s recession in the UK. Born with an incurable and debilitating bone disease, and bred to compete over just a mile, Red Rum achieved the unlikely feat of winning the Grand National three times in five years.

Not only that, but he finished as runner-up in the 4 mile, 4 furlong handicap on the two occasions he failed to win the race. The most famous of Red Rum's victories was in the 1977 Grand National, where he became the only horse in history to win back the Grand National title. Red Rum completed his national hunt career without sustaining a single fall, and lived until the ripe old age of 30. Nijinsky via StanJames 1967-1992 Nine horses won the English Triple Crown between 1953 and 1900, and another five managed the feat over the next four decades. However, the supply of champion racehorses then dried up. It was only in 1969 that a horse again demonstrated the sort of talent and versatility required to win the Triple Crown. In his two-year-old season, Nijinsky went unbeaten, winning four consecutive races at the Curragh before moving onto England, where he claimed the Dewhurst Stakes. The following season, he put in a series of commanding performances, winning the 2,000 Guineas and both the Epsom Derby and Irish Derby.

He also claimed the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the St. Leger Stakes, which he won by a length to become the first and last Triple Crown winner since 1935. Secretariat via Sos Curioso 1970-1989 That Secretariat was destined for great things was apparent in his season as a juvenile, during which he thoroughly dominated his rival two-year-olds. He became the first juvenile in history to win the Horse of the Year Award. However, it was his performances in the US Triple Crown races that would etch his place in the history books. Starting from last place, Secretariat became the first horse to win the Kentucky Derby in under 2 minutes. At the Preakness Stakes, he produced another powerful performance, not only winning the race but setting an unbeaten track record. He then topped both those performances by winning the Belmont Stakes, and with it the Triple Crown. Racing against a field of just four racehorses, Secretariat beat the field by a stunning 31 lengths. In doing so, he set the fastest time in history for a 1 mile 4 furlong race on a dirt track.

Makybe Diva © AP Photo/Mark Baker 1999-present Billed as the "race that stops a nation", the Melbourne Cup is Australia's toughest and most prestigious horse race. It's this race that set the scene for the sensational achievements of one of the greatest mares in the history of horseracing. Unlike other champion mares who achieved their biggest victories against all-female fields, Makybe Diva outclassed some of the world's leading colts. She succeeded in winning a record-breaking three Melbourne Cup titles. She also claimed a host of other major race titles, including the Cox Plate and Sydney Cup. Makybe Diva finished her career as the highest earning racehorse in Australian history. Sea The Stars © SJ Parrott 2006-present Few would have suspected that Sea The Stars would set the racing world alight when he finished the first race of his career in fourth place back in 2008. However, that was the last time that Sea The Stars would lose a race. He won his next two races as a juvenile before producing arguably the finest season by a three-year-old middle-distance racehorse in British racing history.

After winning the 2009 2,000 Guineas, he claimed the Epsom Derby, following that up with wins in the Group 1 Eclipse Stakes, International Stakes and Irish Champion Stakes. In the last race of his career, Sea The Stars beat a world-class field to claim the Prix de l'Arc de Triomph, becoming the first horse in history to claim the Guineas, Derby and Prix de l'Arc de Triomph treble. Zenyatta © AP Photo/Morry Gash 2006-present It is unlikely that another mare will ever match the achievements of American champion, Zenyatta. In a career that spanned four seasons and 20 races, she suffered just one defeat. Her greatest achievement came at the 2009 Breeders' Cup meeting, where she defeated a Breeders' Cup Classic field that included that year's Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winners, as well as two European Group 1 winners. In doing so she became the first mare to win the Breeders' Cup Classic and the first horse to win two different races at the Breeders' Cup.

