War Cloud (1915–1923) was a British-bred

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 ...

racehorse who was the first horse to compete in all three U.S.Triple Crown races.

Background

Bred by

Jack Barnato Joel Isaac "Jack" Barnato Joel (29 September 1862 – 13 November 1940) was a South African mining magnate and a champion horse breeder. Early life Isaac Barnato Joel was born on 29 September 1862 into a Jewish family, being one of three sons of Jo ...

, one of Britain's most prominent Thoroughbred owner/breeders, War Cloud was sold as a yearling and brought to race in the United States.

Racing career

Successful racing at age two, War Cloud was the heavy favorite going into the 1918 Kentucky Derby after the U.S. Two-yr-Old Champion Colt Sun Briar was sidelined with

ringbone {{No footnotes, date=February 2020 Ringbone is exostosis (bone growth) in the pastern or coffin joint of a horse. In severe cases, the growth can encircle the bones, giving ringbone its name. It has been suggested by some authors that such a colloqu ...

disease. Ridden by Johnny Loftus, War Cloud finished fourth to longshot Exterminator. The $17,500

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () o ...

attracted a very large field and was in two divisions. In the first division, War Cloud went off as the second favorite at post time at roughly 8/5, carrying 110 pounds (three more than any other runner), behind Lanius, who was the betting favorite at 7/5 and carried 107 pounds. Starting from post position five, War Cloud settled in third, stalking the leaders, George Starr and Flags, as they passed the stands for the first time. War Cloud then moved to the outside and passed the leaders going around the clubhouse turn, going in :48 flat for the first half mile. He widened his lead to two lengths down the backstretch, completing 3/4 mile in 1:13 flat. In the stretch, 53/1 longshot Sunny Slope challenged. War Cloud, ridden hard by jockey Johnny Loftus, held on to win by 3/4 of a length. After War Cloud and Sunny Slope, it was another ten lengths back to favorite Lanius in third, with

Johren Johren (1915–1932) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United States. His most important win came in the 1918 Belmont Stakes. Background Johren was a "massive" bay horse owned and bred by Harry Payne Whitney. He was sired by ...

fourth. The second division was won by Jack Hare, Jr. In the final leg of the Triple Crown races, the Belmont Stakes, War Cloud finished second to Harry Payne Whitney's colt,

. In the

Dwyer Stakes The Dwyer Stakes is an American Grade III stakes race for three-year-old thoroughbred racehorses held annually at Belmont Park racetrack in Elmont, Long Island, New York. Run in early July, it is open to three-year-old horses and is raced over a ...

at Aqueduct Race Track in July however, War Cloud showed "brilliant speed" to defeat Jack Hare, Jr. and Johren in front of a huge crowd. After racing successfully at age four, War Cloud was shipped to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

to race in his five-year-old season but did not perform well.

Retirement

He was brought back to stand at

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

at Claiborne Farm in

Paris, Kentucky Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. Paris is the seat of its county and forms part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As ...

, but broke a leg in 1923 and was

euthanized Animal euthanasia ( euthanasia from el, εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal or allowing it to die by withholding extreme medical measures. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditi ...

. He is buried in Claiborne's equine cemetery.

Pedigree

*War Cloud was

inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

3 × 4 to Hampton, meaning that this stallion appears in both the third and fourth generation of his pedigree.

References

{{Preakness Stakes Winners 1915 racehorse births 1923 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United States Preakness Stakes winners Thoroughbred family 4-l