Sir John Fenwick
(1579-1658)
of Fenwick and Wallington
Wallington Hall
built in 1688 on the site of
the old Fenwick castle
c 1675c. Sire Line Fenwick Barb.
That the "Fennick breed" was well respected among contemporaneous horsemen can be seen from the words of William Cavendish (1593-1676), 1st Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne, who wrote in his first work on horsemanship titled La Méthode et Invention Nouvelle de Dresser les Chevaux (1657-58) that Fenwick "had more Experience of Running Horses than any man in England; for he had more Rare Running Horses than all England besides, and the most part of all the Famous Running Horses in England that ran one against another were of his Race and Breed".
The Fenwick so praised was Sir John Fenwick (1579-1658) of Wallington, Northumberland, which lies about twenty miles northwest of Newcastle Upon Tyne. The ancient family of Fenwick had properties in Fenwick, Matfen, Wallington and Cambo along with other manors and royalties although Wallington House had been its chief seat for more than a century and noted for its hospitality to both equine and human. In the north of England it was said that "if you give your horse the bridle, he'll carry you to Wallington" [History of Newmarket 2:199].
Sir John represented Northumberland in parliament from 1623 up to and including the long parliament which sat from 1640 to 1649 prior to the Interregnum although he, along with others, was excluded from the House of Commons in 1643 for supporting the king and arrested by parliamentary forces in December of 1644. Having subsequently made his peace with parliament he was appointed high sheriff of Northumberland and readmitted to the House of Commons in 1646.
He was created baronet of Fenwick and Wallington in 1628 by King Charles I (1599-1641) and appointed as Surveyor of the Race at the Royal Stud at Tutbury, in Staffordshire, remaining in that post until the execution of the king. Whilst in this position he probably had some access to the stock at Tutbury and appears to have sold some of his own horses to Tutbury as well.
He was succeeded by Sir William Fenwick (1617c-1676), 2nd bt, son of Sir John and his second wife Grace, she the daughter of Thomas Lorain of Kirk-Harle, Northumberland. Sir William represented Northumberland in parliament from 1645 until his death.
Sir William was succeeded by Sir John Fenwick (1645c-1697), 3rd bt, son of Sir William and Grace, daughter of the Hon Mr Stapleton of Wighill, Yorkshire. He married Mary, daughter of Charles Howard (1629-1685), 1st Earl of Carlisle. He represented Northumberland in parliament from 1677 to 1685. In 1688 he entered the army where he attained the rank of major-general. It is said his animosity to the crown resulted from his tenure in Holland where he had been "severely reprimanded" by William of Orange (1650-1702), who acceded to the throne in 1689 as King William III. Implicated in Jacobite plots he was arrested in 1689 and although subsequently released and steadfastly maintaining his innocence for the duration he was eventually imprisoned and executed in 1697. Much of the Fenwick property had previously passed into the hands of the Blacketts.
The Fenwick Barb appears in the General Stud Book as "FENWICK BARB (sire of OLD WHYNOT) [GSB 1:389]. He could conceivably have been the property of any of these three Fenwicks.
Whynot
gr c 1685c (Fenwick Barb - Royal Mare). Sire Line Fenwick Barb.
Recorded in the General Stud Book as "WHYNOT, by The Fenwick Barb - Royal Mare" [GSB 1:384] he is the link between the Fenwick Barb and the rest of the bloodstock population although very little is actually known of him. His dam, the Royal Mare, was probably a descendant of one of the mares from the stud at Tutbury. Old Whynot is sometimes identified with the Whynot who ran at Newmarket in the 1680s although this implies a date of birth around 1675 and Whynot is credited with offspring from around 1690 to 1711. There is no pedigree associated with this horse.
In October of 1682 Sir Robert Car's Why Not lost by a length to King Charles II's Dragon in a match for 500 pounds over six miles at Newmarket and in October of 1684 Sir Robert Car's Why Not defeated HM's Dragon [Ye Olde New-Markitt Calendar:24,26]. This was probably the Rt Hon Sir Robert Carr (d Nov 1682), 3rd Bt Carr of Sleford, Lincolnshire, appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster from 1672 until his death [History of Newmarket 3: 7] although the horse must have continued to run in his name posthumously. Sir Robert was one who attested to the equestrian prowess of King Charles II (1630-1685), whose reign extended from 1660 to 1685, when he wrote: "Yesterday his majestie Rode himself three heats and a course and won the Plate, all fower were hard and nere run, and I doe assure you the King wonn by good Horseman Ship" [History of Newmarket 2:326]. Sir Robert married Elizabeth Bennett, sister of Henry, Lord Arlington (1618-1685), owner of the Arlington Barb Mare who heads Family 43.
