Kathleen Pelham-Clinton, Duchess Of Newcastle
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Kathleen Florence May Pelham-Clinton, Duchess of Newcastle-under-Lyne OBE (née Candy; 6 May 1871–1 June 1955), was a well-known
conformation show A dog show is an animal show; it is an event where dogs are exhibited. A conformation show, also referred to as a '' breed show'', is a kind of dog show in which a judge, familiar with a specific dog breed, evaluates individual purebred dogs ...
judge and dog breeder who influenced the Borzoi and
Wire Fox Terrier The Wire Fox Terrier (also known as Wire Hair Fox Terrier, Wirehaired Terrier or simply Fox Terrier) is a dog breed, breed of dog, one of many terrier breeds. It is a fox terrier, and although it bears a resemblance to the Smooth Fox Terrier, th ...
breeds A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...
.


Early life

Born in 1871, the future Duchess was the daughter of Major Henry Augustus Candy by his marriage to Hon. Frances Kathleen Westenra, the daughter of Henry Robert Westenra, 3rd Baron Rossmore.


Marriage

She married Henry Pelham-Clinton, 7th Duke of Newcastle, in 1889, with whom she shared several common interests. Both were interested in animals, with horses and dogs being their favourites. Prior to the marriage, Kathleen was already a judge and dog show exhibitor, primarily of Fox Terriers. The Duke knew of the Duchess's knowledge of dogs, and when a dealer attempted to sell him a spaniel he once said "It would not suit me to do that. Her Grace knows the market value just a bit too well to suit my fancy." The couple had no children.


Dogs and kennels

Charles Henry Lane wrote in his 1902 work ''Dog Shows and Doggy People'' of the popularity of the Duchess of Newcastle amongst those involved in dog shows, being the "most popular of her sex" apart from the Queen. Lane (1902): p. 192 The book itself was dedicated to the Duchess, with an image of her as the frontispiece. Lane (1902): p. 194 The Duchess was involved in the breeding of several different
dog breeds This list of dog breeds includes both extant and extinct dog breeds, varieties and types. A research article on dog genomics published in Science/AAAS defines modern dog breeds as "a recent invention defined by conformation to a physical ideal ...
, including Borzois,
Fox Terrier Fox Terriers are two different breeds of the terrier dog type: the Smooth Fox Terrier and the Wire Fox Terrier. Both of these breeds originated in the 19th century from a handful of dogs who are descended from earlier varieties of United Kingdo ...
s (both Smooth and
Wire file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...
),
Whippet The Whippet is a British breed of dog of sighthound type. It closely resembles the Greyhound and the smaller Italian Greyhound, and is intermediate between them in size. In the nineteenth century it was sometimes called "the poor man's raceh ...
s, Scottish Deerhounds and Clumber Spaniels; the breed named after the
ancestral home An ancestral home is the place of origin of one's extended family, particularly the home owned and preserved by the same family for several generations. The term can refer to an individual house or estate, or to a broader geographic area such as a ...
of the
Dukes of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle u ...
. She was a well-known conformation show judge of the breeds she was involved with. The Duchess was first introduced to dogs when her mother was given a Borzoi named Spain as a gift from the Spanish Marquis of Quandelmina. With no
quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals, and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have bee ...
laws in the United Kingdom at the time, and with sufficient funds, she was able to build up a kennel of imported dogs, with the last dog imported before the quarantine started being Ch. Tsaretsa. Sixteen of
Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...
Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until Abdication of Nicholas II, hi ...
's Borzois were brought to England to participate in
Crufts Crufts is an international dog show held annually in the United Kingdom, held since 1891, and organised by The Kennel Club. It is the largest show of its kind in the world. Crufts is primarily a championship conformation show for dogs, and ...
in 1892, and although they were described as "badly constructed", the Duchess purchased Oudar, thought to be the best of the lot, for £200, a sum equivalent to £19,818 in 2010. She bred eight Borzoi champions and owned a further five. These included the Russian-bred Ch. Milka, who was the first bitch champion of the breed, and the first British bitch champion, Ch. Vikhra. Her dog Ch. Tsaretsa won 17 CCs, a record held until
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. Ch. Tsaretsa was bred to Ch. Velsk, producing three champion dogs in a single litter. Her dog Ch. Podar of Notts was one of the most influential Borzois of all time, and the majority of modern dogs of the breed can be traced back to him in some way. She became President of the Wire Fox Terrier Association between 1916 and 1919, remaining a member for the rest of her life. The Association considers her "of Notts" strain to be the foundation strain of the modern Wire Fox Terrier. The Duchess wrote of her work in breeding the Wire Fox Terrier, and this was published in 1928. Between 1900 and 1923, the Duchess bred twelve Wire Fox Terrier champions, the first being the highly influential Ch. Cackler of Notts who is considered to be an ancestor of every Wire Fox Terrier in the world. She judged the Best in Show class for the National Terrier Show in 1948, selecting the Wire Fox Terrier Ch. Arley Miss Quality as the winner. She also bred nine Smooth Fox Terriers, and purchased another two.


Later life and death

Upon her death in 1955, the Duchess bequeathed a variety of cups and paintings to
The Kennel Club The Royal Kennel Club (KC) is the official kennel club of the United Kingdom. It is the oldest recognised kennel club in the world. Its role is to oversee various canine activities including dog shows, dog agility and working trials. It also ...
, including an oil on canvas painting of a Borzoi by William Frank Calderon. She left her show dogs to her kennel man and her house dogs to her maid.


References


Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Newcastle, Kathleen, Duchess Of British duchesses by marriage 1871 births 1955 deaths Officers of the Order of the British Empire Dog breeders