History of badminton horse trials

Choose one of the sections below to read more about the history of Badminton Horse Trials on the estate and past results. The dukedom of Beaufort was created in , being granted to Henry, 3rd Marquess of Worcester in reward for his service to the Stuart monarchy. The Manor of Badminton was purchased by the Worcesters in , originally for a younger son of the family.

Some of which have claimed their own records. Four horses hold the joint record for the most completions of Badminton, Ballycotton with Andrew Harris from and with Sarah Longshaw in , Comanche with James Robinson, and , Lenamore with Caroline Powell , and Over To You with Jeanette Brakewell in , and Chilli Morning took the title in with his Rider William Fox-Pitt, and he remains the only stallion in the history of Badminton Horse Trials to win the event.

Since then, the interest in the sport has grown exponentially. Along with its rise to fame thanks to some outstanding sponsorship, the prize fund for the notorious event had made a dramatic increase. A special mention should go to Mitsubishi Motors for its record breaking year reign, whose final year was But is it really the prize money that draws these riders to tackle the infamous cross-country course?

Realising the fame and glory that comes with mastering the ultimate test of stamina, power, obedience, and accuracy, and cementing their names in the history books. Ian Stark — In , Stark became the first, and to date, the only rider to claim both first and second prize in the same year. He won on Sir Wattie and came second on Glenburnie. Having led on both horses after the cross-country phase, he was so busy giving interviews that he missed the course walk for the show jumping and had to rely on a description given by his trainer, Dick Stillwell.

Lucinda Green — The current record holder for the most wins at Badminton. Lucinda has won the horse trials on six separate occasions. Until that time, it had always taken place in the courtyard of the stables at Badminton. An Armada Dish is awarded to any rider who completes the competition five times — see Armada Dishes for more information.

The car parks, tradestands, arena and cross country courses fit into an area of approximately hectares acres of Badminton Park. Directors of Badminton Horse Trials; Lt. Colonel Trevor Horn , Lt. Colonel Gordon Cox Cox , Lt. Colonel Frank Weldon and Mr. Hugh Thomas, present day.

Alan and his sons are internationally acclaimed and were coursebuilders at the Sydney Olympics in the year and built the World Equestrian Games course for They were also the coursebuilders for the Olympic Games in Rio in A British team competed, without much success. Before the War the competition had been largely confined to cavalry officers and the only training for the team was their normal cavalry exercises. Women were naturally not allowed to take part!

The 10th Duke of Beaufort attended the event as a spectator and immediately recognised that the hunting and racing traditions in Britain should enable riders to do well in this Olympic competition. He suggested that an annual competition be organised on his Estate at Badminton, to give riders experience and assist in the training and selection of an Olympic team.

The Duke was involved with horses all his life — his major passion being fox hunting. He was Master of the Horse for the Royal Family, responsible for the organisation of the equine side of all ceremonial occasions.

Trevor Horn agreed to act as Director, assisted by Col. The Badminton Estate has been in the possession of the Beaufort family since In , the Steeplechase course was moved from the Didmarton point-to-point course to the site at The Slaits, where it stayed until discontinued in Whitbread sponsored Badminton Horse Trials from until , making it one of the longest sponsorships in sporting history.

Mitsubishi-Motors took over the sponsorship in and the riders compete for the silver Mitsubishi Motors Trophy designed and produced by the Wiltshire-based sculptress, Judy Boyt.

On just four occasions bad weather has forced the cancellation of the Trials— in , , and The Foot and Mouth epidemic also caused the cancellation of the Event. In Andrew Hoy nearly took the title but lost out when he had a pole down showjumping at Burghley- a heart-breaking 4 faults!

Fast forward to today and the cross-country day at Badminton attracts crowds of up to a quarter of a million and is the second largest for money made in the world. We look forward to a spectacular event next week and wish all those competing the very best of luck.