Vedas (1902 – 1906) 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. As a two-year-old in 1904 he was highly tried and won six of his ten races including the

Brocklesby Stakes The Brocklesby Stakes is a flat conditions race horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years. It is notable as the traditional opening two-year-old race of the British Flat racing season. It is run over fiv ...

and

Molecomb Stakes The Molecomb Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ...

as well as being placed in the

Coventry Stakes The Coventry Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each ...

and

Gimcrack Stakes The Gimcrack Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run at York over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to t ...

. In the following spring he recorded his biggest win in the

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 ...

but was injured shortly afterwards and failed on his only subsequent start. He was reported to have died in early 1906.

Background

Vedas was a brown horse bred by

Valerie, Lady Meux Valerie Susan, Lady Meux (pronounced "Mews"; ; 1852–1910), was a Devon-born socialite of the Victorian era. She was the wife of Sir Henry Bruce Meux, 3rd Baronet (1856–1900), who came from one of Britain’s richest brewing dynasties, Meux ...

and owned during his racing career by West Fenton de Wend-Fenton. The colt was sent into training with William Thomas "Jack" Robinson at his Foxhill stables in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

. He was sired by Florizel II, a full-brother to both

Diamond Jubilee A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th annivers ...

and

Persimmon The persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees in the genus ''Diospyros''. The most widely cultivated of these is the Oriental persimmon, ''Diospyros kaki'' ''Diospyros'' is in the family Ebenaceae, and a number of non-pers ...

and a top-class performer in own right, with wins 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 ...

Jockey Club Cup A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual w ...

and Ascot Gold Vase. As a breeding stallion he sired

Volodyovski Volodyovski (1898–1917) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1900 to 1902, he ran twenty-six times and won seven races. After being one of the leading two-year-olds of 1900, he went on to win The Derby i ...

and

Doricles Doricles (1898 – 1916) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Although he ran only twice as a two-year-old in 1900 he showed considerable potential when he dead-heated for first places in the July Stakes. In the following year he ...

and was the damsire of

St Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

. Vedas' dam Agnostic, a half-sister of the

Epsom Oaks The Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards (2, ...

winner Bonny Jean, also produced Gemma (also by Florizel II) who in turn produced

Sardanapale ''Sardanapalo'' or ''Sardanapale'' (Italian or French for '' Sardanapalus''), S.687, is an unfinished opera by Franz Liszt based on the 1821 verse play '' Sardanapalus'' by Lord Byron. Liszt was ambitious for his project, and planned to doveta ...

Racing career

1904: two-year-old season

Vedas began his racing career in the Brocklesby Stakes over five

furlongs A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

at Lincoln Racecourse on 23 March in which he was made the 2/1 favourite and led from the start to win by four

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 Captain Jack. In the following month, he won again, taking the Sefton Park Plate at

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

at odds of 2/5, but on this occasion he was eased down by his jockey in the final strides and was almost caught on the line by the filly Princess Sagan. At the end of April, the colt started joint-favourite for the

Sandown Park Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing ...

Stud Produce Stakes and won "easily" by three lengths from Norman Bride. In May, he extended his winning run when he successfully conceded thirteen pounds to the highly regarded filly Queen of the Earth in the Spring Two-Year-Old Plate at

Kempton Park Racecourse Kempton Park Racecourse is a horse racing track together with a licensed entertainment and conference venue in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, 16 miles south-west of Charing Cross, London and on a border of Greater London. The site has of ...

. In June, Vedas started 11/10 favourite for the

Royal Ascot 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 and ...

but sustained his first defeat as he was beaten two lengths into second by

Lord Rosebery Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, 1st Earl of Midlothian, (7 May 1847 – 21 May 1929) was a British Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from March 1894 to June 1895. Between the death of ...

's colt

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...

. At the time, many of Jack Robinson's trainees were suffering from

Equine influenza Equine influenza (horse flu) is the disease caused by strains of influenza A that are enzootic in horse species. Equine influenza occurs globally, previously caused by two main strains of virus: equine-1 (H7N7) and equine-2 (H3N8). The OIE now cons ...

