King Alfonso as a Turfman: Spanish Ruler, Keen on Racing, Has Had Success as Owner and Breeder, Daily Racing Form, 1919-11-16

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KING ALFONSO AS A TURFMAN Spanish Ruler, Keen on Racinp, Has Had Success . as Owner and Breeders LONDON, England, November 1. The King of Spain being at present on a visit here some particulars of his career as an owner and also of the marvelous way in which he has popularized racing in Spain in the. space of only a few years cannot fail to be of interest.. No more popular monarch than the "Duke of Toledo," to give him the title under which he races, has ever visited this country. His colors, "purple, with red Burgundy cross, purple cap and gold tassel," were first sported only a a little more than three years ago, and from that time until the beginning of last week they had been carried by a total of seventy-one different horses, which among them won no fewer than ISO races. In 1910 the royal livery was credited with thirty-one successes, forty-nine in 1917, forty-two in 191S and fifty-eight in the present year. The best horse he has owned was Antivari, which twice carried off the big autumn prize at San Sebastian, while at Mont de Marsan he defeated all the best French horses of the war time,, also winning a big event at Chantllly and many minor races in Spain. The present season has been King Alfonsos most successful one. With seventeen starters in 130 races they have seenred among them forty-two weight-for-age races, nine handicaps, two selling races and five hurdle races. His best horse at present is Brabant, a French-bred son of Marsan Bruxelles II., which won ten races in succession, while his English two-year-old filly Mistake, by Littleton Miss Puff, has won all hep six races. Le Bourget, a gray five-year-old by Delaunay, won seven races at Santander and Madrid, and Toroboliel has secured five, while Roi de la Landc carried off five steeplechases in three weeks. It should not be overlooked that King Alfonso had the race course at Aran-juez the Spanish Ascot built and laid out on his own estate near Madrid, where the Spanish Derby is run. On both occasions it has fallen to bearers of his jacket in Souvenir dExile, by Bridge of Earn Monalecn, and Montmirail, by Bonspiel. The king is equally interested in breeding and Souvenir dExile is now at the stud, while Antivari which is by that good French sire Sea Sick stands at the new royal stud of Lore-Toki Hernani, close to the Franco-Spanish frontier. Of the twenty-one mares bred to Antivari this season nineteen are considered to be certain in foal.


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1910s/drf1919111601/drf1919111601_3_11
Local Identifier: drf1919111601_3_11
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800