Reveller 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 Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

and

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. His most significant win came in the 1818

St Leger Stakes The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a d ...

, but he remained in training until 1823, winning numerous races in the North of England. He had a long rivalry with another northern champion, Doctor Syntax.

Background

Reveller was a strongly-built bay horse bred by a Mr Shard. As a yearling he was sold to

Henry Peirse Henry Peirse (1695 – 2 October 1759) of Bedale in Yorkshire was an English landowner and Member of Parliament. He was born the eldest son of John Peirse of Lazenby, Yorkshire and inherited the manor of Bedale from his grandfather. In the 1730s ...

Bedale Bedale ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the district of Hambleton, North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, it is north of Leeds, south-west of Middlesbrough and south-west of the county town of ...

, who owned him throughout his racing career. He was sired by Comus, a horse who finished third in the Epsom Derby before becoming a successful stallion based near

Wetherby Wetherby () is a market town and civil parish in the City of Leeds district, West Yorkshire, England, close to West Yorkshire county's border with North Yorkshire, and lies approximately from Leeds City Centre, from York and from Harrogat ...

in Yorkshire. Among his other progeny were the 2000 Guineas winner Grey Momus and the St Leger winning filly Matilda. He was also the male-line ancestor of the

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winner West Australian. Reveller's dam Rosette won seven races for Peirse, who owned and bred her. She was killed in 1816 when Reveller was a yearling after receiving a kick from

Jack Spigot Jack Spigot (4 May 1818 –June 1843) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse that won the 1821 St. Leger Stakes and was a sire in the early 19th century. His paternity is attributed to either Ardrossan or Marmion. His mother was a blind mare w ...

's dam, a blind mare.

Racing career

Reveller began his racing career in August 1818 at

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where he won a six runner Produce Stakes. At

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

, he started at odds of 4/1 in a field of 21 runners for the "Great St Leger". He won the race from his stable companion Ranter, with The Marshall in third. The first three horses were all sired by Comus. Later in the same week Reveller walked over for the Gascoigne Stakes, when all of his rivals were withdrawn by their owners. Reveller retained his unbeaten record throughout 1819, when he won all four of his races. At York in August he won a Produce Sweepstakes and the

Great Subscription Purse The Great Subscription Purses were a series of flat horse races in Great Britain run at York Racecourse, usually over a distance of 4 miles, that took place each year in August from 1751 to 1833. During the second half of the 18th century they we ...

for four-year-olds. He returned to Doncaster for the St Leger meeting where he won a Produce Sweepstakes and the four mile Doncaster Stakes. In 1820 at York he ran in two Great Subscription Purses. He won the first of them but in the second he lost for the first time when he was defeated by Juggler. 1821 saw the beginning of the rivalry between Reveller and the ten-year-old Doctor Syntax. Racing outside Yorkshire for the first time, Reveller defeated Doctor Syntax at level weights in the three mile Lancaster Gold Cup on 4 July, but at Preston, a week later the form was reversed, Doctor Syntax defeating Reveller in the Preston Gold Cup. Reveller returned to Yorkshire to win a third Great Subscription Purse at York, but was beaten by Borodino in the Doncaster Stakes. On his final appearance of the year he won the

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Gold Cup. In 1822 Reveller again beat Doctor Syntax at level weights in the Lancaster Gold Cup on 2 July, but in this season he was able to confirm the form by beating his eleven-year-old rival in the Preston Gold Cup on 5 September. Doctor Syntax, who had won the race for the previous seven years finished second with the 1821 St Leger winner

, carrying a

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less than his veteran rivals, in third. On his final racecourse appearance on 9 July 1823, Reveller returned to Preston and claimed a walkover victory in the Gold Cup.

Stud record

Reveller was retired to stud where he became a successful sire or winners. His best progeny included the

Ascot Gold Cup The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,014 ...

winner Lucetta and the 1000 Guineas winner

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. He was also the broodmare sire of the dual Ascot Gold Cup winner The Emperor.

Tribute

A pub in the village of

Yafforth Yafforth is a village and civil parish in Hambleton, North Yorkshire, England about west of Northallerton. The village lies on the B6271 road between Northallerton and the village of Scorton. The parish had a population of 174 in the 2011 c ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

was named after the horse. The pub closed in the late 1990s but a nearby street is named Revellers Mews.

Pedigree

*Reveller was inbred 3x4 to King Fergus, meaning that this stallion appears in both the third and fourth generations of his pedigree. He was also inbred 4x4 to Herod.

References

{{St Leger Winners 1815 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 19 Godolphin Arabian sire line St Leger winners