Privy Councillor (1959 – October 1977) was a British

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 ...

and

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" an ...

, best known for winning the

classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of Masterpiece, lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or Literary merit, highest quality, class, or rank – something that Exemplification, exemplifies its ...

2000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1.6 km) and scheduled to take place each yea ...

in 1962. After winning three minor races as a two-year-old he went on to win the Free Handicap in the spring of 1962 before recording an upset win in the Guineas. He never won again and made little impact as a breeding stallion.

Background

Privy Councillor was a chestnut horse, bred by his owner Gerald Glover at his Pytchley House stud in

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

. He was sired by Counsel, the winner of the 1955

Greenham Stakes The Greenham Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old colts and geldings. It is run over a distance of 7 furlongs () at Newbury ...

and two edition of the Rose of York Stakes. Privy Councillor's dam High Number was bought by Glover as a foal for 750

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

and showed modest ability on the track, winning two minor races as a four-year-old. She was the first mare to be covered by Counsel when the stallion began his stud career in 1958. High Number was a granddaughter of the broodmare Thirteen, whose other descendants have included

Oasis Dream Oasis Dream (foaled 30 March 2000) is retired thoroughbred racehorse and active sire who was bred and trained in the United Kingdom. He was the highest-rated two-year-old in the 2002 European flat racing season and won the Cartier Racing Award f ...

and

Beat Hollow {{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Beat Hollow , image = , caption = , sire = Sadler's Wells , grandsire = Northern Dancer , dam = Wemyss Bight , damsire = Dancing Brave , sex = Stallion , foaled = {{birth date and age, 1997, 3, 22 , c ...

. The colt was sent into training with Thomas Algernon "Tom" Waugh at the Wroughton House stable in Newmarket

Racing career

1961: two-year-old season

As a two-year-old in 1961, Privy Councillor won minor races at

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Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

and

Warwick Racecourse Warwick Racecourse is a horse racing course in Warwick, England. It is a National Hunt racing course and has a programme of 25 meetings throughout the year, many of which are televised. The first stand was built in 1808, and its most recent rede ...

, but appeared to be some way below top class.

1962: three-year-old season

In April 1962 Privy Councillor carried a weight of 116 pounds in the Free Handicap over seven

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...

s at Newmarket Racecourse. He moved into fringe contention for the

British Classic Races The British Classics are five long-standing Group 1 horse races run during the traditional flat racing season. They are restricted to three-year-old horses and traditionally represent the pinnacle of achievement for racehorses against their ow ...

as he won from Miletus and the filly Tournella. At the next Newmarket meeting on 2 May, Privy Councillor started at odds of 100/6 in a nineteen-runner field for the 154th running of the 2000 Guineas over the Rowley mile. He won by three lengths from the Charles Engelhard-owned Romulus with Prince Poppa two lengths away in third. The winner's prize of £32,839 was the biggest in the history of the race. Privy Concillor was beaten in his remaining races and was retired from racing at the end of his three-year-old season.

Assessment

The independent

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by th ...

organisation awarded Privy Councillor a rating of 125 in 1962, nine pounds below their top-rated three-year-olds

Hethersett Hethersett is a large village and Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom, electoral ward in the county of Norfolk, England, about south-west of Norwich. It covers an area of and had a population of 5,441 in 2,321 households at ...

and

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. In their book ''A Century of Champions'', based on a modified version of the Timeform system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Privy Councillor an "inferior" winner of the 2000 Guineas.

Stud record

Rockavon was retired from racing to become a breeding stallion. He made little impact in Europe and in 1969 he was sold exported to Japan. His last reported foals were born in 1973. The best of his offspring was probably Privy Seal, who finished third in the 1969

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 ...

. He died in Japan in October 1977.

Pedigree

*Privy Councillor was

inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders an ...

3 × 4 to Fairway, meaning that this stallion appears in both the third and fourth generations of his pedigree.

References

{{2000 Guineas Winners 1959 racehorse births 1977 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 19 2000 Guineas winners