Prince Rose


Prince Rose was a British-bred, Belgian-trained Thoroughbred racehorse, often referred to as the best horse in Belgian racing.

Background

Bred in England by Lord Durham, Prince Rose was sired by Rose Prince out of the mare Indolence. His grandsire was Prince Palatine, a two-time British Horse of the Year and his damsire was Gay Crusader, winner of the 1917 English Triple Crown.
The Earl of Durham died in 1929 and his estate sold Prince Rose to Henri Coppez who brought him to Belgium.

Racing career

At age three, Prince Rose won the Grand Prix de Bruxelles, beat the great French filly Pearl Cap in the :fr:Grand International d'Ostende|Grand International d'Ostende then was third to her in the 1931 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. In 1932, Prince Rose won the Prix du President de la Republique at Hippodrome de Saint-Cloud.

Stud record

Retired to stud duty after winning sixteen races in twenty starts, Prince Rose sired seven offspring in Belgium before being sent to the Haras de Cheffreville breeding Farm in France in 1938 where he would produce another thirty-five. The most notable of his French-bred was the colt Prince Chevalier who won a number of important races in France and became a leading sire there and in England. Another son, Prince Bio won the 1944 Prix Noailles and the Poule d'Essai des Poulains, among others. However, most important for horse racing in the United States, in 1939 Prince Rose had been mated with the mare Cosquilla who, because of the onset of World War II, was shipped to safety in Ireland. There, Cosquilla foaled Princequillo who would eventually be sent to race in the U.S. and who would become a very influential stallion. Prince Rose was killed by military gunfire in 1944.

Legacy

Prince Rose is the grandsire of the U.S. Champion filly Misty Morn and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame colts Hill Prince and Round Table. Other important descendants of Prince Rose include Mill Reef, Fort Marcy, Sham, and U.S. Triple Crown champion Secretariat.

Honours

The Grand International d'Ostende at Hippodrome Wellington in Ostend was renamed the Grand Prix Prince Rose in his honor.