Tag (foaled 1786) was a British Thoroughbred

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 ...

. She started only three races, and won once, the Oaks Stakes at Epsom Downs. She was owned by George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont, and trained by Frank Neale. As a broodmare for the Earl she produced eleven foals.

Background

Tag was a

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

bred by George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont, and foaled in 1786. She was sired by Trentham, a successful racehorse who ran for eight years, winning many races, including two Jockey Club Plates. Her dam was Venus, a daughter of

Eclipse An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...

and full-sister to Jupiter,

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

and Volunteer.

Racing career

On 29 May 1789 at Epsom Downs, Tag competed in her first race, the Oaks Stakes. Along with the filly Hope, she started as the 5/2 joint-favourite. Eighteen fillies had initially been entered for the race, but only seven started. Tag won the race from

Earl Grosvenor Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

's sister to Trifle, with Hope finishing in third place, the filly by Magnet in fourth and Restless in fifth. The other two runners could not be placed by the judge. The following day she was withdrawn from a match race against the Duke of Bedford's

Skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

. In June at

Ascot Heath Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races a ...

, she lost a mile and a quarter match race against the

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

Magpie. Her final race came in July 1789 at Brighthelmstone in a £50 race consisting of four, one mile and three quarter heats. Tag started as the favourite of the four runners, priced at about evens. She won the first heat, Skyrocket won the second heat, but Mentor won the last two heats to win the race.

Stud career

As a broodmare for the Earl of Egremont she produced eleven foals, including Tag, Gulliver, Lazy, Baby and Old Maid. Lazy was the dam of

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 Anderida. She has descendants today through the grandson of her 1796 daughter by Precipitate, St John, who was sent to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1836.

Pedigree

''Note: b. =

Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

, br. = Brown, ch. =

Chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

'' * Tag was inbred 4x4 to Partner and Regulus. This means that both stallions appear twice in the fourth generation of her pedigree.

References

{{Epsom Oaks Winners 1786 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the Kingdom of Great Britain Racehorses trained in the Kingdom of Great Britain Thoroughbred family 9-b Epsom Oaks winners