Brown Jack (1924–1948) was a

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 ...

that raced over hurdles and then on the flat. He was a "stayer" – a horse specialising in longer races. He won the second

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

Champion Hurdle The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Hurdling (horse race), hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to Horse racing, horses aged four years ...

in 1928, but his main claim to fame was winning the

Queen Alexandra Stakes The Queen Alexandra Stakes is a flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot each June over a distance of 2 miles, 5 furlongs and 143 yards (4355 ...

– the longest race in the flat racing calendar – for six years running, from 1929 to 1934. His repeated victories made him one of the most popular racehorses in the history of British racing. A bronze statue of Brown Jack, by the equestrian painter Sir

Alfred Munnings Sir Alfred James Munnings, (8 October 1878 – 17 July 1959) is known as having been one of England's finest painters of horses, and as an outspoken critic of Modernism. Engaged by Lord Beaverbrook's Canadian War Memorials Fund after the Gre ...

, is to be seen at Ascot. Brown Jack was a brown

gelding A gelding (Help:IPA/English, /ˈɡɛldɪŋ/) is a castration, castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. The term is also used with certain other animals and livestock, such as domesticated Camelidae, camels. By compa ...

, foaled in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

by Jackdaw out of Querquidella. He was bought as a 3 year old by Sir Harold Wernher, Bt. and trained by Aubrey Hastings to race over

hurdles Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today ...

. After Hastings' death in 1929, he was trained by former jockey Ivor Anthony (brother of Jack Anthony and Owen Anthony). In 1928, as a 4-year-old in his first season, he won seven races from ten starts, including the

Champion Hurdle The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Hurdling (horse race), hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to Horse racing, horses aged four years ...

in 1928 ridden by Bilbie Rees, but then switched to the more lucrative racing on the flat. He won the

Ascot Stakes The Ascot Stakes is a flat handicap 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 (4,014 metres), a ...

in 1928, and the 2.75-mile

for six years running, from 1929 to 1934, each time ridden by veteran Champion Jockey

Steve Donoghue Steve Donoghue (8 November 188423 March 1945) was a leading English flat-race jockey in the 1910s and 1920s. He was Champion Jockey 10 times between 1914 and 1923 and was one of the most celebrated horse racing sportsmen after Fred Archer, w ...

. He won 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 ...

and

Doncaster Cup The Doncaster Cup is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 2 miles 1 furlong and 197 yards (3,600 m ...

in 1930, and the

Chester Cup The Chester Cup is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2 miles, 2 furlongs and 140 yards () at Cheste ...

in 1931, the

Ebor Handicap The Ebor Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 5 furlongs and 188 yards (2,787 metres). It i ...

in 1931 carrying , and the Rosebery Memorial Plate. After winning the Goodwood Cup and Doncaster Cup in 1930, he was second in both races in 1931, losing to Salmon Leap and Singapore respectively. He was also second in the Goodwood Cup in 1932, behind

Brulette Brulette (1928 – December 1950) was a French-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. After winning one minor race as a juvenile she emerged as a top-class middle-distance horse in the following year, winning the Prix Penelope and the Eps ...

. He won 18 races from 55 starts on the flat. He retired with winnings of over £12,000.

Robert Charles Lyle The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

published a biography of Brown Jack in 1934, detailing his races.

London & North Eastern Railway The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after LMS) of the " Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It operated from 1 January 1923 until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. At tha ...

A3 class locomotive 60043 was named after the horse. Built at

Doncaster Works Doncaster Railway Works is a railway workshop located in Doncaster, England. Also referred to as ''The Plant'', it was established by the Great Northern Railway (England), Great Northern Railway in 1853, replacing the previous works in Boston, ...

it entered service in December 1935.

See also

References

Further reading