John Day (1819–1883) was a British

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

and trainer. A member of a large and highly successful racing family Day was sometimes known as Young John Day or John Day, Jr. to distinguish him from his father

John Barham Day John Barham Day (1793–1860) was a British jockey and trainer. For much of his career he was usually known simply as John Day; when his son of the same name rose to prominence, the older man was referred to as John Barham Day, John Day, S ...

. The younger John Day had some success as a jockey before taking over from his father as the trainer at the

Danebury Danebury is an Iron Age hill fort in Hampshire, England, about north-west of Winchester (). Retrieved on 23 July 2008. The site, covering , was excavated by Barry Cunliffe in the 1970s. Danebury is considered a type-site for hill forts, a ...

stables in 1847. In a training career of over thirty years Day sent out the winners of twelve

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

including three winners of The Derby. Like many trainers of his time, Day was a heavy gambler and clashed on several occasions with other leading turf figures.

Background

Day was one of twelve children of the jockey and trainer

, making him the nephew of the jockey Sam Day. John's brothers included William Day, who trained three classic winners, and the successful jockeys Samuel and Alfred.

Riding career

Day began his career as a jockey when in his mid-teens, and showed a good deal of promise. He rode many horses for his father whose training facility at Danebury, near Stockbridge in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

was one of the largest and most successful in England. In 1844 he rode The Ugly Buck, owned and trained by his father to win the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket.

Training career

In 1846, John Barham Day moved away from Danebury to take up a post as private trainer to

Henry Padwick Henry Padwick (1805–1879) was an English solicitor and figure of the horse racing world, known also as a moneylender, gambler and speculator. Life He was the son of William Padwick (died 1834) of Cosham House, Hampshire. He retired from the leg ...

, leaving John Jr. to take over the Danebury stable. In his first year as a trainer he sent out

Pyrrhus The First Pyrrhus The First (1843 – 1862) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career that lasted from April 1846 to 1849 he competed twelve times and won ten races, including one walk-over. In the summer of 1846 he proved himself on ...

to win the Derby and won both the 1000 Guineas and Oaks with the filly Mendicant. Both horses were owned by

John Gully John Gully (21 August 1783 – 9 March 1863) was an English champion prizefighter who became a racehorse owner and, from 1832 to 1837, a Member of Parliament. Early life Gully was born at Wick, near Bath, the son of an innkeeper who became ...

for whom he later trained The Hermit and

Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia * Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Ando ...

to win the 2000 Guineas and Derby respectively in 1854. In the 1860s the main patron of the Danebury yard was the

Duke of Beaufort Duke of Beaufort (), a title in the Peerage of England, was created by Charles II in 1682 for Henry Somerset, 3rd Marquess of Worcester, a descendant of Charles Somerset, 1st Earl of Worcester, legitimised son of Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of So ...

. Day's successes for the Duke included the 2000 Guineas winner Vauban and the classic winning fillies

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...

and Scottish Queen. All three of these horses were ridden by

George Fordham George Fordham (1837–1887) was a British flat racing jockey. He was Champion Jockey every year between 1855 and 1863, as well as four other occasions in his own right and once as joint champion. He then won the Derby in 1879, won the Oaks ...

who was the stable jockey at Danebury for several seasons, taking over the role previously occupied by the trainer's brother Alfred. Day was also closely associated with the

Marquess of Hastings Marquess of Hastings was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 6 December 1816 for Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Earl of Moira. History The Rawdon family descended from Francis Rawdon (d. 1668), of Rawdon, Yorkshire. Hi ...

, a young aristocrat who had already spent most of a huge inheritance by the time Day trained his filly Lady Elizabeth in 1866. Lady Elizabeth was an outstanding two-year-old, winning twelve of her thirteen races and Hastings backed her with what remained of his fortune to win the 1867 Derby. The filly ran unplaced in the race and Hastings was ruined. Day was accused of knowing that the filly had lost her form, and of misleading Hastings and others as to her condition while wagering heavily against her. When

Henry John Rous Admiral (Royal Navy), Admiral The Honourable Henry John Rous (23 January 1795 – 19 June 1877) was an officer of the British Royal Navy, who served during the Napoleonic Wars, and was later a Member of Parliament and a leading figure in horse rac ...

made allegations about Day's behaviour in a letter to

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

, the trainer responded by bringing an action for

libel Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

. The anticipated court case did not materialise as Rous issued a qualified apology. Following the controversy surrounding Hastings (who died in 1868 at the age of 26), Day's fortunes declined, and he trained few major winners after 1869.

Family

Day's daughter Catherine married

Tom Cannon, Sr. Tom Cannon Sr. (April 1846 – 13 July 1917) was a British flat racing jockey and trainer. He won 13 British classics as a jockey, becoming champion in 1872. As a trainer, he trained classic winners, as well as winners over jumps, including ...

, who had taken over from Fordham as the stable jockey. Their daughter, Margaret Cannon, was the grandmother of the jockey

Lester Piggott Lester Keith Piggott (5 November 1935 – 29 May 2022) was an English professional jockey and trainer. With 4,493 career flat racing wins in Britain, including a record nine Epsom Derby victories, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest f ...

. Tom Cannon also acted as the assistant trainer at Danebury and took over the yard when John Day died in 1883.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Day, John 1819 births 1883 deaths British racehorse trainers