Selima (b. 30 April 1745) was one of the most important

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 ...

horses of the 18th century and became one of the foundation mares of the American Thoroughbred. She was imported to

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

between 1750 and 1752 by Benjamin Tasker, Jr.

History

Selima was foaled on 30 April 1745 at the stud farm of

Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin, (3 September 1678 – 17 January 1766), styled Viscount Rialton from 1706 to 1712, was an English courtier and politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1695 and 1712, wh ...

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 ...

. She was sired by the

Godolphin Arabian The Godolphin Arabian (–1753), also known as the Godolphin Barb, was an Arabian horse The Arabian or Arab horse ( , DIN 31635, DMG ''al-ḥiṣān al-ʿarabī'') is a horse breed, breed of horse with historic roots on the Arabian Peninsul ...

out of the "Shireborn Mare", by the stallion Hobgoblin. Shireborn reportedly same from the royal stables of the

Stuart Stuart may refer to: People *Stuart (name), a given name and surname (and list of people with the name) * Clan Stuart of Bute, a Scottish clan *House of Stuart, a royal house of Scotland and England Places Australia Generally *Stuart Highway, ...

monarch

Anne, Queen of Great Britain Anne (6 February 1665 – 1 August 1714) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England, List of Scottish monarchs, Scotland, and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 8 March 1702, and List of British monarchs, Queen of Great Britain and Irel ...

. 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 ...

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...

with a faint white star on her forehead, and a splash of white on her left hind ankle, Selima was among the first

Thoroughbreds The Thoroughbred is a horse breed developed for horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are considered ...

to cross the Atlantic Ocean and race in the American colonies. She was imported by Benjamin Tasker, Jr. of

around September 1750, at the age of 5, and was supposedly pregnant when she was shipped across the Atlantic, according to the Earl of Godolphin's

studbook A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry, the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders w ...

. However, no foal was produced, meaning that Selima likely miscarried. However, John L. Hervey, the author of ''Racing in America 1665-1865'' (1944), disputes this: Selima was trained to race at Belair in 1751 and 1752, and she made her racing debut was in

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

in May 1752. There, she defeated another English mare, Creeping Kate, winning 40 pounds, or about 50 pistoles. In 1752, Selima won the biggest prize of the era, 2,500 pistoles at

Gloucester, Virginia Gloucester Courthouse ( ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Gloucester County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,951 at the 2010 census. History The Gloucester County Courthouse Square Historic District, ...

which marked "the beginning of the remarkable racing contests between the rival colonies of Maryland and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

", according to former Annapolis mayor

Ellen Moyer Ellen Oosterling Moyer (born February 12, 1936) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. She was the first woman to serve as Mayor of Annapolis, Maryland, having been elected in 2001. As mayor, she established the Annapol ...

. Selima won, followed by Tryal (Trial) -

William Byrd III Colonel William Byrd III (September 6, 1728January 1 or January 2, 1777) was an American planter, politician and military officer who was a member of the House of Burgesses. Biography He was son of William Byrd II and Maria Taylor Byrd, and ...

gray 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 ...

- followed by two imported (c. 1751) English

horses also owned by the Tayloes, Jenny Cameron and Childers, with Childers later becoming a popular

broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

sire.

Legacy

Selima produced many foals during her career as a

: * 1755 - Ariel, a

stallion A stallion is an adult male horse that has not been gelded ( castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cre ...

by Morton's Traveller (1746, by Partner out of Bay Bloody Buttocks, by

Bloody Buttocks Bloody Buttocks was a British Thoroughbred sire who was the leading sire in Great Britain and Ireland in 1739. He was owned by John Crofts. Background Bloody Buttocks was a grey Arabian horse bred by Mr. Crofts, but his pedigree was never publi ...

) * 1756 - Partner II, a

by Morton's Traveller (1746, by Partner out of Bay Bloody Buttocks, by

) * 1757 - "Leonidas' Dam", a

by Morton's Traveller (1746, by Partner out of Bay Bloody Buttocks, by

) * 1758 - Stella, a

by Othello (1743, by

Crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura (meaning "short tailed" in Greek language, Greek), which typically have a very short projecting tail-like abdomen#Arthropoda, abdomen, usually hidden entirely under the Thorax (arthropo ...

, by

Alcock's Arabian Alcock's Arabian (foaled about 1700, died about 1733), also known as Pelham Grey Arabian and less certainly as Bloody Buttocks and Ancaster Turk, among other names, is the ancestor of all grey-coloured Thoroughbred horses,Lady Wentworth, ''The S ...

, out of Miss Slamerkin, by Honywood's Arabian) * 1759 -

Galloway Galloway ( ; ; ) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the counties of Scotland, historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council areas of Scotland, council area of Dumfries and Gallow ...

's Selim, a

by Othello (1743, by

, by

, out of Miss Slamerkin, by Honywood's Arabian) * 1760 - Ebony, a

by Othello (1743, by

, by

, out of Miss Slamerkin, by Honywood's Arabian) * 1762 - Wilkins Spadille, a

by Janus II (1746, also a grandson of the

by Janus I) * 1763 - Little Juniper, a

by Juniper (1752, also a grandson of the

by Babraham) * 1765 - Black Selima, a

by Fearnought (1755, also a grandson of the

Regulus Regulus is the brightest object in the constellation Leo (constellation), Leo and one of the List of brightest stars, brightest stars in the night sky. It has the Bayer designation designated α Leonis, which is Latinisation of names, ...

) * 176x - Camilla, a

by Tanner (1757, also a great-grandson of the

through Cade) However, records are conflicted on which foal she had in 1761, with two different ones being recorded: * Bellair I (Tayloe's), a

by Morton's Traveller (1746, by Partner out of Bay Bloody Buttocks, by

) * Babraham II, a

by Juniper (1752, also a grandson of the

by Babraham) The annual Selima Stakes, now raced at

Laurel Park Racecourse Laurel Park, formerly Laurel Race Course, is an American thoroughbred racetrack located just outside Laurel, Maryland which opened in 1911. The track is miles in circumference. Its name was changed to "Laurel Race Course" for several decades un ...

, was named after Selima in 1926 and first held at the

Maryland State Fair The Maryland State Fair is an annual event held in the state of Maryland. It is hosted at the Maryland State Fairgrounds, located near York and Timonium roads in Timonium. As of 2006, the fair has been traditionally scheduled for a duration o ...

with a $30,000 challenge cup for two-year-old

fillies A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, th ...

References

External links

Selima at Pedigree Query
Retrieved August 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Selima (Horse) 1745 racehorse births Thoroughbred family 21 Racehorses bred in the Kingdom of Great Britain Racehorses trained in the United States

History

Legacy

See also

References

External links