Ironically, the only defeat of her career was suffered in the same race the following year, when she failed to retain the Breeders' Cup Classic title by a margin of just inches. Frankel © AP Photo 2008-present Frankel is considered by pundits to be the greatest racehorse in the history of British thoroughbred racing. During a career that spanned fourteen races, Frankel was never beaten. His accomplishments included eleven Group 1 wins, including the 2,000 Guineas. The only thing that restricted Frankel’s achievements was his specialisation as a miler, which prevented him from attempting a Triple Crown by competing in either the Epsom Derby or the St. Leger Stakes. Nevertheless he proved to be handy over longer distances later in his career, taking the 1 mile 2 furlong Champion Stakes and International Stakes as a 4-year-old. American Pharoah © AP Photo/Mark Humphrey 2012-present 37 years had passed since a racehorse had last won the American Triple Crown when a field of 18 lined up for the 2015 Kentucky Derby.

That race turned out be a hard-fought affair, with the temperamental favourite, American Pharoah, winning by just a length. It was not until he won the 2015 Preakness Stakes by five lengths on a wet track that it became apparent that American Pharoah might make history. At the Belmont Stakes American Pharoah was the only horse in the field to have competed in all three Triple Crown races, yet beat the field comprehensively, taking the race by five and a half lengths. American Pharoah would suffer an unexpected defeat in the Travers Stakes before consolidating his place as one of the all-time greats. At the 2015 Breeders Cup American Pharoah became the first ‘Grand Slam’ champion in racing history as he beat a world class field to add the Breeders’ Cup Classic title to his Triple Crown.

If you've enjoyed this post you might also be interested in our post on the: Foundation Breeders: East and West Riding East and West Riding 17th century map of East and West Yorkshire By David Wilkinson Author of Early Horse Racing in Yorkshire and the Origins of the Thoroughbred (Old Bald Peg Publications, Old Byland, York; 2003). ©David Wilkinson, 2004. All rights reserved. In addition to the development of early running horses from hobbies, galloways and early imported oriental bloodstock at Helmsley, Sedbury and the Yorkshire-Durham border, the foundations of the thoroughbred breed were established further south in Yorkshire, around the City of York and Tadcaster. Goldsborough Hall, West Riding, Yorkshire, where the Byerley Turk was located in his later years, c. 1920. Photo courtesy Pat Wood, Goldsborough. Bolton Hall, near Richmond (northern Yorkshire), early 19th century. An important Byerley Turk daughter was owned by the Duke of Bolton. The Byerley Turk (foaled c. 1680) was the first of the important three progenitor stallions.

He arrived in England during 1687. The English army officer Captain Robert Byerley (d. 1714), who later rode him in the Battle of the Boyne in Northern Ireland, is conventionally considered to have captured him at the siege of Vienna. Byerley was one of a group of English adventurers who had joined the Hungarians in their struggle against the Turks. Byerley was in the 6th Dragoon Guards and later the Queen Dowager's Regiment. He married Mary Wharton, a grand-niece of Philip, 4th Lord Wharton (another racing family) in 1693. The Byerley family initially lived at Middridge, just across the Tees river in County Durham and later moved to Goldsborough Hall, near Harrogate and Knaresborough in Yorkshire's West Riding. Middridge is close to Streatlam, the home of the Bowes family, where the important Byerley Turk mare, head of Lowe's Family Number 3 , was located. John Bowes (1814-1885), who bred four Derby winners at his Streatlam and Gibside (County Durham) studs was a descendant of this family.

The Byerley Turk also sired a mare bred by Sir William Ramsden, of Old Langley Hall near Huddersfield (5 miles from Halifax) and Byram Hall (4 miles from Pontefract). This Byerley Turk Mare's daughters, were all bred by Charles Paulet (1661-1722), the second Duke of Bolton, whose father, the sixth marquis of Winchester and first Duke of Bolton married the illegitimate daughter of Emmanuel, the last Lord Scrope of Bolton. The first Duke erected Bolton Hall on the ancestral Scrope lands near Richmond, North Yorkshire in 1678. The Bolton-bred daughters of this Byerley Turk mare were the foundation of the statistically most successful female line, Bruce Lowe's Family Number One . Byerley Turk was at stud as late as 1696 and was (through Jigg, Tartar and Partner ) the great-great-grandsire of Herod, foaled in 1758, bred from the stock of Sir William St. Quinten of Scampston, near Malton, by the Duke of Cumberland at Windsor. Herod ensured the survival of the Byerley Turk line.

