Copenhagen (1808 – 12 February 1836) was the
Duke of Wellington
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...
's
war horse, which he most famously rode at the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...
. Copenhagen was of mixed
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 ...
and
Arabian
The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world.
Geographically, the ...
parentage, with his dam being sired by 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 ...
winner
John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of England, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter-of-fact man. He originated in satirical works of ...
and his sire Meteor having finished second in the Derby. Copenhagen was foaled in 1808 and was named in honour of the British victory at the
Second Battle of Copenhagen. Copenhagen did race in England for a short period, winning two races and finishing at least third in nine races out of his 12 career starts. Copenhagen was sent to Spain with
Sir Charles Stewart in 1813 and was then sold to the Duke of Wellington. Becoming his favourite, Copenhagen was the Duke's mount in the Battle of Waterloo. The horse was retired to the Duke's
Stratfield Saye estate and lived there for the remainder of his life, dying on 12 February 1836 at the age of 28 years. His grave site is marked with a marble headstone that stands under a
Turkey Oak planted in 1843.
Background
Copenhagen was bred by
General Grosvenor,
a nephew of the
Earl Grosvenor.
Copenhagen's sire, Meteor, was second in the 1786 Derby and won several stakes races before he was retired in 1791 to the Earl Grosvenor's stud. Copenhagen was foaled when Meteor was 25 years old, and the stallion died in 1811 when Copenhagen was three years old.
Copenhagen's dam, Lady Catherine, was a daughter of the 1792
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, more commonly known as the Derby and sometimes referred to as the Epsom Derby, is a Group races, Group 1 flat Horse racing, horse race in England open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It is run at Ep ...
winner
John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of England, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter-of-fact man. He originated in satirical works of ...
and an unnamed mare sired by the Rutland
Arabian
The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world.
Geographically, the ...
out of "a
hunting
Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...
mare"
that was either "three parts Thoroughbred"
or had no Thoroughbred parentage at all.
The Rutland Arabian was owned by the
Duke of Rutland
Duke of Rutland is a title in the Peerage of England, named after Rutland, a county in the East Midlands of England. Earldoms named after Rutland have been created three times; the ninth earl of the third creation was made duke in 1703, in whos ...
and had limited success at stud. Lady Catherine ("Lady Katherine" in the ''Racing Calendar'') raced under General (then Colonel) Grosvenor's name as a five-year-old in 1801, and her dam was identified as "Morning Star's dam." In 1810 Lady Catherine foaled a half-sister to Copenhagen, Chantress by Popinjay, and is noted in the stud-book to have been "sent to Ireland."
In honour of Copenhagen's notable military service, Lady Catherine is the only "half-bred" mare listed in the ''
General Stud Book
The ''General Stud Book'' is a breed registry for horses in Great Britain and Ireland. More specifically it is used to document the breeding of Thoroughbreds and related foundation bloodstock such as the Arabian horse. Today it is published ev ...
''.
The circumstances surrounding Copenhagen's birth differ in the sources. General Grosvenor allegedly took Lady Catherine (in foal with Copenhagen) to
Denmark
Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
to be his mount during the siege of Copenhagen, a campaign that culminated in the
Second Battle of Copenhagen. Copenhagen was either foaled after the battle in Copenhagen and named in honour of the British victory
or Lady Catherine was returned to England before his birth and Copenhagen was foaled at
Eaton Hall in 1808.
The ''General Stud Book'' entry for his dam does not support the notion that he was foaled overseas.
Description
Copenhagen stood 15
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 "han ...
high
and had a muscular physique on a small compact frame.
When Copenhagen was purchased for the Duke of Wellington as a five-year-old, he was described as "a dark chestnut with two white heels,
e wasa hollow-backed, powerful horse"
but reportedly had "bad shoulders."
Copenhagen allegedly "never refused his corn" but had an unusual habit of eating while lying down.
Wellington said of Copenhagen, "There may have been many faster horses, no doubt many handsomer, but for bottom and endurance I never saw his fellow."
[Arthur Griffiths, ''Wellington and his Comrades'' (1892), reprinted Kessinger Publishing, 31 August 2004, p.182.] His "enduring qualities" were often attributed to his "Arabian blood."
