Pocahontas (horse)

Last updated
Pocahontas
Pocahontas And Stockwell.jpg
A painting of Pocahontas (left), with Stockwell as a foal.
Sire Glencoe
Grandsire Sultan
DamMarpessa
DamsireMuley
Sex Mare
Foaled1837
Country Britain
Colour Bay
Breeder King William IV
Owner1) King William IV
2) Lord Stradbroke
3) Mr. Greatorex
4) William Theobald
5) 3rd Marquis of Exeter
TrainerUnknown
Record9: 0-3-1
EarningsUnknown
Last updated on February 21, 2011

Pocahontas (1837–1870) was an English Thoroughbred racehorse and the dam of three sires who had a great influence on the breed. Although mares are not generally considered to be as influential as sires, Thoroughbred Heritage refers to Pocahontas as "one of the most influential Thoroughbreds of all time, male or female." [1]

Thoroughbred Horse breed developed for racing

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are considered "hot-blooded" horses that are known for their agility, speed, and spirit.

Sire was a respectful form of address for reigning kings in Europe. It was used in Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Historically, Sire had a wider usage. During the Middle Ages, Sire was generally used to address a superior, a person of importance or in a position of authority, or the nobility in general.

Contents

Background

Bred at the Royal Stud at Hampton Court, Pocahontas was by Glencoe, winner of the 2,000 Guineas, Goodwood Cup, Ascot Gold Cup, and The Whip, and later a renowned sire in America. Pocahontas' dam, Marpessa, [2] won the Nursery Stakes at Newmarket as a two-year-old and the Goodwood Stakes as a three-year-old. She was bred to Glencoe in 1836 and produced her first foal, the filly Pocahontas. She later produced Idas (2,000 Guineas winner), Jeremy Diddler, and Boarding School Miss. [1]

Glencoe I British bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Glencoe (1831–1857) was a British bred Thoroughbred racehorse, who won the 2,000 Guineas Stakes and the Ascot Gold Cup. He was one of the earliest Thoroughbred stallions imported into the United States and was a top broodmare sire there. Several outstanding sons of Lexington were out of Glencoe mares, including Asteroid, Kentucky and Norfolk.

The Goodwood Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 2 miles, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late July or early August.

Ascot Gold Cup

The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in June.

After the death of King William IV, the stud at Hampton Court was dispersed. Marpessa and Pocahontas (still a foal) were bought for 230 guineas by Lord Stradbroke. As a yearling, Pocahontas was sold to Mr. Greatorex for 62 guineas. Pocahontas was quite small (maturing only to 14 hands 3 inches 59 inches (150 cm) high) but was said to have had good shoulders and hindquarters, with straight legs. However, she was known for her rather difficult temperament and (like her mother) was a roarer.

William IV of the United Kingdom King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover 1830-1837

William IV was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded his elder brother George IV, becoming the last king and penultimate monarch of Britain's House of Hanover.

John Rous, 2nd Earl of Stradbroke British Earl

John Edward Cornwallis Rous, 2nd Earl of Stradbroke was a British soldier and nobleman.

Hand (unit) unit of measurement of length equal to 101.6 millimetres (4 in)

The hand is a non-SI unit of measurement of length standardized to 4 inches (101.6 mm). It is used to measure the height of horses in some English-speaking countries, including Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was originally based on the breadth of a human hand. The adoption of the international inch in 1959 allowed for a standardized imperial form and a metric conversion. It may be abbreviated to "h" or "hh". Although measurements between whole hands are usually expressed in what appears to be decimal format, the subdivision of the hand is not decimal but is in base 4, so subdivisions after the radix point are in quarters of a hand, which are inches. Thus, 62 inches is fifteen and a half hands, or 15.2 hh.

Racing career

Pocahontas raced once as a two-year-old, finishing third at the Criterion Stakes (after Gibraltar and Crucifix, who won in a dead heat). She raced again as a three-year-old; she was the favorite in the Oaks but finished fourth, partly due to her poor behavior. She finished fifth in the Goodwood Stakes, racing against some of the best males at that time. Pocahontas raced three times as a four-year-old; although she was unplaced in the Goodwood Cup and the Cesarewitch Handicap, she placed second three times during her four- and five-year-old seasons. Between the Goodwood Cup and the Cesarewitch, Pocahontas was sold to Mr. William Theobald (owner of Stockwell Stud). She was winless in her nine starts; this may have been because she was competing against high-quality male horses, or because of her roaring.

A draw or tie occurs in a competitive sport when the results are identical or inconclusive. Ties or draws are possible in some, but not all, sports and games. Such an outcome, sometimes referred to as deadlock, can occur in politics, business, and wherever there are different factions regarding an issue.

Epsom Oaks British Group 1 horse race tor 3-year-old filles over 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards (2,423 metres)

The Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in early June. It is the second-oldest of the five Classic races, after the St Leger. Officially the Investec Oaks, it is also popularly known as simply The Oaks.

The Cesarewitch Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Newmarket over a distance of 2 miles and 2 furlongs, and finishes on the Rowley Mile. It is scheduled to take place each year in October.

As a broodmare

Theobald bred Pocahontas as a five-year-old to his stallion Camel, producing Cambaules (who was said to be a roarer and only placed on the track). In 1845 she bore a colt by Muley Moloch, although he was neither named nor raced and was also said to be a roarer. She was bred to Muley Moloch again, producing the filly Dolly Varden (who won once on the track and did not have a successful breeding career. Bred a third time to Muley Moloch her resulting filly was unimpressive, although the filly bore a few impressive offspring several generations later. Pocahontas' next three years produced her greatest legacy as a broodmare with the births of Stockwell (The "Emperor of Stallions"), [3] Rataplan, and King Tom.