, and it was suggested that Vedas may have been affected. Vedas returned to the track in July and won the Royal Plate over five furlongs at

Windsor Racecourse Windsor Racecourse, also known as Royal Windsor Racecourse, is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Windsor, Berkshire, England. It is one of only two figure-of-eight courses in the United Kingdom, the other being at Fontwell Park. Desc ...

. On 5 August, Vedas contested the Molecomb Stakes over five furlongs at

Goodwood Racecourse Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in lat ...

in which he was ridden by G McCall and started the 8/15 favourite. He led from the start and won "as he liked" by two lengths from Standen. At

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

in August, the colt started favourite against thirteen opponents for the

but finished third behind a filly named Desiree. On his penultimate appearance of the season, he was assigned top weight (alongside

Polymelus Polymelus (1902–1924) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse who was the leading sire of racehorses in Great Britain and Ireland for five years (1914, 1915, 1916, 1920, 1921). Among his most famous descendants are Secretariat and Northern Dance ...

) in the Imperial Produce Stakes at Kempton in October and finished unplaced behind Khammurabi. Vedas ended the year with a narrow defeat, again under top weight, in the Chesterfield Nursery Plate at

Derby Racecourse Derby Racecourse is a former horse racing venue in Derby, England, from 1848 to 1939. It was preceded by two earlier courses, at different locations. Earlier courses It is unknown exactly when horse racing first started in Derby, although a ...

. Vedas earned a total of £3,939 in 1904.

1905: three-year-old season

Vedas began his second season by finishing unplaced in the Lincolnshire Handicap over one mile in March. In April he was an easy winner of the Bickerstaffe Stakes at Liverpool. On 3 May 1905, ridden by Herbert Jones, Vedas started at odds of 11/2 for the 97th running of the 2000 Guineas over the

Rowley Mile 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 horseracin ...

course at Newmarket. His twelve opponents included the

Dewhurst Stakes The Dewhurst Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), ...

winner Rouge Croix, who started favourite, Llangibby (

New Stakes New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

), Plum Centre and Signorino (runner-up in the

Middle Park Stakes The Middle Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is s ...

). Racing on heavy ground Vedas tracked the leaders as the outsider Brother Bill set the pace before moving up to take the lead approaching the final furlong. He went four lengths clear of his rivals and despite tiring in the final strides he prevailed by two lengths from Signorino with Llangibby a head away in third. The result provided an unusual coincidence concerning the number "13": Vedas, on his thirteenth start, was number 13 on the racecard, and drawn number thirteen in thirteen-runner field, while the numbers in his starting price (11/2) totalled 13; his win came 13 years after his trainer rode

Bona Vista Bona Vista (1889–1909) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. As a two-year-old he won the Woodcote Stakes at Epsom Downs Racecourse, Epsom Downs. As a three-year-old he won the Newmarket Racecourse, Newmarket Biennial Stakes, before winning th ...

to victory in the race. Vedas was strongly fancied for the

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey o ...

but was found to be lame a few days before the race and was withdrawn from the contest. After a lengthy break he returned in the Gratwicke Stakes over one and a half miles but failed to reproduce his earlier form and was well-beaten in a race won by Polymelus. Towards the end of the year Vedas's owner, Mr West Fenton de-Wend Fenton was "warned-off" (banned from any involvement in horse racing) by the

Jockey Club The Jockey Club is the largest commercial horse racing organisation in the United Kingdom. It owns 15 of Britain's famous racecourses, including Aintree, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs and both the Rowley Mile and July Course in Newmarket, amo ...

after riding his own horse to defeat in a match race at Sandown which involved highly suspicious betting patterns. Vedas earned £5,150 in 1905.

1906: four-year-old season

Vedas remained in training as a four-year-old but in April it was announced that he had "broken down badly" and would not race again. He was reported dead shortly afterwards.

Assessment and honours

In their book, ''A Century of Champions'', based on the Timeform rating system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Vedas an "inferior" winner of the 2000 Guineas.

Pedigree

References

{{2000 Guineas Winners 1902 racehorse births 1906 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 16-c 2000 Guineas winners