Racing career
Copenhagen raced until he was a four-year-old in the name of General Grosvenor. Copenhagen did not race as a two-year-old and was retired from racing in May 1812. He was a moderately successful racehorse, winning two races during his short racing career, once against a relative of 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 ...
-winning mare
Eleanor
Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It was the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages">Provençal dialect ...
.
1811: three-year-old season
In his first start at the Craven Meeting in April, Copenhagen was third in a 100-guinea sweepstakes race, losing to the filly Sorcery and an unnamed filly by Dick Andrews. A few days later, Copenhagen won a 50-guinea
match race
A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head.
In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams cons ...
against Mr. Fisher's colt "brother to Spaniard" and was beaten by the filly Tippitywichet in a match race. At the First Spring Meeting in Newmarket, Copenhagen paid 20 guineas forfeit to Lord Bentinck's colt Pheasant and a few days later was beaten by the Duke of Rutland's colt Momus in a 100-guinea match race. At
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver C ...
on 6 August, Copenhagen won a sweepstakes race, beating a horse sired by Ambrosio and Cressida (the full-sister of the Derby winning mare
Eleanor
Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It was the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages">Provençal dialect ...
and the dam of Derby winner
Priam
In Greek mythology, Priam (; , ) was the legendary and last king of Troy during the Trojan War. He was the son of Laomedon. His many children included notable characters such as Hector, Paris, and Cassandra.
Etymology
Most scholars take the e ...
)
and the next day, Copenhagen was third in a Gold Cup race to the horse by Ambrosio and the colt Juvenal. At
Northampton
Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...
, Copenhagen was third in a 70-guinea County Purse race after finishing second in all of the heats. Copenhagen finished third in a sweepstakes race and was third in the Oatlands Stakes at the Tarporley-Hunt meeting on 7 November.
1812: four-year-old season
Copenhagen started three times in 1812. At Chester on 4 May, Copenhagen was third in a £50 Maiden Plate run in three heats, finishing fifth in the first heat and second in the remaining heats. A few days later at the same meeting, Copenhagen finished third in a £70 Cup race run over three heats, finishing fourth in the first heat and second in the remaining heats, and was fourth in a Handicap Sweepstakes in the final start of his career. Copenhagen was retired from racing at the end of the season.
Military service

General Grosvenor sold Copenhagen to
Charles Stewart (later the Marquess of Londonderry) in 1812. Copenhagen was sent to
Lisbon
Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
in 1813 with a contingent of other horses due to Stewart's service as an
adjutant-general in the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...
.
When Stewart left Spain to "join the Allied armies in Germany",
Copenhagen was sold to Colonel Charles Wood (or alternatively
Colonel Gordon, who died at
Waterloo) for "200 or 250 guineas",
£300
or £400,
depending on the source. The Colonel bought Copenhagen and another horse for the
Duke of Wellington
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...
.
Wellington rode Copenhagen in a number of battles. Before Waterloo he took him on his hazardous ride to
Wavre
Wavre (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium.
Wavre is in the Dijle, Dyle valley. Most inhabitants sp ...
to liaise with
Marshal Blücher.
Copenhagen was the Duke's mount during the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...
, carrying him for 17 hours continuously during the battle.
Immediately after the battle, from which Wellington emerged uninjured, Wellington dismounted and patted Copenhagen on the flank, causing the horse to kick towards the Duke's head, which the Duke narrowly avoided.
Copenhagen continued to be Wellington's primary horse during the occupation of France.
Retirement and death
The Duke continued to ride Copenhagen in parades and other ceremonial events after the battle. Hair from the horse was made into jewellery. The horse was retired to the Duke's
Stratfield Saye House and lived as a pensioner there for the remainder of his long life. Copenhagen was said to, "like being noticed" and "kissed hands and ate his apples with all possible grace."
Funeral and grave site
Copenhagen died on 12 February 1836 at
Stratfield Saye at the age of 28 years,
reportedly due to indulging in too many sugary "dainties" such as "sponge cakes, bath buns and chocolate creams,".