Robert Byerley, who served as an M.P. for Knaresborough, died in 1714 and is buried at Goldsborough. The estate was sold to the Lascelles family in 1766, following the death of Elizabeth Byerley. The Lister Turk was another stallion in the General Stud Book who was taken during the siege of Vienna in the late 1680s. His capture was effected by the young Duke of Berwick (illegitimate son of James II and Arabella Churchill), who joined Charles of Lorraine in freeing Buda from the Turks, and later fought for his father's losing side at the Battle of the Boyne (1690). The Lister Turk ended up in the possession of Matthew Lister of Burwell Park, near Louth, in Lincolnshire. As a stallion, he had an influence on early running horses in Yorkshire, through his daughters, and through his son, Lister's Snake: Regulus, Marske, Gimcrack, and other famous north country runners carried the Lister Turk's blood. Aldby Park, near York, was the home of the Darley Arabian. Early 20th Century view.

North Milford Hall, near Tadcaster, site of the famous Leedes stud. Photo ©David Wilkinson. The Darley Arabian (1700-1730) was ultimately the most successful of the early imported oriental stallions, and modern breeding preferences are still increasing his influence in the Thoroughbred. In 1704 Thomas Darley, a merchant and British Consul in Aleppo, sent him to his father, Richard, at the family seat at Aldby Park, near Buttercrambe, ten miles east of York. The Syrian port of Aleppo was one of the main ports for shipping horses from "the orient," and other stallions, such as Lord Oxford's Dun Arabian and The Bloody Shouldered Arabian embarked for England from there. The Darley Arabian was regarded as particularly handsome, with a white blaze and three white feet. A near life-size portrait of him survives at Aldby Park, still owned by the original family. There is another portrait of him by early 18th century sporting artist John Wooton, with the jockey wearing the green and gold colours of the Darleys. The Darley family supported York races in the early 18th century.

Richard Darley died in 1706, and Aldby passed to his son, Henry. After Henry's death in 1720, the property passed, through marriage to the Brewster family via Jane Darley's marriage. The Darley Arabian remained at Aldby throughout his long life, but covered relatively few mares. However his unions with Betty Leedes produced two of the most important horses in the history of the Thoroughbred; Flying Childers (1715), the most successful racehorse of his day, and Bartlett's Childers (1716), to whom we owe the continuance of the Darley Arabian sire line. Edward Leedes (c.1638 - 1703), of North Milford Hall, near Tadcaster, bred Betty Leedes (foaled 1705), the dam of Flying Childers and Bartlett's Childers. Betty Leedes passed into the North Yorkshire stud of Leonard Childers who bred from her her famous sons. Leonard Childers married Ursula Wyvill, another example of the extensive links through marriage of the early northern developers of the thoroughbred.

Bartlett's Childers, unsuccessful as a racehorse because of weak blood vessels, stood at the stud of John Bartlett (1707-1769) of Nutwith Coate, near Masham, North Yorkshire, which borders Yorkshire's West Riding. John Bartlett had ties to the Yorkshire Conyers, Wyvill , and Hutton families through blood and marriage. The Leedes Arabian was imported in the latter quarter of the 18th century and stood at the Leedes famous North Milford stud, where he got Leedes, later owned by Queen Anne's consort, Prince George of Denmark. Leedes became a stallion at the Hampton Court royal stud, his descendants through his daughters included the famous American foundation mare, Selima. The Leedes Arabian also sired some daughters with a lasting influence on the breed. Leedes was a staunchly royalist family who had suffered in the Civil War when North Milford Hall was bombarded by passing Parliamentary troops.

Mary, a daughter of Robert Leedes, married Edward Rookes, who took the Leedes name, in 1740; Edward Rookes Leedes was a prominent Yorkshire racing man and horse breeder, who stood the famous racehorse (Bolton or Old) Starling (1727) at North Milford after his racing career was over. He also bred Tartar (1743), the sire of Herod. Edward Rookes Leedes, who was an investor in a variety of enterprises, later ruined himself through gambling debts. The Godolphin Arabian (1724-1753), the third so-called foundation sire, arrived in England later than the Darley Arabian and the Byerley Turk, in about 1730. He initially stood at Edward Coke's Derbyshire stud and later came into the ownership of the Second Earl of Godolphin and took up residence at the Earl's Babraham Stud in Cambridgeshire.