However, Old Whynot is often referred to in pedigrees as the Wilkinson Whynot. For example, Smales's Childers was "got by Bartlett's Childers; dam by the Byerley Turk, out of a daughter of Mr Wilkinson's Whynot" [Pick 1:32]. If the Wilkinson Whynot was a different horse than the Carr Whynot then the date problem could be resolved. It is also possible that there were other Whynots in the right time frame or that Whynot ran under a different name.
Old Whynot Offspring
Whynot Mare (GB)
(f 1690c) second dam of Bold Thirkeld (b g 1719c) winner of several plates for galloways in 1727 and 1728, and Smales's Childers (b c 1726 Bartlet's Childers) winner of several plates in 1732.
Grey Whynot (GB)
(gr f 1695c) dam of Rider's Cupid (c 1700c St. Victor's Barb), Bald Galloway (c 1705c St. Victor's Barb), Points (f 1707c St. Victor's Barb) one of the foundation mares of Family 15, and Leedes Mare (f 1710c Leedes) the latter the third dam of the King's Plate winner Lord Strange's Sportsman (b c 1747 Derby's Whitefoot).
Whynot Mare (GB)
(f 1695c) dam of Mr Egerton's Bald Lump (c 1710c St. Victor's Barb). The General Stud Book notes that his dam is said to be by Whynot, or Rider's Chesnut Barb [GSB 1:377].
Sister to Grey Whynot (GB)
(f 1700c) fourth dam of Lord Bolingbroke's good winner Doge (ch c 1762 Regulus) and Mr Bland's Duchess (f 1760c Babraham) who was sent to America.
Snail (GB)
[Wharton's, Blackett's] (c 1710c) a failure on the turf but fared better as a stallion getting, among others, Mr Witty's Milkmaid (b f 1720) a winner at York and grandam of Tartar (ch c 1743 Crofts Partner) who subsequently got King Herod (b c 1758).
Sister to Snail (GB)
(f 1711c) a foundation mare of Family 43.
Whynot Mare (GB)
(f 1711c) dam of the Lord Tankerville's winner Bay Wilkinson (b c 1717 Lister's Snake), second dam of the stallion Grisewood's Partner (gr c 1730 Crofts Partner) and third dam of Lord Portmore's winner Highlander (gr c 1742 Victorious).
1. "Old Grey Whynot Son of the ffenwick Barb ... Whynot was famous boath for Raceing and a Stallion he was Son of ffenwick Barb" in the pedigree of Countess from Lord Rockingham's collection of pedigrees [WWM/R193/45; Sheffield Archives].
2. Darcy's Whynott, "gott by a horse call'd Foster, Whynott out of Darcy's Royall Mare" from a list of mares belonging to the Duchess of Newcastle in 1712 [Early Records: 124].
3. A "Gray Stone-Horse, called Gray-Conyers, the Horse is 14 Hands and a half high, late belonging to Sir John Swinburn ... the Sire of the Horse was got by Mr Pullam's Arabian, and out of a Byerly Mare, belonging to Sir William St Quinton, Bart. The Dam of the said Gray-Conyers, was out of a Royal Mare of Mr Wilkinson's of West Laiton, and got by old Why-not, belonging to Esquire Forster of Bainsbrough. Test. Christopher Clayton, Newcastle" [Newcastle Courant, Saturday, May 11, 1728].
4. "Victorious was got by Rufler, his Dam by the late Hutton's grey Barb, his Grandam by Bay Whynot, which was the Dam of Bay Wilkinson" from the pedigree of Mariamne [Pond: 1754].
5. "Turpin was bred by Mr. Routh, and got by the Smales Childers, Son of the Bartlet Childers, Son of the Darley Arabian. The Dam of Smales Childers was got by the Byerley Turk, his Grand Dam by the Wilkinson Whynot, Son of the Fenwick Barb" [Cheny: 1743].