Still, he most likely died due to his advanced age. He was buried "very early in the morning"
the next day with full military honours in the Ice-House Paddock
at the Duke's country residence,
Stratfield Saye House. The Duke personally witnessed the horse's burial and reportedly "flew into a most violent passion" when he noticed that one of Copenhagen's hooves had been cut off as a souvenir.
The Duke reportedly exhumed Copenhagen's body a few months after his death to retrieve the other hooves as keepsakes, but "his three remaining hoofs had rotted away."
[ The pilfered hoof was eventually recovered. According to one source, a farmer bought the hoof for a little over three shillings and returned the hoof directly to the Duke.][ In another account, a servant confessed to the Duke's son many years after the incident to taking the hoof, stating that at the time, "None of us imagined that the first Duke would trouble his head about the carcase of the horse."] The returned hoof was later made into an ink-stand by the second Duke.
Copenhagen was buried without a headstone
A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The u ...
, and a few years after his death, the Duke was asked by the United Services Museum to disinter his body so that Copenhagen's skeleton could be publicly displayed alongside the skeleton of Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
's horse Marengo. The Duke refused and claimed that he did not "know for sure where Copenhagen was buried," a false statement given that the Duke had witnessed Copenhagen's burial. The paddock where he was buried at one time had "a noble cluster of elms in the centre" and his grave was once surrounded by a small railing. The large Turkey Oak that presently shades Copenhagen's grave was planted by the elder Duke's housekeeper Mrs (Elizabeth) Apostles seven years after the horse's death on 21 November 1843 in commemoration of her twentieth year of service to the Duke.
After his father's death, his son
A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative.
Social issues
In pre-industrial societies and some current ...
personally created an epitaph
An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...
for Copenhagen and placed a marble grave marker beside the tree that was planted over his burial site. A lead plaque with the inscription and "some coins of George IV
George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...
, William IV
William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...
and Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
" was buried at the grave site. The inscription, the bottom half faded over time, reads:
The concluding couplet was composed by Rowland Egerton-Warburton.
Cultural references
Depictions in art
Copenhagen was depicted as "a bay, a grey and a chestnut" in various paintings during his lifetime and after his death. In one instance the choice of his coat colour was due to personal preference. Copenhagen was painted accurately as a chestnut by Edwin Landseer
Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (7 March 1802 – 1 October 1873) was an English painter and sculptor, well known for his paintings of animals – particularly horses, dogs, and stags. His best-known work is the lion sculptures at the base of Nelso ...
, but the original work was repainted with Copenhagen as a grey
Grey (more frequent in British English) or gray (more frequent in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning that it has no chroma. It is the color of a cloud-covered s ...
on the orders of
Lady Charles Wellesley due to her "having a preference for the grey colour in horses."
Wyatt statue
The Duke of Wellington and Copenhagen were the subject of a "colossal" bronze statue designed by Matthew Cotes Wyatt
Matthew Cotes Wyatt (1777 – 3 January 1862) was an English painter and sculptor and a member of the Wyatt family, who were well known in the Victorian era as architects and sculptors.
Early life
Wyatt was born in London, the son of the archit ...
and his son James. Construction of the statue began in 1840, four years after Copenhagen's death, and lasted until 1843. The , and statue was unveiled on 28 September 1846 with much fanfare and was hoisted into a prominent position on top of the Triumphal Arch
A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road, and usually standing alone, unconnected to other buildings. In its simplest form, a triumphal ...
, then located a short distance from the Duke's London residence, Apsley House
Apsley House is the London townhouse of the Dukes of Wellington. It stands alone at Hyde Park Corner, on the south-east corner of Hyde Park, facing towards the large traffic roundabout in the centre of which stands the Wellington Arch. It ...
, on Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner is between Knightsbridge, Belgravia and Mayfair in London, England. It primarily refers to a major road junction at the southeastern corner of Hyde Park, that was originally planned by architect Decimus Burton. The juncti ...
