The Bard (1883–1902) 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. He was owned by Robert Peck and Owen Williams. Robert Peck was also his trainer. He won 23 of his 25 races, including the

Goodwood Cup The Goodwood Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 2 miles (3,219 ...

and Doncaster Cup in 1886. He also finished second in to

Ormonde Ormonde is a surname occurring in Portugal (mainly Azores), Brazil, England, and United States. It may refer to: People * Ann Ormonde (born 1935), an Irish politician * James Ormond or Ormonde (c. 1418–1497), the illegitimate son of John Butl ...

in The Derby.

Background

The Bard was a light-coloured

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 ...

standing just over 15

hands A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each " ...

high. He was a son of

2000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year at ...

and

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 ...

winner

Petrarch Francesco Petrarca (; 20 July 1304 – 18/19 July 1374), commonly anglicized as Petrarch (), was a scholar and poet of early Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists. Petrarch's rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited w ...

. After retiring from racing Petrarch had success as a

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

, with his progeny including Busybody and Miss Jummy. The Bard's

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

was Magdalene. She was a race winner and a daughter of Syrian.

Racing career

The Bard was undefeated as a two-year-old, winning 16 races including the Brocklesby Stakes, and £9188 in prize money. His record for the most wins in a season by a British juvenile was not equaled until

Provideo Provideo (4 January 1982 – 7 September 2000) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In 1984 he set a 20th-century record for a British-trained two-year-old when he won sixteen of his twenty-four races. His most important wins were ...

won 16 times in 1984. In his first race as a three-year-old he faced

winner

in the 1886 Epsom Derby. Ormonde was the 40/85 favourite and The Bard was the 7/2 second favourite. Halfway down the finishing straight The Bard, ridden by Charles Wood, was slightly in front of Ormonde, but as soon as Ormonde's jockey asked for an effort he went clear. Ormonde went on to win the race by 1½

lengths Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Intern ...

from The Bard, who was about 10 lengths clear of St. Mirin in third. The Bard then won the

Goodwood Cup The Goodwood Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 2 miles (3,219 ...

in a walkover and won the Doncaster Cup.

Stud career

In 1887 he was sold for 10,000 guineas to Henri Say for breeding and he was a successful stallion in France, becoming champion sire there in 1894 and 1901. He died at Lormoy Stud in France on 14 March 1902.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bard (GB horse) 1883 racehorse births 1902 racehorse deaths Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 1-d

Background

Racing career

Stud career

See also

References