6. "Young Childers, sold by Mr Smales to Mr Justice in 1734; he was gott by Childers, his dam by Byerley Turk, his grand-dm by Mr Wilkinson’s Whynot: she was dam to both the Noted horses at Newmarket, and was one of Mr Wilkinson’s old Arabian breed, and made a prest of to old Mr Mathw Smales for his son", from Cuthbert Routh's stud book [Early Records: 27]
7. "The famous Bay Horse call'd Smales Childers; or, Young Thirkeld ... This Horse was bred by Matthew Smales, Esq; at Gilling near Richmond in Yorkshire, and got by Mr Bartlet's Young Childers; his Dam by Byerly Turk, his Grand Dam by Mr Wilkinson's Why-not, she was Dam to the two noted Horses at New Market, Matt. and Smales" [Newcastle Courant, Saturday, March 11, 1737-8].
8. Why Not Mare, "out of ye Old Whynot Mare, and got by St. Martins", from a list of mares in the Duke of Ancaster's stud, 1719-1737, [Early Records: 80].
9. "A Beautiful Grey Stone-Horse ... His Pedigree is as follows: He was bred by his Grace the late Duke of Ancaster, and got by the famous Winn’s Arabian, Sire of Crab, Driver and Musick; his Dam was call’d the Whynot Mare, and she was got by Pullen’s White Foot Merlin. The above is a true Pedigree, Witness my Hand, Tho. Hawkins, Gentleman of Horse to the late and present Duke" [York Courant, Tuesday, February 16, 1747-8].
10. "Shakespear ... was got by Hobgoblin, his Dam by Bartlett’s Childers, which bred Blank, Genus, Slug, and Mr Prentice’s Trimmer, which was full Brother to Shakespear; her Dam was the Flying Whig; She was got by the Woodstock Arabian, Sire of Spider and Points; his Grand Dame [sic] St Victors Barb, Sire of the Bald Galloway, and out of a Daughter of Old Why-Not, Son of the Fennick Barb" [Ipswich Journal, Saturday, March 1, 1755].
11. "Joseph Andrews ... He was got by Roundhead, who was out of Roxana and the Devonshire Childers; Joseph's dam was got by Hipp, bred by Charles Pelham, Esq; and got by the Old Bay Barb; his Grandam by Mr Hartley's blind Horse; his Great Grandam was Old Flying Whigg, bred by Lord Godolphin. She was got by the Woodstock Arabian, her Dam by St Victor's Barb, who got the Old Bald galloway, and her Grandam by Old Grey Why-not. Leonard Hartley" [ York Courant, Tuesday, February 27, 1749-50].
12. "Babraham was got by the earl of Godolphin’s Arabian, and out of his Lordship’s large Hartley Mare; she was got by Mr Hartley’s blind Horse, a Son of the Holderness Turk; she was out of Mr Ovington’s Flying Whigg, which was got by Williams’s Arabian, at Woodstock, the sire of Mr Frampton’s Spider; and Points, her Dam, was bred by Capt. Rider, and got by the St Victor Barb, out of a Daughter of Why-not. The St Victor Barb was the Sire of the Bald Galloway" [Whitehall Evening-Post, From Tuesday March 18, to Thursday March 20, 1755].
13. "The Dam of the said bald Galloway was a Why not Royal Mare, which Why not was got by the Fenwick Barb" [Cheny: 1744].
14. "Bald Galloway, which was bred by the late Captain Rider of Northamptonshire, and got by a Barb of Monsieur St. Victor's of France. His Dam was called a Why not Royal Mare, she being got by Why not, a Son of the Fenwick Barb, and a Descendant of one of the Mares, called Royal Mares, from their being procured abroad, by the Interest of, and coming to England in, the time of King Charles the Second" [Cheny: 1746].
15. "Sportsman, Lord Strange's, was got by (the Earl of Derby's Stallion) Whitefoot; his Dam by Nathan, a Son of Lord Lonsdale's Arabian, his Grand Dam by the Earl of Godolphin's Dumplin, his Great Grand Dam by Leeds, out of grey Why not" [Pond: 1753, 1754].