Charlottesville (1957 – 1 February 1972) was a British- bred, French- trained

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 ...

. In 1960 he won the Prix Lupin, Prix du Jockey Club and Grand Prix de Paris. After retiring from racing he became Champion sire in Great Britain in 1966, the year his son Charlottown won The Derby. Charlottesville was owned by

Aga Khan IV Prince Karim al-Husseini (13 December 1936 – 4 February 2025), known as the Aga Khan IV, was the 49th Imamah, imam of Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Nizari Isma'ilism from 1957 until his death in 2025. He inherited the Imamate in Nizari doctrine ...

and trained by Alec Head.

Background

Charlottesville was a

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

colt bred by

Aga Khan III Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 187711 July 1957), known as Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imamate in Nizari doctrine, imam of the Nizari Isma'ili, Ism'aili branch of Shia Islam. He was one of the founders and the first permanent president of ...

and foaled in 1957. He was sired by Prince Chevalier who won the Prix du Jockey Club in 1946 and was later Champion sire in France. His

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

, Noorani, was a daughter of the undefeated Grand Prix de Paris winner

Nearco Nearco (January 24, 1935 – June 27, 1957) was an Italian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse described by '' Thoroughbred Heritage'' as "one of the greatest racehorses of the Twentieth Century" and "one of the most important sires of the century." He ...

. After Aga Khan III's death in 1957 he was owned by his son

Prince Aly Khan Prince Aly Salomone Khan (13 June 1911 – 12 May 1960), known as Aly Khan, was an Ismaili sayyid, socialite and ambassador for Pakistan. He was the son of the Aga Khan III, and the father of Aga Khan IV. A socialite, racehorse owner and jocke ...

(who also died in 1960) and grandson (and successor)

Racing career

In 1959 Charlottesville won the Prix de Saint-Patrick. In 1960 he won the Prix Vivienne and then took the Prix Lupin, with Mincio finishing second and Atrax third. Ridden by George Moore he won the Prix du Jockey Club by three lengths from Night and Day, who was just ahead of Bonjour. On 26 June Charlottesville contested the 3000 metre Grand Prix de Paris at Longchamp in front of 100,000 people. He was entered for the

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

but was scratched. Ridden again by Moore, he was in third place as the field turned into the finishing straight and in the straight he pulled away to win by five lengths. Kires finished second and Eranchild third. He then won the Prix du Prince d'Orange, before finishing sixth behind winner Puissant Chef in 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 ...

Assessment

Timeform rated Charlottesville at 135 in 1960, making him the top three-year-old the season, and equal with Floribunda as the highest-rated horse of any age.

Stud career

Charlottesville was retired in November 1960 and first stood at the Aga Khan's Ballymany Stud in

County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...

, Ireland for an 8,000 guinea fee. He became a successful stallion and was the

leading sire in Great Britain and Ireland The title of champion, or leading, sire of Horse racing, racehorses in Great Britain and Ireland is awarded to the stallion whose offspring have won the most prize money in Britain and Ireland during the flat racing season. The current (2023) cham ...

in 1966. He sired Charlottown who won The Derby and Coronation Cup. He also sired

Irish Oaks The Irish Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it ...

winner

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; , a poetic form of ('), meaning 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea (), is the personification of Earth. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenogenic—of all life. She is the mother of Uranus (S ...

Grosser Preis von Baden The Grosser Preis von Baden is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Baden-Baden over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), taking plac ...

and Gran Premio di Milano winner Stratford and

Derby Italiano The Derby Italiano is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Capannelle over a distance of 2,200 metres (about 1 mile and 3 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year ...

winner Bonconte di Montefeltro. Charlottesville died on 1 February 1972 at age 15 of heart failure.

Pedigree

''Note: b. =

Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

, br. =

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

, ch. =

Chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Description ...

References

{{reflist, colwidth=30em 1957 racehorse births 1972 racehorse deaths British Champion Thoroughbred Sires Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 14-a