He is regarded as adding further eastern quality to the breed at a time when it was beginning to languish, but following him there were relatively few significant imports of eastern stallions ï¿½ the work of the oriental horse had been completed. Matchem (1748), the grandson of the Godolphin Arabian through which the sire line continued, was located at William Fenwick's Bywell Hall stud in Northumberland. 1832 view. The Godolphin Arabian, though eventually at Babraham in Cambridge, had Yorkshire connections through the Coke family (and marriage to Cary Wyvill), and the Godolphins, who were intermarried with the D'Arcys. As the sire of John Martindale's Regulus (1739), a favourite Yorkshire stallion that led the England's sires lists eight times, he was the grandsire of Spiletta, the dam of Eclipse, through whose line he descends. The Godolphin Arabian was also, through Cade, the grandsire of Matchem, and the head of its persistent sire line. Cade ended his days at Easby Abbey, about a mile from Richmond, Yorkshire, in 1756.

In the East Riding several families contributed to the horse rearing and race activity. Amongst these the Bethells of Rise Park, near Hull, the Stricklands of Boynton, and the Piersons of Lowthorpe were among the most prominent. Both the Bethells and the Stricklands acquired their estates under dubious circumstances from dispossessed Royalists during the Civil War. Hugh Bethell was a supporter of early racing at Bramham Moor and York, and owned some several famous runners around the turn of the 18th century, among them Castaway, Ruffler, and Woodcock. The family was active in racing throughout the 18th century, racing at Boroughbridge, Hull, and other Yorkshire venues. Sir Matthew Pierson and Sir William Strickland were neighbors and racing confederates. Sir William owned the Strickland Turk, apparently an imported horse, also called the Carlisle Barb. He also bred Grey Hautboy, a grandson of the D'Arcy White Turk, and a fairly influential sire that appears to have stood at stud at Boynton.

Grey Hautboy was the sire of Sir Matthew's famous race horse, Bay Bolton (1705), who later became a very important stallion in the Duke of Bolton's stud. Another Grey Hautboy son bred by Sir Matthew was the grey Lamprie, a famous runner at Newmarket. Sir Matthew also bred (Old) Merlin, who was raced by Sir William Strickland, and later retired to stud at Boynton, where he sired, among others, Hugh Bethell's Castaway. There was a notorious "north-south" match at Newmarket in the beginning of the century between Merlin and an unknown horse of Tregonwell Frampton's. After much chicanery Merlin won, resulting in the ruin of "several gentlemen," and leading to a change in the laws on gambling. It became technically impossible to recover debts of more than ï¿½10.

Evidence of popular interest in the event is shown in the ballad, The Three Knight's Song, probably contemporary with the Strickland-Frampton match of c.1708 which is quoted by Fairfax-Blakeborough: And when they came to the three mile post They seemed to run very true, Jerry said, "If thou can no faster go, I must and will leave thou" And now, Little Merlin has won the day, And all for his master's gain Guarded him to stable Thoroughbred Foundation Sires - L L Foundation Sires of the Thoroughbred: L Alphabetized List of Important 17th and 18th Century Stallions Lamprey SIRE: Grey Hautboy - (Old) Hautboy - D'ARCY WHITE TURK . DAM: Black mare by Makeless - Brimmer mare - mare by Diamond - mare (sister to Old Merlin) by Bustler (Family 37). Grey 1715. Bred by Sir Matthew Pierson of Yorkshire, sold to Thomas Panton of Newmarket, ultimately ending up in the stables of Sir William Morgan in 1723, and most of his races were run under Morgan's colors.

