Caergwrle (foaled 1965) was a British

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. In a racing career lasting from July 1967 until June 1968, the

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

ran six times and won three races. After winning once as a two-year-old she showed improved form in the spring of 1968 to win the

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1000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 ...

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...

. Caergwrle was beaten in her only subsequent race and was retired to stud where she had limited success as a

broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

Background

Caergwrle was a chestnut filly bred at the Cliff Stud in

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by Gwen Murless, the wife of the leading British trainer

Noel Murless Sir Charles Francis Noel Murless (24 March 19109 May 1987) was an English racehorse trainer who one of the most successful of the twentieth century. Murless began his career as a trainer in 1935 at Hambleton Lodge in Yorkshire before moving to H ...

. Her sire

Crepello Crepello (1954–1974) was a British-bred Thoroughbred racehorse which won England's most prestigious race, the Epsom Derby in 1957 and was later a Leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland. Pedigree He was a chestnut horse sired by Donatello II ...

won the 1957

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey o ...

before becoming a successful sire of winners. Caergwrle's dam, Caerphilly, was a sprinter who won three races and finished third in the 1962 edition of the five

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

King George Stakes The King George Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is ...

. Apart from Caergwrle, Caerphilly also produced St Chad, a colt who won the Wills Mile in 1967. As descendants of the broodmare Malapert, Caerphilly and Caergwrle were closely related to the

2000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year at ...

winner Pall Mall. Caerwrle, who was named after a Welsh village, was trained by Noel Murless at his Warren Place stables at

Newmarket, Suffolk Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. Located (14 miles) west of Bury St Edmunds and (14 miles) northeast of Cambridge. It is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred hor ...

Racing career

Caergwrle made her first racecourse appearance in the Star Stakes over five furlongs at

Sandown Park Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse rac ...

in May. She ran promisingly to finish second to Fairy Path. In July Caergwrle started 2/5 favourite for the Findon Stakes at

Goodwood Racecourse Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in lat ...

. She was regarded as a near certainty to win and was the subject of heavy betting on

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but lost her chance when she bolted before the race and galloped several furlongs at top speed before being caught. She eventually finished well beaten behind Fridoline. In September she recorded her first win when she won a five furlong

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

. On her three-year-old debut, Caergwrle showed vastly improved form when she won the seven furlong 1000 Guineas Trial Stakes at Kempton Park by four lengths. In the 1000 Guineas over Newmarket's Rowley Mile, Caergwrle was made 4/1 favourite in a field of fourteen fillies. Ridden by the nineteen-year-old

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, she won by a length from Photo Flash, with Sovereign a neck away in third. A month later, Caerwrle was sent to

Epsom Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...

for the Ebbisham Stakes over eight and a half furlongs. She was beaten a length by Ileana, who was carrying four pounds less. Caergwrle never ran again and was retired to stud.

Retirement

Caergwrle remained in the Murless family's ownership throughout her breeding career. She produced several winners, but none at a high level. Her most successful offspring, foaled when she was twenty-one years old, was St Ninian who won seven races, including the Jubilee Handicap at Kempton Park. The descendants of Caerwrle's daughter Cricceith had some success in New Zealand, the most notable being Batavian, who won the Great Northern Foal Stakes and the

Hawke's Bay Guineas The Hawke's Bay Guineas is a major Thoroughbred horse race in New Zealand for three-year-old horses. In 2003 the stake was boosted to $100,000 and the race was moved to the first Saturday in October, meaning that it is run on the same day as the S ...

. Stud Record: 1970 Corwen (GB): Bay gelding, by St. Paddy. Did not place in 10 starts. 1971 Caer-Gai (GB): Chestnut filly, by Royal Palace (GB) - Won one race and placed once from 5 starts in England 1974-5 1973 Caerinion (GB): Chestnut filly, foaled 20 February, by Royal Palace (GB) - placed second once from 4 starts in England 1975-6. 1974 Unnamed (GB): Bay colt, by Welsh Pageant. This colt never raced. 1975 Chop Gate (GB): Chestnut gelding, by Connaught. Won once in 14 starts. 1977 Claerwen (GB): Chestnut filly, by Habat. Was second in the 1979 Molecomb Stakes and died in 1993. 1981 Cwrle (GB): Chestnut filly, by Habat. Did not place in five starts. 1982 Cricceith (GB): Chestnut filly, by Brigadier Gerard (GB) - placed second once from 5 starts in England 1985-6. 1983 Cynwyd (GB): Bay filly, by Imperial Fling. Did not race. 1984 Abergwrle (GB): Grey filly, foaled 1 January, by Absalom (GB) - Unplaced in 2 starts in England 1986 and died in 2002. 1986 St Ninian (GB): Chestnut colt, foaled 27 May, by Ardross (IRE) - won 7 races and placed eleven times including the Newbury Spring Cup (Handicap); Jubilee Handicap, Kempton; 2nd LR Strensall Stakes, York and 3rd LR Ben Marshall Stakes, Newmarket from 40 starts in England 1988-93.

Assessment and honours

In their book, ''A Century of Champions'', based on the Timeform rating system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Caergwrle a "poor" winner of the 1000 Guineas.

Pedigree

References

{{1000 Guineas winners 1965 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 7-d 1000 Guineas winners