sire lines
Total Eclipse of the sire line I T N 1981, the year in which his cornerstone book “The Classic Racehorse” was published, the late Peter Willett penned an article which we reprinted in the June-July issue of International Thoroughbred in which he pondered how a relatively small number of sires have wielded a disproportionate influence on the
HIS WINNOWING DOWN of sire lines is actually just the continuation of a 300-year process. The Acaster Turk was the first horse to be recognised as a leading sire in England and Ireland when he headed the list in 1721, the year before the Darley Arabian finished on top. There were several other stallions who were not from the Darley Arabian, Byerley Turk or Godolphin Arab lines that also headed the leading sires’ list. They include the Thoulouse Barb in 1723, the Bloody Buttocks Arabian in 1739, and Bald Galloway (by St. Victor’s Barb) in 1725. The D’Arcy White Turk founded a male line that saw two great-grandsons take the title – Fox in 1731 and 1735, and Bay Bolton seven times from 1724 to 1734, with his son Bolton Starling scoring in 1744.
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continuing development of the thoroughbred. In our final installment, Alan Porter brings the series together and argues that the “Eclipse wipeout” was in fact caused by his descendant Phalaris and, that although sire line variability has diminished over the years, the international outcross has in fact created more broadly bred horses than previously.
Speed, or at least acceleration, was also the driving force behind the way in which the Northern Dancer line swept away older European Classic strains in the 1980s and 1990s
The last leading sire in England and Ireland not to descend from one of the three “founding fathers” was Crab, who topped the list for the third time in 1750. He was by another leading sire –Alcock’s Arabian, who was a son of Curwen’s Bay Barb. Looking back and with the benefit of hindsight, the “Eclipse wipeout” of other sire lines was really ensured by the advent of Phalaris. A faster horse than the most fashionable stallions of his day, his progeny allied that speed with an ability to run at least middledistances. The damage was done with a pair of brothers bred on the Phalaris/Chaucer cross – Pharos and his brother Fairway, and Pharamond and his brother Sickle. At one stage all stood at the head of sire lines of their own. Pharos is sire of Nearco and through him
