Pearl Cap (foaled 1928) was a French champion

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 ...

who is considered one of her country's greatest racing fillies.

Background

Owned and bred by the Esmond family, she was raced under the name of Miss Diana Esmond. She was trained by Frank Carter, a member of the prominent racing family that began in France with Thomas Carter (1805-1879), who immigrated from

Peckleton Peckleton is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Kirkby Mallory, Peckleton and Stapleton, in the Hinckley and Bosworth district of Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

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 ...

in 1831 and founded the English Racing Colony in

Chantilly, Oise Chantilly ( , ; Picard language, Picard: ''Cantily'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department in the Nonette (river), Valley of the Nonette in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region of Northern Franc ...

. Pearl Cap is described by

France Galop France Galop is the governing body of flat and steeplechase horse racing in France. It was founded on May 3, 1995, as the result of the amalgamation of four different industry organizations. Prominent owner/breeder Jean-Luc Lagardère was elected ...

as being "light-framed" and "lop-eared." On the race track, she won races from 1100 metres to 2400 metres. (0.68 to 1.5 miles).

Racing career

Racing at age two in 1930, Pearl Cap won five races, including victories over colts in the

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 ...

as well as in the prestigious (now

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

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 ...

. Her performances that year earned her France's champion two-year-old filly honors. In her three-year-old season, the filly again beat her male counterparts in major races. She finished second to

Prince Rose Prince Rose (1928–1944) was a British-bred, Belgian-trained Thoroughbred racehorse, often referred to as the best horse in Belgian racing. Background Bred in England by Lord Durham, Prince Rose was sired by Rose Prince out of the mare Indol ...

in the Grand International d'Ostende at

Hippodrome Wellington The Hippodrome Wellington (also ''Wellingtonrenbaan'') is a horse racing race track, track in Ostend in the Flemish Region of Belgium built in 1883, renovated in 2011 and named after Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. The facility hosts b ...

Ostend Ostend ( ; ; ; ) is a coastal city and municipality in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the la ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, a race her sire

Le Capucin Le Capuchin (1920) is a racehorse who won the Prix du Jockey Club June 10, 1923 at the Chantilly Racecourse and the Grand International d'Ostende at Ostend racecourse, Belgium, in 1924. Palmarès * 1925 Prix Boiard * 1924 Grand Internat ...

won in 1924. After winning three Group One (today) races in France, including the

Prix de Diane The Prix de Diane, sometimes referred to as the French Oaks, is one of the most important and prestigious Group 1 horse races in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at C ...

, in October Pearl Cap defeated Prince Rose at

Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (, ) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

when she became the first filly to ever win 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 ...

Breeding record

Retired to broodmare duties, Pearl Cap was a disappointment as a broodmare until the age of sixteen, when she produced the 1947

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,

Pearl Diver Pearl hunting, also known as pearl fishing or pearling, is the activity of recovering or attempting to recover pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in India and Japan for tho ...

Pedigree

Pearl Cap was inbred 4 × 4 to St. Simon, meaning that St. Simon appears twice in the fourth generation of her pedigree.

References

Pearl Cap's pedigree and partial racing stats
;Specific {{Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Winners 1928 racehorse births Racehorses bred in France Racehorses trained in France Arc winners Thoroughbred family 16-b Byerley Turk sire line