A full brother to Bay Bolton , he was a successful racehorse, running from 1722 to 1728, with two years off in 1726-27, as far as is known. He won several plates and matches, usually at 4 mile distances and usually at Newmarket, beating such horses as Hazard, Rake and the "famous mare" Sophonisba. His come-back year of 1728 was not successful, and he was retired to stud, but was "killed by accident, just as he was becoming a favourite stallion." Still, he sired Merry Cupid, a racehorse, and Young Lamprie, who was sent to Ireland and was a sire there. SIRE: GODOLPHIN ARABIAN . Godolphin Arabian Sire Line DAM: Roxana by Bald Galloway - sister to Chaunter by Acaster Turk - Cream Cheeks by Leedes Arabian - Family 6 or Wyvill Roan Mare. Bay 1732. Bred by Francis (2nd) Earl of Godolphin.

Lath ran in the late 1730s: in 1737 he won the Newmarket Great Stakes of 1,000 Guineas for 4 year olds, and beat Little Partner in a 4 mile match for 200 guineas. In 1738 he beat Squirt over four miles for 200 guineas, and also won 50 guineas at Marlborough. He was sold to John Turner in 1739 and later purchased by the Duke of Devonshire and sent to his stud in Derbyshire. He sired a racehorse, Hector (1745); sisters Crazy (1746, dam of Lady Betty, Matchless, Quill, and other racehorses, grandam, through Virago, of 1778 St. Leger winning filly Hollandaise), an unnamed filly (1747, grandam of Hammer and Anvil) and Gipsy (1745). SIRE: Changeling - Cade - GODOLPHIN ARABIAN .

Godolphin Arabian Sire Line DAM: Duchess by (Portmore's) Whitenose - Miss Slamerkin by Young True Blue - mare by Oxford Dun Arabian - mare by Blacklegs ( Family 7 ). Bay 1759. Bred and raced by William Fenwick of Northumberland, the owner of his sire, Changeling and Changeling's brother, the important sire Matchem . Ran in the years where some top horses were on the turf, among them Antinous, Herod , Gimcrack , (Latham's) Snap , Bay Malton and Cardinal Puff . Barely won a Ladies' Plate at York in 1764, and at Richmond that year he won the Gold Cup, the favored Silvio having thrown his rider. He got some fair racehorses, including Orpheus (1774), Favourite (1776), Bourbon (1774, St. Leger winner), Miracle (1776) and the fillies Serpent (1776) and Ballad Singer (1774). SIRE: LEEDES ARABIAN .

DAM: Mare by Spanker ( Family 6 ) or Wyvill Roan mare of unknown parentage. Bay c. 1700. Bred by Edward Leedes of Yorkshire, later sold to Mr. Holloway of Surrey. Purchased in 1705 by Queen Anne for 1,000 guineas from Mr. Holloway, and given to her consort, Prince George of Denmark. Stood at Hampton Court. He sired the Newmarket racehorse and later sire, Ashridge Ball; the racehorse Quiet and his sister, who was the dam of the racehorse Gander (1720) the outstanding racemare, Molly (1713), and (Thurland's) Creeping Molly (1722).

Bred to Queen Anne's Moonah Barb Mare, he was the male founder of Family 21 , getting from her the dam of the racehorse Tarquin (1720), Lady Cow (1725, dam of Marksman), both by the Hampton Court Chestnut Arabian, and Rosinante (1729, by Commodore Matthews' Persian) and a filly by the (Godolphin) Whitefoot (1731), who carried the line forward through five daughters, one of whom produced the American matron, Selima (1745). He also sired the racehorse and sire Hazard (1726) Leedes' Arabian This horse was also referred to as a barb, and was given to Edward Leedes' father by King William III. He stood at the Leedes North Milford stud in Yorkshire.

