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The Racing Stables at Westcourt
The building in Westcourt now occupied by the Tedworth Hunt were originally 2 farmhouses, then a school and then, from 1897 to 1948, a race horse training establishment. Today the only reminder of those glorious days is the footpath called Jockey Lane - the shortest route from the stables to the village pubs. The stables shared the gallops on Burbage Downs, near Easton Clump, with a similar establishment in Milton Lilbourne.
The original trainer was Herbert Braime and he was followed in 1935 by his son Lewis. I was recently contacted by Lewis's son Tony Braime who kindly contributed the following information about his father and grandfather and some rather nice photographs.
My grandfather, Herbert Braime, leased Westcourt House from the Savernake estate in 1897 (the previous tenant was a Thomas Pierce, “late of School House and garden”). The first year’s rent was £30. Herbert, known as “Sandy”, trained up to 29 horses at a time until his death in 1935. Shortly after that the family had to buy the House when the Marquess of Ailesbury put it up for sale. My father, Herbert’s son Lewis (“Tod”) Braime, continued training at Westcourt until WWII when racing ceased and the stable block was requisitioned to house a detachment of soldiers. He was invalided out of the army and although he re-started training after the war ill-health forced him to sell Westcourt in 1948. He died in 1960. Notable wins for the stable included the Ascot Gold Cup, the Craven Stakes, and the Oaks. Two future winners of the Grand National were trained by Herbert although neither were at Westcourt when they won.
The following show aspects of Westcourt life between 1920 and 1948
A ‘string’ of yearling race horses outside Westcourt House around 1920. The small tower behind the leading horse was a miniature gasometer; the house generated its own gas for lighting from aviation spirit. During WWII this was not available and as electricity did not reach Westcourt until after the war the house had to be lit by 16 oil lamps.
Another string outside Westcourt House in 1920. Note that the pond seems to be in good condition and how narrow the roadway was at that time!
Part of the stable block in 1928, with stable lad’s accommodation above. There was another ‘wing’ on the left.
The gallops where the horses were exercised were on Burbage Down, where this picture of Sandy (standing) and Tod was taken in 1932.
Westcourt Farm in 1937, when it was occupied by the Green family.
Westcourt House in 1937, with the two magnificent Monkey Puzzle trees on the front lawn.
Tod’s wife Doris and her pest controllers in the back garden, 1937. She died in 1985.
View of Westcourt lane and Easton Hill from an upstairs window in 1937.
Another shot of Westcourt lane in 1937. The pond is nearly overgrown by now
Westcourt in 1939. The rose beds along the drive were destroyed by army vehicles during the war.
During WWII horse racing ceased. Tod Braime joined the army and the stable block was occupied by soldiers. The photo shows the officers and N.C.O.’s of 223 Battery 56th (A.T.) regiment of the Royal Artillery who were stationed at Westcourt in 1940.
Nigel Simpson is planning a book about the 223rd and writes -
"As regards a brief history of the 223 Battery, it was initially commanded by Major Cross-Pedley and 2nd in command was Captain Mason, so it could be either in the photo. The Battery came back from Dunkirk and became completely detached from the 56th Reg, and was supposed to be used as a flying column against the proposed German invasion. The Major was badly wounded in France and so the new C/O was Major Ian Toler. The 223 Battery moved to Velindre in Wales where they were told they would become airborne. Many men left as they didn’t fancy a parachute drop and so men came in to replace them, which included my dad, who eventually became a Gun Sergeant and later a Staff Sergeant in the Battery, hence my interest. The Battery went to N. Africa under the new name 1st airlanding A/T battery and took part in the invasion of Sicily in July 1943, where they made history as the first unit to ever fly their guns to battle by air in Horsa and Waco gliders. So they are in deed a very famous unit. They then went to Italy by sea invasion and after returning home, in September 1944 they flew in entirety to Arnhem, Holland as part of the ‘Bridge too Far’. The whole battery was virtually destroyed and taken POW, but had set the standard and so was reformed and went as part of the liberating force to Norway in 1945."
