A HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



Afterwards the Grand Steeplechase was 

 run ; only three horses competed. 



I St. Captain Lamb's Vivian 

 2nd. Mr. Lambden's Laura 

 3rd. Mr. Lambden's Vespasian 



The following day another steeplechase 

 came off at Little Houghton, in which the 

 following horses ran: — 



Lord Waterford's Yellow Dwarf, ridden 



by owner 

 Mr. Anderson's Jerry 

 Captain Childe's Conrad 

 Mr. Fairlie's Spicey, ridden by Captain 

 Bether 



Captain Phillipson withdrew his mare 

 Mirth, because he considered the fences im- 

 practicable. 



Captain Childe's Conrad and Lord Water- 

 ford's Yellow Dwarf made the running, and 

 were both well over the first brook. At the 

 second brook, however, so many Northamp- 

 tonians had assembled that Lord Waterford 

 had to take the water almost at a stand, the 

 consequence was that, although he got over, 

 the bank gave way and he fell into the brook. 

 Conrad got well over and came in first, Jerry 

 second, and Spicey third. 



Seven years later the Brixworth course was 

 again used, when a steeplechase was run on 

 Thursday, 26 November, 1840. This was 

 a very popular event, and the trains on the 

 Wednesday brought numbers of sportsmen, 

 who filled all the hotels and inns of Northamp- 

 ton. In the morning the riders weighed out 

 at the Rose and Crown Inn, the horses 

 being : — 



Mr. Anderson's Cigar, ridden by 



Mr. McDonough 

 Mr. T. Oliver's Grayling, ridden by 



the owner 

 Mr. Quartermain's Zethus, ridden by 



Mr. Powell 

 Sir. E. Mostyn's Tobacconist, ridden by 



Mr. Whitworth 

 Mr. E. Davey's Gay Lad, ridden by 



Capt.iin Skipworth. 



Captain Quinton and Mr. A. W. Williams, 

 1 0th Hussars,were the Stewards, and Mr. Joseph 

 Tomlin, of Lye Lodge, Leicestershire, selected 

 the line of country. The race was open to 

 any horse in the world, Mr. Elmore's Lottery 

 only excepted. The start was in a large field 

 on the side of the hill in the Brixworth 

 lordship, adjoining the lane leading from the 

 Brixworth Road to Brampton. The course 

 passed close to Merry Tom, then over two 

 ploughed fields in the lordship of Spratton, to 



a field barn in the occupation of Mr. Smith ; 

 round the barn to Spratton bridge, and then 

 round Lord Spencer's clump of trees in the 

 lordship of Brampton, and so back to the 

 starting point. The race was not started 

 until past four o'clock in the afternoon, when 

 the five horses got well away together, Cigar 

 leading ; all safely over the brook, and all 

 close together at the barn ; when nearing home 

 on the flat, Zethus headed Cigar, but ulti- 

 mately the latter won by a length, the others 

 being not twenty yards behind. There are four 

 coloured prints, by Charles Hunt, of this race, 

 entitled 'The Start,' 'The Brook,' 'The 

 Fence,' 'Coming in.' 



The Pytchley Hunt Steeplechases were 

 held in this valley, further up the stream, in 

 1855, and again in 1856, when the Grand 

 Military events were held here jointly with 

 the Pytchley chase. The army had just 

 returned from the Crimea, and the meeting, 

 which had been an annual festival for several 

 seasons before hostilities broke out with 

 Russia, was revived in Northamptonshire. 

 The course extended into the Cottesbrooke 

 pastures, and the Brixworth Brook was the 

 principal feature in the line, the winning-posts 

 being placed very near to it. A notable horse 

 named Horniblow ran that day ; he won 

 the Grand Military Steeplechase, and the 

 light-weight race of four miles on the same 

 afternoon. He was ridden by his owner, Lieut. 

 Henry Blundell, then of the Rifle Brigade, 

 afterwards of the Grenadier Guards, now 

 Colonel Blundell, C.B., M.P. 



In iSsjthesoldiersagaincametothiscountry 

 to run their steeplechase, and the same line 

 was chosen, though traversed the contrary way 

 to that of the preceding year. The winning 

 field was close to the village of Cottesbrooke. 

 There was a desperate race for the principal 

 event, Horniblow being beaten a neck by 

 Magnet, as decided by the judge, whose task 

 was a very difficult one, as the horses finished 

 very wide of each other. Viscount Talon, a 

 French officer, rode Magnet. 



The Grand Military and Northampton 

 Open Steeplechases were again held in this 

 county on 29 March, i860, at Wootton. 

 The starting point was in afield called Milton 

 Leys, in the occupation of Mr. J. Dickens ; 

 the line then went towards Dane's Camp, by 

 the mere and General Bouverie's covert, over 

 the brook, towards Mr. Manning's house at 

 Milton Ham, then back over the brook again 

 by Lady Bridge, and into the winning field, 

 where the grand stand was erected. Almost 

 the whole of the course was over land belonging 

 to Mr Harris. Some 25,000 or 30,000 

 people were present at the meeting ; the first 



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