Brantôme (1931–1952) was a French

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, 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 bas ...

and prominent

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" an ...

. He was unbeaten at ages 2 and 3 and is ranked among the best French horses ever.

Background

Brantome was sired by Irish stallion

Blandford Blandford Forum ( ) is a market town in Dorset, England, on the River Stour, Dorset, River Stour, north-west of Poole. It had a population of 10,355 at the United Kingdom 2021 census, 2021 census. The town is notable for its Georgian archit ...

(1919–1935) out of the mare Vitamine. He was owned by the Haras de Meautry stable of Édouard Alphonse de Rothschild. He was named for the city of

Brantôme, Dordogne Brantôme (; ) is a former commune in the Dordogne department in southwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune Brantôme en Périgord.Prix Robert Papin The Prix Robert Papin is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it ...

Grand Critérium Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), ...

and the

Prix Morny The Prix Morny is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is schedule ...

. His major victories at age three include the French 2000 Guineas, the

Prix Lupin The Prix Lupin was a Conditions races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It was run at Longchamp Racecourse, Longchamp over a distance of 2,100 m ...

, the

Prix Royal-Oak The Prix Royal-Oak is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 3,100 metres (about 1 mile and 7½ furlongs), an ...

, the country's most prestigious horse race, the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe () is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris over a distance ...

plus other significant races. In 1935, at age four, Brantôme suffered his first loss. Entered in the

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 ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, eleven days before the race Brantôme got loose from the stables and was not caught until after he had galloped into downtown

Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city ** US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Chantilly (Charlotte neighborhood), North Carolina ...

. The horse lost three shoes and sustained a bad cut. Despite this, his owner still sent him to compete in the

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 ...

where he finished out of the money.

Stud record

After winning twelve of the fourteen races he competed in, Brantôme was retired to stand at

stud Stud may refer to: 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 bar in San Francisco * ...

. During the

German occupation of France in World War II The Military Administration in France (; ) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zone in areas of northern and western France. This so-called ' was established in June 19 ...

the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

s seized some of the best racehorses in France. They shipped more than six hundred thoroughbreds out of the country. Some went to

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, but most were shipped to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

for racing or for breeding at the German National Stud. Among them was Brantôme, who was recovered in 1945 at the end of the war. Brantôme was the sire of Vieux Manoir who was the grandsire of All Along and

Ivanjica Ivanjica ( sr-Cyrl, Ивањица, ) is a town and municipality located in the Moravica District of southwestern Serbia. As of 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 27,767 inhabitants. With an area of 1090 km2, it is the eighth ...

as well as

Val de Loire The Loire Valley (, ), spanning , is a valley located in the middle stretch of the Loire river in central France, in both the administrative regions Pays de la Loire and Centre-Val de Loire. The area of the Loire Valley comprises about . It is r ...

who was a

Leading sire in France The list below shows the leading Thoroughbred sire of racehorses in France for each year since 1887. This is determined by the amount of prize money won by the sire's progeny during the season. Due to the huge prize money of the Prix de l'Arc de Tr ...

three times and the damsire of Shergar. Brantôme was also the great-grandsire of

Exbury Exbury is a village in Hampshire, England. It is in the civil parish of Exbury and Lepe. It lies just in the New Forest, near the Beaulieu River and about a mile from the Solent coast. It is best known as the location of Exbury House, built ...

. Brantôme died on 3 July 1952 at the age of twenty-one.

References

Brantome's pedigree and racing stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brantome (horse) 1931 racehorse births 1952 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Calvados (department) Racehorses trained in France Arc winners * Thoroughbred family 27-a Chefs-de-Race