This horse is prominent in Family 6 , having sired Charming Jenny (dam of Bay Pigot, sire, Fox Cub , a racehorse and sire, and Griselda, a racemare), the colt Leedes (racehorse and sire, see above), Highland Laddie (c.1714, racehorse and sire), and Betty Percival (1715, ancestress of Diomed , Plenipotentiary, Young Eclipse and many more). He also sired the mare Cream Cheeks, the second dam of Flying Childers and his brother, Bartlett's Childers , and ancestress of many other important horses, such as Marske, Cade (1734, sire of Matchem ), Muley (1810), Phantom (1808), Priam (1827). He also sired Young Bald Peg of Family 6 , second dam of Basto (c. 1702) and Fox (c.1714). He also got the good racehorse and sire, Dyer's Dimple (1708), and Bright's Roan, the foundation mare of Family 61.

Leedes' (Brown) Arabian (Hampton Court) Litton Arabian This horse, whose early history is at present not traced, seems to have been used exclusively by second Earl of Halifax, who died in 1739. The Litton Arabian sired the racehorse Justice (1725), and a series of racehorses from a Farmer mare -- Red Robin (1720), Miss Halifax (1724), Bumper (1718) and Bushy Molly (1717), the latter a key mare in Family 27 . DAM: Mare by Flying Childers - mare by Walpole Barb - Miss Belvoir by Grey Grantham - mare by Pagett Turk - Betty Perceival by Leedes Arabian - Family 6 or Wyvill Roan mare. Chestnut 1743. SIRE: (Old) Partner - Jigg - BYERLEY TURK . Byerley Turk Sire Line DAM: Mare by Bay Bolton - mare by Basto - mare by (Old) Spot - mare by Young Spanker - mare by (Old) Hautboy - mare by Bustler (Family 44). c. 1731.

Bred and raced by the Duke of Bolton. He ran in the mid and late 1730s; placed second to Jigg in the Newmarket October Stakes of 1736. Sired a filly from Grey Favourite (1728, Family 20 ), grandam of racehorse and sire Mambrino (1768) and 3rd dam of the racehorse Nabob, and a chestnut filly (1747) from Hartley's Countess, and apparently not much else entered in the GSB. SIRE: Blank - GODOLPHIN ARABIAN . Godolphin Arabian Sire Line DAM: Spinster (Widdrington Mare) by Partner - Bay Bloody Buttocks by Bloody Buttocks - mare by Greyhound - Brown Farewell by Makeless - mare by Brimmer - mare by Place's White Turk - mare by Dodsworth - Layton Violet Barb mare ( Family 4 ). Bay 1753. Probably bred by Thomas Panton of Newmarket, he possibly ran under his original name, Deputy. Later sold to one of the non-noble Vanes, who changed his name to Lofty.

May have stood at the Leedes stud in Yorkshire, since he was largely utilized by Leedes, who may have been attracted by his excellent pedigree, despite any failings he may have had as a racehorse. He got Honest Harry (1772), Chance (1763), Slim (later Wafer, 1762), and sisters Flora (1765, dam of St. Leger winner Ruler) and Laura (1763). Lonsdale Arabians There were two or more Londsdale Arabians, covering mares between around 1727 and around 1740. They were owned by Henry Lowther, (3rd) Viscount Lonsdale of Westmoreland, second son of John Lowther, (1st) Viscount Lonsdale (died 1700), owner of the White-Legged Lowther Barb of the previous century. Most of the foals listed in the GSB by these horses were bred by Lord Lonsdale. There is no information regarding the arabians' pedigrees or date of importation, if imported, in the GSB.

They (or he) produced some very good racehorses who ran both at Newmarket and in the north in the 1730s and '40s, including Spider, Monkey , Kouli Khan, Chance, and some good broodmares, including the dam of Chedworth's Foxhunter (1750) and the Warder Mare (Switch), who is seen in Family 9 . The Lonsdale Arabian, as listed in the GSB, and undifferentiated by any color in his name, covered mare between around 1728 and 1740.

His produce included Spider (1729, a racehorse at Newmarket in the 1730s); Sultan (grey, 1732) and brown and bay colts (1733, 1738) and a bay filly (173-) from a sister to Bonny Lass; Sparkler (1740, later Maidenhead, a race filly); Jackanapes (1740, a racehorse); Veteran (1742, racehorse at Newmarket); Phoenix (1741); the grandam (173--) of Julius Ceasar (1757). He, or one of the other Lonsdale Arabians, also probably got the bay gelding, Chance (1740, not in GSB), owned by the Duke of Perth, one of the top racehorses in the north in the 1730s and early '40s (by "Lowther Arabian"). The Lonsdale Bay Arabian was covering horses during the same period, and may have been the same horse, in most cases.

