Brantôme (1931–1952) was a French

Thoroughbred 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 c ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

and prominent

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

. He was unbeaten at ages 2 and 3 and is ranked among the best French horses ever.

Background

Brantome was sired by

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

stallion

Blandford Blandford Forum ( ), commonly Blandford, is a market town in Dorset, England, sited by the River Stour about northwest of Poole. It was the administrative headquarters of North Dorset District until April 2019, when this was abolished and i ...

(1919–1935) out of the mare Vitamine. He was owned by the

Haras de Meautry Haras de Meautry in Touques, Calvados, Normandy, France, is a thoroughbred horse breeding farm. It was acquired in the 19th century by horse-racing enthusiast Alphonse James de Rothschild (1827–1905) who passed it down to his offspring so that ...

stable of

Édouard Alphonse de Rothschild Édouard is both a French given name and a surname, equivalent to Edward in English. Notable people with the name include: * Édouard Balladur (born 1929), French politician * Édouard Boubat (1923–1999), French photographer * Édouard Colonne (1 ...

. He was named for the city of

Brantôme, Dordogne Brantôme (; oc, Brantòsme) is a former commune in the Dordogne department in southwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune Brantôme en Périgord. It is the seat of the canton of Brantôme. , an old pilgrimage ro ...

Racing career

As a two-year-old, Brantôme won the

Prix Robert Papin The Prix Robert Papin is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is scheduled to tak ...

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and the

Prix Morny The Prix Morny is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is scheduled to ...

. His major victories at age three include the

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, the

Prix Lupin The Prix Lupin was a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It was run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs), and it was scheduled to take place each year in ...

, the

Prix Royal-Oak The Prix Royal-Oak is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 3,100 metres (about 1 mile and 7½ furlongs), and ...

, the country's most prestigious horse race, the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

plus other significant races. In 1935, at age four, Brantôme suffered his first loss. Entered in the

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 (4,014 ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, eleven days before the race Brantôme got loose from the stables and was not caught until after he had galloped into downtown

Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city located in the Oise department **US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly, a historic château located in the town of Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missou ...

. The horse lost three shoes and sustained a bad cut. Despite this, his owner still sent him to compete in the

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 (4,014 ...

where he finished out of the money.

Stud record

After winning twelve of the fourteen races he competed in, Brantôme was retired to stand at

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay bar ...

. During the

German occupation of France in World War II The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...

the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

s seized some of the best racehorses in France. They shipped more than six hundred thoroughbreds out of the country. Some went to

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, but most were shipped to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

for racing or for breeding at the German National Stud. Among them was Brantôme, who was recovered in 1945 at the end of the war. Brantôme was the sire of

Vieux Manoir Vieux Manoir (1947–1981) was a French Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and Champion sire. Background Bred by Edouard Alphonse de Rothschild, Baron Edouard A. de Rothschild and raced by his son Guy de Rothschild, Guy following his death in 1 ...

who was the grandsire of

All Along All Along (7 April 1979 – 23 February 2005) was a champion Thoroughbred racemare that was foaled in France. She was one of the top fillies of the last part of the 20th century, racing mostly in Europe. All Along was named into the Nationa ...

and

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as well as Val de Loire who was a

Leading sire in France The list below shows the leading Thoroughbred sire of racehorses in France for each year since 1887. This is determined by the amount of prize money won by the sire's progeny during the season. Due to the huge prize money of the Prix de l'Arc de Tri ...

three times and the damsire of

Shergar Shergar (3 March 1978 – ) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. After a very successful season in 1981 he was retired to the Ballymany Stud in County Kildare, Ireland. In 1983 he was stolen from the stud, and a ransom of ...

. Brantôme was also the great-grandsire of

Exbury Exbury is a village in Hampshire, England. It is in the civil parish of Exbury and Lepe. It lies just in the New Forest, near the Beaulieu River and about a mile from the Solent coast. It is best known as the location of Exbury House, built by ...

. Brantôme died on 3 July 1952 at the age of twenty-one.

References

Brantome's pedigree and racing stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brantome (horse) 1931 racehorse births 1952 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Calvados (department) Racehorses trained in France Arc winners * Thoroughbred family 27-a Chefs-de-Race