The Filly by Selim (1812 – 26 May 1815) was an unnamed 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 who won the second running of the

classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

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 ...

in 1815. The filly was killed after falling in the Oaks Stakes, her only other race.

Background

The Selim Filly was

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...

in colour and was owned by the Whig politician Thomas Foley, 3rd Baron Foley. Her sire Selim won the Craven Stakes and the Oatlands Stakes at Newmarket and went on to have a successful

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 ...

career, siring the classic winners

Azor Azor ( he, אָזוֹר, ar, أزور) (also ''Azur'') is a small town ( local council) in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, on the old Jaffa-Jerusalem road southeast of Tel Aviv. Established in 1948 on the site of the depopulated Palestinian vi ...

(

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 ...

), Medora (Oaks), Nicolo (

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 ...

), Turcoman (2000 Guineas) and

Turquoise Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of yea ...

(Oaks) as well as the British Champion sire

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

. Selim was British champion sire in 1814. The Selim Filly's dam was an unnamed mare sired by Cesario out of Pea-hen, the sister of a good racemare named Plover who won a King's Plate at Newmarket 1810. Foley sent the filly into training at Newmarket with Richard Prince. Until 1913 there was no requirement for British racehorses to have official names (two-year-olds were allowed to race unnamed until 1946). In the early 19th century it was common for racehorses to be known by their owners or pedigrees and the 1815 1000 Guineas winner was variously known as "the Selim filly", "the Plover filly", "the filly by Selim" or "Lord Foley's filly".

Racing career

1815: three-year-old season

The second running of the 1000 Guineas Stakes took place at

on 27 April 1815. The race attracted an original entry of twelve, but only four fillies appeared to contest the race over the Ditch Mile. Making her racecourse debut the Selim Filly (described as "Ld. Foley's br. f. by Selim, dam by Cesario, out of a sister to Plover") started the 3/1 second favourite behind

Minuet A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accompa ...

a filly owned by the

Duke of Grafton Duke of Grafton is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1675 by Charles II of England for Henry FitzRoy, his second illegitimate son by the Duchess of Cleveland. The most notable duke of Grafton was Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke ...

who had won the

July Stakes The July Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it ...

in 1814. The field was made up by Minuet's stable companion Discord and an unnamed bay filly owned by Mr Rush. Ridden by

Bill Clift William Clift (1762–1840), born Wentworth, South Yorkshire, was a British jockey. He won the first runnings of both the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas and was the first jockey to win all five of the British Classic Races, British Classics. ...

, the Selim Filly won from Minuet with Discord in third. On 26 May the Selim Filly met Minuet again in the Oaks Stakes over one and a half miles at Epsom. The two were made joint-favourites at odds of 3/1 in a field of twelve. Just over a furlong from the finish the Selim Filly fell and dislocated a shoulder, the injury proving to be so serious that the filly was immediately

euthanised Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from el, εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal or allowing it to die by withholding extreme medical measures. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditio ...

. Clift sustained some bruising but was not badly injured.

Pedigree

*The stallion Highflyer appears twice in the fourth generation of the Selim Filly's pedigree. This made her less

inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

than most Thoroughbreds of the period.

References

{{1000 Guineas winners 1812 racehorse births 1815 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 27 Byerley Turk sire line 1000 Guineas winners