Firebrand

Firebrand (1839–1861) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who won the classic 1000 Guineas at Newmarket Racecourse in 1842. The race was the only competitive win of the filly's racing career: her other success came when she was allowed to walk over at Newmarket a year later. In all, Firebrand ran ten times between July 1841 and May 1843, recording two wins and four places. Background Firebrand was a chestnut mare bred by her owner Lord George Bentinck from two horses bred and owned by Robert Wilson, 9th Baron Berners who died in 1838. Firebrand was sired by Wilson's stallion Lamplighter, a successful racehorse who won the Craven Stakes, The Whip and several King's Plates at Newmarket. Firebrand's dam, the Rubens mare, was an unnamed daughter of Rubens out of Tippitywitchet, was one of the outstanding broodmares of her time. Her other foals included the Ascot Gold Cup winner Camarine (foaled 1828), The Derby winner Phosphorus (1834) and the 1000 Guineas winner May-day (1831). Both Phosphorus and May-day were sired by Lamplighter making them full siblings to Firebrand. Firebrand was a lightly built, delicate filly and Bentinck sought to build her strength with an experimental diet consisting of milk, flour and newly laid eggs. He purchased several cows to provide the milk, and insisted that the eggs should be marked with the farmer's initials to guarantee their provenance and freshness. Racing career