She was bred by Theobald for several years before being sold to the Marquis of Exeter in 1852. The Marquis' horse (Stockwell) was a successful sire at this time and he decided to purchase Pocahontas, Stockwell's 15-year-old dam, for his stud in Newmarket. Before she was moved to the Marquis' stud she produced Strood (a chestnut by Chatham) who was injured when young and never won. At Newmarket she foaled the filly Ayaconora, who won the Hopeful and the Newmarket Column Stakes and produced Chattanooga (winner of the Criterion Stakes and sire of the stallion Wellingtonia) and several great broodmares. She also produced The Knight of Kars, who was fairly successful on the track but more important as a sire of steeplechasers; he sired The Colonel (two-time winner of the Grand National Steeplechase).

Steeplechase (horse racing) Horse race form orignally from Ireland, featuring jumps over fence and ditch obstacles

A steeplechase is a distance horse race in which competitors are required to jump diverse fence and ditch obstacles. Steeplechasing is primarily conducted in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Canada, United States, Australia and France. The name is derived from early races in which orientation of the course was by reference to a church steeple, jumping fences and ditches and generally traversing the many intervening obstacles in the countryside.

Grand National English horse race held at Aintree every year

The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap steeplechase over an official distance of about 4 miles and 2½ furlongs,, with horses jumping 30 fences over two laps. It is the most valuable jump race in Europe, with a prize fund of £1 million in 2017. An event that is prominent in British culture, the race is popular amongst many people who do not normally watch or bet on horse racing at other times of the year.

Pocahontas' 1858 colt Knight of St. Patrick won four races, despite inheriting his dam's roaring. He later sired 2,000 Guineas winner Moslem. Her 1860 colt Automation won three times, including the Abington Mile, before dying as a three-year-old. In 1861 Auricula was born; the filly became the second classic winner and second St. Leger winner produced by Pocahontas.

Pocahontas' last foal, the filly Araucaria, won the 10-furlong Stamford Plate despite also being a roarer. Araucaria became an excellent broodmare herself. She foaled Camelia (by Macaroni), the winner of the 1,000 Guineas and Oaks; Chamant (by Flageolet), winner of the 2,000 Guineas; Rayon d'Or (by Flageolet), St. Leger winner and an excellent sire in America; and Wellingtonia (by Chattanooga), a leading sire in France.

Although she was bred six more years, Pocahontas never foaled. She was sold after the death of Lord Exeter in 1867, and bought for 10 guineas by the 3rd Marquis of Exeter. She spent the rest of her years at Wothorpe, part of the estate at Burghley Park, and died in 1870 at the age of 33.

The foals

Genetic legacy

Pocahontas was most influential as a broodmare, producing three great sons - Stockwell, Rataplan, and King Tom - and five influential daughters. Stockwell is the most notable of the three, as he appears in the pedigrees of Phalaris, Nearco, and Native Dancer. She produced a total of 15 foals, the last at the age of 25. It has been theorized that (along with her roaring trait which has a proven genetic basis in Thoroughbreds [5] ) Pocahontas may have carried the "X-factor", a genetic mutation believed to be responsible for causing an enlarged heart suitable for elite athletic performance. This theory has been dismissed in scientific circles [6] and the proponents of this theory have not produced any peer reviewed data to prove this theory.

Pedigree

Pedigree of Pocahontas, bay mare, 1837
Sire
Glencoe (GB)
ch. 1831
Sultan
b. 1816
Selim ch. 1802Buzzard ch. 1787
Alexander mare b. 1790
Bacchante b. 1809 Williamson's Ditto b. 1800
Mercury mare b. 1791
Trampoline
ch. 1825
Tramp b. 1810Dick Andrews b. 1797
Gohanna mare b. 1803
Web b. 1808 Waxy b. 1790
Penelope b. 1798
Dam
Marpessa (GB)
b. 1830
Muley
b. 1810
Orville b. 1799 Beningbrough b. 1791
Evelina br. 1791
Eleanor b. 1798Whiskey* b. 1789
Young Giantess b. 1790
Clare
b. 1824
Marmion b. 1806Whiskey* b. 1789
Young Noisette b. 1789
Harpalice b. 1814 Gohanna b. 1790
Amazon b. 1799 [7]

Note: b. = Bay, ch. = Chestnut, br. = Brown

* Pocahontas was inbred 4x4 to Whiskey. This means that the stallion appears twice in the fourth generation of her pedigree.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Thoroughbred Heritage. Retrieved February 21, 2011.
  2. Pocahontas' five-generation pedigree. Retrieved February 21, 2011.
  3. Thoroughbred Heritage. Retrieved February 21, 2011.
  4. Pryor, Peter, The Classic Connection, Cortney Publications, Luton, 1979
  5. Boyko, Adam R; Brooks, Samantha A; Behan-Braman, Ashley; Castelhano, Marta; Corey, Elizabeth; Oliveira, Kyle C; Swinburne, June E; Todhunter, Rory J; Zhang, Zhiwu (2014-04-03). "Genomic analysis establishes correlation between growth and laryngeal neuropathy in Thoroughbreds". BMC Genomics. 15 (1). doi:10.1186/1471-2164-15-259. PMC   4051171 . PMID   24707981.
  6. Binns, Matthew; Morris, Tony (2010-01-01). Thoroughbred Breeding: Pedigree Theories and the Science of Genetics. J. A. Allen. ISBN   9780851319353.
  7. Pedigree Query: Pocahontas Retrieved 2013-06-26