Neva (foaled 1814, died after 1837) 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 ...

racehorse, which in 1817 became the first filly to win both the

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 (1,60 ...

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

and the Oaks at Epsom Downs Racecourse. In a racing career which lasted from April 1817 until May 1818 she ran four times and won twice.

Background

Neva was a bay mare sired by Cervantes out of Mary, a daughter of The Derby winner

Sir Peter Teazle Sir Peter Teazle (1784 – 18 August 1811) was a good British bred Thoroughbred racehorse, a Leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland nine times, and carried on the sire line of Herod. Breeding Sir Peter Teazle was a brown horse bred and own ...

and a sister of the

Doncaster Cup The Doncaster Cup is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 2 miles 1 furlong and 197 yards (3,600 metr ...

winner Caleb Quotem. Cervantes was best known as a sire of broodmares: his daughters produced the 2000 Guineas winner Grey Momus and Melbourne, who in turn sired the

Triple Crown Triple Crown may refer to: Sports Horse racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States) ** Triple Crown Trophy ** Triple Crown Productions * Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Tri ...

winner West Australian. Neva was bred by a Mr. Tibbits and raced in the ownership of George Watson.

Racing career

1817: three-year-old season

Neva made her first racecourse appearance in the fourth running of the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket on 24 April. The race was run over the Ditch Mile course rather than its modern venue on the Rowley Mile, and despite its name carried a first prize of 2100

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

. She started the 7/4 favourite and won from Mr. Jones's brown filly Clearwell Lass, with 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 ...

's Trictrac in third. On 23 May, Neva was made the even money favourite in a field of eleven fillies for the Oaks Stakes. Ridden by

Francis Buckle Francis Buckle (1766–1832), known to the British horse racing public as "The Governor", was an English jockey, who has been described as "the jockey non-pareil" of the opening quarter of the 19th century, and the man who "brought respectabili ...

she won from Mr. Lake's bay filly Amabel to take a first prize of 2250 guineas. The two classics were Neva's only races of 1817.

1818: four-year-old season

After a break of more than ten months, Neva reappeared at the Newmarket Craven meeting in April 1818. Racing against colts for the first time, she started favourite for the two mile

Claret Stakes The Claret Stakes was a flat horse race in Great Britain open to four-year-olds. It was run on the Ditch-In course at Newmarket over a distance of 2 miles (3,218 metres), and was scheduled to take place each year in early or mid April at the Cra ...

, but finished third to The Student (the beaten favourite in the 1817 Derby). At the next Newmarket meeting later that month, Neva was scheduled to run a match race at level weights against

Lord Foley Baron Foley is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Great Britain, both times for members of the same family. The first creation came in 1712 in favour of Thomas Foley, who had earlier represented Stafford in the House of Co ...

's colt Young Wizard. Neva failed to appear for the match and her owner was obliged to pay a forfeit of 130 guineas. At Newmarket's Second Spring meeting in May, Neva ran a match over one and a quarter miles against Amabel, in which she carried 121 pounds compared to her opponent's 112. In an even betting race, Amabel reversed the form of the previous year's Oaks to defeat Neva and claim a prize of 200 guineas for Mr Lake.

Stud career

Neva retired and sold as a broodmare to Sir William Milner for whom she produced three foals. She then passed into the ownership of Robert Ridsdale and produced five more foals between 1825 and 1833. She delivered her last recorded foal in 1837 and was sold. Despite being sent to leading stallions such as Catton, Comus, Tramp and Whisker she produced no runners of note.

Pedigree

*Neva was

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 ...

3x3 to Highflyer, meaning that this stallion appears twice in the third generation of her pedigree. She was also inbred 4x4 to Marske.

References

{{Epsom Oaks Winners 1814 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 5-a 1000 Guineas winners Epsom Oaks winners