. Copenhagen's belly had a girth of 22 feet and eight inches and the section was used to host a "celebratory dinner" for Wyatt before the work was completed, and a "rider on horseback could readily pass under Copenhagen's torso without danger of scraping his beaver hat." The portrayal was generally ridiculed in the press and by the public with a French spectator to the unveiling reportedly saying, "We have been avenged!" A young soldier reportedly said Wyatt's statue was "warning ambitious young officers of the fate that awaits them if ever they are so unfortunate as to achieve greatness." The statue was viewable from Apsley House and remained at the Hyde Park location for the remainder of the Duke's life.
Wyatt reportedly had difficulty sculpting the figure of Copenhagen and did not want to base the statue on Copenhagen's actual form in his later years, which was short, " calf-kneed and cow-hocked ith
The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometers, is the longest line of crags in North Germany.
Geography
Location
The Ith is i ...
quarters that drooped in a most unattractive fashion." As a substitute, he based the statue on the conformation and measurements of the Thoroughbred racehorse Recovery, which he obtained from ''The Pictorial Gallery of Racehorses''. During construction, the Duke's son and the artist Edwin Landseer
Sir Edwin Henry Landseer (7 March 1802 – 1 October 1873) was an English painter and sculptor, well known for his paintings of animals – particularly horses, dogs, and stags. His best-known work is the lion sculptures at the base of Nelso ...
toured Wyatt's foundry and viewed the cast of the horse's head. The rendition of Copenhagen's face with prominent flared nostrils was likened to "something like a pig's snout" by the press, which the second Duke asserted was an accurate portrayal and "very like Copenhagen."
Modern depictions
*Copenhagen is mentioned in Part 1 Chapter 1 of ''Finnegans Wake
''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish literature, Irish writer James Joyce. It was published in instalments starting in 1924, under the title "fragments from ''Work in Progress''". The final title was only revealed when the book was publishe ...
'' by James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (born James Augusta Joyce; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influentia ...
, identified as the horse of "Willingdone" (Wellington) and going under several names including Cokenhape, Capeinhope, and Culpenhelp.
*Copenhagen is played by Daniel Rigby
Daniel Rigby (born 6 December 1982) is an English actor and comedian. He received a BAFTA TV Award for his leading role as Eric Morecambe in the 2011 BBC television film '' Eric and Ernie''.
Early life
Rigby was born in Stockport, Greater Ma ...
in BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...
's ''Warhorses of Letters'', "the world's first epistolary equine love story", a comic exchange of letters between Copenhagen and Napoleon's horse Marengo (played by Stephen Fry
Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...
). The comedy ran for three series.
*Copenhagen also appears alongside the Duke of Wellington in Bernard Cornwell
Bernard Cornwell (born 23 February 1944) is an English author of historical novels and a history of the Waterloo Campaign. He is best known for his long-running series of novels about Napoleonic Wars rifleman Richard Sharpe. He has also writ ...
's novel '' Sharpe's Waterloo''; in the historical note to his later novel '' Sharpe's Prey'', depicting the Battle of Copenhagen in 1807, Cornwell mentions Copenhagen's birth and commemorative naming.
*Copenhagen is mentioned in Georgette Heyer
Georgette Heyer (; 16 August 1902 – 4 July 1974) was an English novelist and short-story writer, in both the Regency romance and detective fiction genres. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story conceived for her ail ...
's Regency Romance
Regency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency (1811–1820) or early 19th century. Rather than simply being versions of contemporary romance stories transported to a historical setting, Regency r ...
novel '' The Grand Sophy'', when the heroine, Sophy, talks about her own horse, Salamanca.
Pedigree
* Copenhagen's great-grandam was a "hunting mare" (three parts Thoroughbred or not at all), while his sire was a full-blooded Thoroughbred. He was also inbred 2x4 to Eclipse, meaning that this horse was his grandsire and also appeared in the fourth generation of his pedigree.
See also
* List of racehorses
This list includes racehorses that exist in the historical record.
Racehorses
For competition horses, such as show jumping, show jumpers and dressage, dressage horses, see .
A
* Ace Impact: Undefeated winner of the 2023 Prix de l'Arc de Tri ...
References
{{reflist, 2
External links
Copenhagen's grave: Stratfield House Estate Website
1808 racehorse births
1836 racehorse deaths
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Individual warhorses
Individual animals in the United Kingdom
Individual Arabian and part-Arabian horses