Old Rowley was the name of a

stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

racehorse belonging to King Charles II (1660-1685) of England. The Rowley Mile Racecourse 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 ...

, developed by the king as a national centre for horseracing, is named after the horse. As the stallion was libidinous and "renowned for the number and beauty of its offspring", ''Old Rowley'' became a nickname for the king himself, who had many mistresses and sired many illegitimate children.

Ballad

The first verse of the old anonymous lewd ballad ''Old Rowley the King'', sung to the tune of ''Old Simon the King'', is as follows: :''This making of bastards great'', :''And duchessing every whore'', :''The surplus and treasury cheat'', :''Have made me damnable poor'', :''Quoth old Rowley the King'', :''Quoth old Rowley the King'', :''At council board'', :''Where every lord'' :''Is led like a dog in a string'.

Mrs Holford anecdote

A traditional anecdote concerning a "Mrs Holford" was first related in 1769 by

James Granger James Granger (1723–1776) was an English clergyman, biographer, and print collector. He is now known as the author of the ''Biographical History of England from Egbert the Great to the Revolution'' (1769). Granger was an early advocate of an ...

as follows: :''In some of the state poems, Charles the Second is ridiculed under the nickname of Old Rowley; which was an ill-favoured stallion, kept in the

Mews A mews is a row or courtyard of stables and carriage houses with living quarters above them, built behind large city houses before motor vehicles replaced horses in the early twentieth century. Mews are usually located in desirable residential ...

, but remarkable for getting fine colts. Mrs. Holford, a young lady of considerable attractions, much admired by Charles, was sitting in her apartment, and singing a ballad upon "Old Rowley, the king," when he knocked at the door. Upon her asking who was there? he, with his usual good humour, replied, " Old Rowley himself, madam."'' The story was later related in 1808 in the ''Edinburgh Budget of Wit'' as follows: :''Charles II was frequently ridiculed by the wits of the time by the nickname of Old Rowley, an ill-favoured stallion kept in the King's meuse, and very remarkable for being the sire of many fine colts. Mrs Holford, a young lady much admired by Charles, was one day singing a satirical ballad on Old Rowley the King, when his Majesty knocked at the door of her chamber. Upon her asking who was there? the King, with his usual good humour, replied, "Old Rowley himself, Madam".'' A later renditioning of the story by Wheatley (1933) relates that the king at one of his palaces :''"paus(ed) one morning opposite the apartments of the Maids of Honour, his attention caught by the treble rendering of an exceedingly lewd song about himself, in which he was compared to his lusty stallion, "Old Rowley". He knocked upon the door. "Who's there ?" came the voice of Mrs. Howard,'' (sic) ''the mistress of the Maids, " ’Tis Old Rowley himself, ma’am," replied Charles with a smile as he poked his nose round the crack of the door"''.Wheatley, Dennis, Old Rowley: A Private Life Of Charles II, 1933, pp.79-8

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Modern usage

In modern times, in 1940 a racehorse called ''Old Rowley'' won the

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melbou ...

, Australia's major thoroughbred horse race.

References

English racehorses