He got the racehorse and sire Kouli Khan (1730); Brown Russet/Merry Andrew (1738); the racehorse Monkey (1725), whose dam also got a filly (17--, dam of Miss Tippet and grandam of Greybeard) by The Lonsdale Arabian ; Juba (1731) and two other fillies from the same mare, Miss Jigg (1717), one of whom was dam of Lisette (1752); Fair Star (173-) from the same dam of Sultan (above); the Warder Mare (1739, also called Switch, Family 9 ), dam of a series of good racehorses; the grandam (1736, Family 1 ) of Zingara, Zanga, Mount Airy and several other winners of the 1750s and '60s from a Bajazet mare and 3rd dam of Goldfinder (1764, racehorse and sire) and Marquis (racehorse); the dam of Chedworth's Foxhunter (1750, a racehorse).

The Lonsdale Grey Arabian also got a mare listed in the GSB, who was the dam of a Cade filly (1754, dam of King Milesus), and also may have sired some of the horses attributed to The Lonsdale Arabian. There was also a Lonsdale Black Arabian. SIRE: Bay Bolton - Grey Hautboy - (Old) Hautboy - WHITE D'ARCY TURK . DAM: Golden Locks by (Bristol) Grasshopper - mare by (Bristol) Hog - mare by (Duc de Chartres'/King Charles') Hawker (Family 30). Brown 1728. Bred by the Duke of Bolton. Ran for six years, 1733-1739 (1737 excepted), always in four mile matches, sweeps and stakes. At age 5, his first season, beat Halifax's colt Bumper in a 300 guineas match at Newmarket and ran third in a sweep there.

In 1734, won all three of his races, a King's Purse at Salisbury, a King's Plate at Winchester, and a match against Odsey at Newmarket. Won his only race in 1736, at Guildford, beating Sly and Mad Tom. Sold to a Mr. Bee in 1738, he ran once at Hereford, beating Cato, Grisewood's Partner, and others. In his final season, he won at Oswesty, Chester, Manchester, and Leicester, and was beaten once, his last race, at Oxford by the younger Sedbury. Sired Spot (1740), Hydon (1742, died 1745), Routh's Looby (1744, won several King's Plates in the north for his breeder, Cuthbert Routh, died enroute to Ireland), and a mare (1744) seen in Family 2 . There was another Looby running around the same period, not nearly as successfully, the (Derby) Looby by the Pigot Turk, who got the fillies Slut (1739) and Romp (1739).

The Duke of Devonshire's Looby was an earlier horse, running in 1698. SIRE: WHITE D'ARCY TURK DAM: A Neopolitan Mare. Bred by James D'Arcy (the younger) at Sedbury, Yorkshire. Probably covering mares around the turn of the century. This horse is only seen in the tail-female pedigree of horses in Family 19 , as follows: Mare by Davill's Old Woodcock - mare by Luggs - mare by (Lister) Snake - mare by (Wood's) Counsellor, after which it branches. Therefore, he is an ancestor to Thunderbolt (1723); Coughing Polly (1736); Miss Mayes (1737), Primrose (1777), Atalanta (by Snip, 1756), Farmer (1746), and further distant in descent, Cambuscan, Isonomy, Monarque and so forth. SIRE: Dugannon - Eclipse - Marske - Squirt - Bartlett's Childers - DARLEY ARABIAN .

Darley Arabian Sire Line: Eclipse Branch DAM: Mare by Vertumnus or Eclipse - mare by Compton Barb (Sedley Arabian) - mare by Careless - mare by Cullen Arabian - (Grisewood's) Lady Thigh by (Old) Partner - mare by Greyhound - mare by Curwen Bay Barb - mare by D'Arcy Chestnut Arabian - mare by Whiteshirt - mare by (Old) Montagu - mare by Hautboy - mare by Brimmer - Royal Mare ( Family 12 ). Bay 1789. Bred by a Mr. Rutter and sold to Thomas Rider. Ran for three years, 1792-1794 against decent company, usually at Newmarket. In 1792, he won four of his five races, at Ascot, Stockbridge, Winchester and Lewes.

