Watling Street (1939–1953) 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

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 ...

. In a career which lasted from spring 1941 to September 1942 he ran nine times and won four races. Having been rated the third best British two-year-old of his generation he went on to greater success as a three-year-old the following year when he won a wartime substitute version of The Derby and finished second in both 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 ...

and the "New" St Leger. At the end of 1942 he was retired to a stud career of limited importance. He was eventually exported to the United States where he died in 1953.

Background

Watling Street was a tall, leggy bay horse standing 16.1¾

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 bred by his owner

Lord Derby Edward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, (29 March 1799 – 23 October 1869, known before 1834 as Edward Stanley, and from 1834 to 1851 as Lord Stanley) was a British statesman, three-time Prime Minister of the United Kingdom ...

and the colt was named for

Watling Street Watling Street is a historic route in England that crosses the River Thames at London and which was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the Middle Ages. It was used by the ancient Britons and paved as one of the main R ...

, an

ancient trackway Historic roads (historic trails in USA and Canada) are paths or routes that have historical importance due to their use over a period of time. Examples exist from prehistoric times until the early 20th century. They include ancient trackway ...

in England and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. His sire, Fairway, had been a highly successful racehorse for Lord Derby, winning the

St Leger 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 ...

and two runnings of the

Champion Stakes The Champion Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlong ...

. Watling's Street's dam, Ranai, won two minor races before producing many good winners including the

winner Garden Path. Lord Derby sent the horse to his private trainer Walter Earl at his Stanley House stable in

Newmarket, Suffolk Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. Located (14 miles) west of Bury St Edmunds and (14 miles) northeast of Cambridge. It is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred hor ...

Racing career

1941: two-year-old season

The

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

led to horse racing being conducted on a restricted scale with a restructured programme. With many racecourses used by the military or considered dangerous due to their proximity to major population centres, races were either cancelled or moved away from their traditional venues. Most of the major races, including all the

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

were run at Newmarket. Watling Street began his career by winning the Littleport Stakes and the Chesterfield Stakes in the spring of 1941. He then ran 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 e ...

, which was run at Newmarket instead of its usual venue of Royal Ascot. He finished second to the easy winner Big Game, a colt owned by

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

. The main races of Doncaster's St Leger meeting in September were also rescheduled and the Champagne Stakes was run at Newbury in late June. In this race Watling Street was beaten again by Big Game, although the Royal colt's margin of superiority was only a short-head. On his final start of the season, Watling Street ran disappointingly to finish fourth 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 ...

behind the King's filly Sun Chariot. In the Free Handicap, a ranking of the season's best two-year-olds, Watling Street was given a rating of 130 pounds, placing him third behind Sun Chariot (133) and Big Game (133).

1942: three-year-old season

Watling Street began his three-year-old season by winning the Shelford Stakes over one mile before running in the 2000 Guineas. He finished second, beaten four lengths by the odds-on favourite Big Game. With

Epsom Downs Racecourse Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse on the hills associated with Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course, which has a crowd capacity of 13 ...

out of use, the substitute "New Derby Stakes" was run on the July course at Newmarket on 13 June in front of a crowd which included the King and

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

. Ridden by Harry Wragg, Watling Street started at odds of 6/1, with Big Game being made the 4/6 favourite. Watling Street won by a neck from Hyperides, with Ujiji two lengths back in third.and Big Game sixth. His win, in a time of 2:29.6 which equaled the wartime Derby record, was received with little enthusiasm by the spectators who had been anticipating a Royal victory. On 12 September, Watling Street started favourite for the substitute "New St Leger Stakes" at Newmarket. He finished second of the eight runners, three lengths behind Sun Chariot, but five lengths clear of Hyperides in third. Shortly after his defeat at Doncaster, it was announced that Watling Street would be retired from racing and would begin his stud career at a fee of £198.

Stud record

Retired to

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 ...

duty, Watling Street made little impression as a sire of winners, with the best of his progeny being the

Cumberland Lodge Stakes The Cumberland Lodge Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards (2,406 metr ...

winner Rawson. He was exported to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1952. After standing for one season at the

Claiborne Farm Claiborne Farm is a thoroughbred horse breeding operation near Paris, Kentucky. It was established in 1910 by Arthur B. Hancock, owner of Ellerslie Stud in Albemarle County, Virginia, and has been operated by members of his family ever since. ...

he died in late 1953. In his only American season he sired Go-Modern, who produced TRA United States Champion Older Mare Summer Scandal.

Pedigree

*Watling Street 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 St. Simon, meaning that this stallion appears in both the third and the fourth generations of his pedigree.

References

{{Epsom Derby Winners 1939 racehorse births 1953 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 7 Epsom Derby winners