At age 4, sold to turfite Chrisotopher Wilson he won three of his four races, all at Newmarket, the wins including a two mile sweep for 500 guineas, a sweep for 200 guineas (beating Pipator), and a match against Speculator; his loss was in a sweep which Cinnabar won. In 1794 he won the Oatlands Handicap at Newmarket Craven and the Main of the Oatlands at Newmarket First Spring. He was not well-patronized as a sire: he got Chance (1797, sent to U.S.) and Marchioness (1797, dam of Miss Craigie). Contents ©Copyright 2000 - 2005 Patricia Erigero Early Foundation Sires Quick Links A history of the thoroughbred A history of the thoroughbred Updated 8:17 AM ET, Wed August 15, 2012 Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds.

Photos: A history of the thoroughbred A history of the thoroughbred – Every thoroughbred horse can be traced back to one of three stallions, and 95% of those go back to one -- the Godolphin Arabian, pictured. Named after his owner, Earl Francis Godolphin, the stallion lived from 1724-1753 and sired some of the greatest racehorses in history, with Seabiscuit and Man o' War just two of his direct descendants. Hide Caption 1 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The first great racehorse – Sired by the Darley Arabian --one third of the thoroughbred stallion trifecta, along with the Godolphin Arabian and the Byerly Turk -- Flying Childers is often credited as the first true "great racehorse."He was retired to stud after winning all six of his races in the early 18th century. His British owner, the Duke of Devonshire, once reportedly received an offer to buy the stallion for the price of its weight in gold.

Hide Caption 2 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The greatest racehorse of all time – Grand foal of the Godolphin Arabian, Eclipse is perhaps the greatest thoroughbred ever to race. After 18 wins from 18 starts in only 17 months, Eclipse was retired to stud in 1771 due to lack of competition, as nobody would bet on the other horses. The Eclipse Stakes at England's Sandown Park are a testament to his legacy. Hide Caption 3 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred It's all in the name – Potoooooooo (often spelled "Pot-8-Os") is responsible for a key element of horseracing -- that of abstract and often ludicrous naming. Sired by the great Eclipse, he was originally to be "Potatoes" but after a stableboy misspelled his name on a feedbin the horse's breeder -- the 4th Earl of Abingdon -- found the mistake so humorous he decided to keep it that way.

Hide Caption 4 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The Aleppo connection – In 1878 Wilfrid Scawen Blunt, pictured, and his wife Lady Anne Blunt established what would become Britain's foremost thoroughbred stud farm. Crabbet Arabian Stud was founded after the Blunts decided -- while on holiday in Syria -- to bring back some of the best Arabian horses for breeding in England. Now, 90% of all Arabian horses can be traced back to Crabbet. Hide Caption 5 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred Horses on film – Persimmon, depicted here with his owner King Edward VI, is the first horse to be captured on film. The 1895 filming of the Epsom Derby fast became a worldwide cultural phenomenon, with thousands of people flocking to exhibitions to witness racing on film for the first time. Persimmon accumulated what would be $3.5 million in on-track prize money by modern standards.

Hide Caption 6 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The greatest horse since Eclipse – American horse Man o' War won 20 of 21 races he started, raking in more than $7.5 million in today's equivalent prize money. For six races as a two-year-old, his handicap of 130 pounds was one of the heaviest ever carried. Hide Caption 7 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The next generation – Black Caviar, pictured, is the most successful sprinter in the world with a unbeaten record of 22 wins. There have been rumors the Australian mare has been promised to champion stallion Frankel, who has a record of 12 wins undefeated. If true, then their offspring could well be a racehorse with the genetic potential to be even better than Man o' War or Eclipse. Hide Caption

Question: Which was the most successful racehorse of the 18th century?
Answer: Eclipse