This is a copy of a postcard probably bought around 1949
Anthony Braime playing at Westcourt Pond in 1943
In 1921 the All Sports magazine featured the Westcourt Racing Stable and the following is a transcript of the article
ALL SPORTS WEEKLY
FEBRUARY 12th, 1921.
Peeps at Famous Racing Stables
HERBERT BRAIME AT BURBAGE, WILTS.
By "TOUCHSTONE."
This Clever and Experienced Trainer Won the Oaks Last Season with Charlebelle.
ONE of our cutest and most experienced trainers is Herbert Braime, familiarly known to his friends as “ Sandy .” What this clever little man does not know about racing is hardly worth knowing. He went “through the mill” in the orthodox fashion in his boyhood days, and worked his way up to be head lad to Charles Cunliffe, at Seven Barrows.
Early Days.
They had some great horses in the stable in those days, and “ Sandy ” can tell some good stories of Surefoot and Bendigo, whose names will always live in the history of racing. The former was a brilliant winner of the Two Thousand Guineas, but he “blotted his copybook” badly in the Derby, attempting to savage another horse during the race. Moreover, he failed to stay the course, so the odds which were laid on him were upset in sensational style. In other races, however, Surefoot made amends, his victory in the Eclipse Stakes being particularly noteworthy.
Bendigo will be remembered as one of the most lion-hearted performers of his time, his magnificent weight-carrying achievements have seldom been surpassed. What made Bendigo a special favourite in the stable was his particularly docile temper. It is said of him that both before and after a race he would stand as quiet as an old sheep, and it was quite a customary and pleasing sight to see him, after some more than usually severe struggle, contentedly munching an apple.
More than twenty years have passed since Braime decided to start racing on his own account. He took up his quarters at Westcourt House, Burbage, and there he has been ever since. Burbage is not far from Marlborough, in Wiltshire, where Alec Taylor has his great stable, and the gallops in these parts are as fine as any to be found in the kingdom. “Sandy” has never had so long or so fashionable a string under his care as his neighbour, the so-called Wizard of Manton, but he has done exceedingly well with the material that has been given him to train, and his record in the profession is entirely creditable.
One of his earliest patrons was the late Mr. Francis Alexander, who lived near him, at Everleigh House. That sportsman at one time trained with John Porter, at Kingsclere, but when that establishment was converted into a limited company in the autumn of 1903, all his horses were sent to Braime. Among the new arrivals at Burbage was Throwaway. John Porter has told us that this horse when at Kingsclere was at least two stone behind William the Third. All the more credit, therefore, to “ Sandy“ Braime for having won such a race as the Ascot Gold Cup with him.
Many of you will recall the consternation which reigned at Ascot when Throwaway carried off the Cup. It was a regular smack between the eyes for backers. There were only four runners. Odds of 5 to 4 were laid on Zinfandel. Sceptre was second favourite at 7 to 4, and there was a little money for the French horse, Maximum II , but Throwaway was practically friendless in the market at 20 to 1. Yet Mr. Alexander’s horse, ridden by Willie Lane (who died not long ago), won the race by a length from Zinfandel, with Sceptre another three-quarters of a length behind.
A Sensational Gold Cup.
Of course, the result was set down as a fluke, but you cannot withhold credit from Braiine for having got his horse so magnificently fit that he was able to defeat two of the champions of their time over one of the most severe courses known in racing.On the contrary, I maintain that “Sandy” is fully entitled to look back upon that day as one of the proudest of his life.
As you know, the Gold Cup at Ascot is one of the most coveted prizes on the Turf, and if you can win it with a comparatively moderate animal, so much greater the honour to his trainer. Anyway, Mr. Alexander was not disposed to make light of the triumph, and when he died in 1914 he bequeathed the Gold Cup to his eldest son, together with sundry other racing trophies, expressing the hope that they would be regarded as heirlooms.
At the same Ascot meeting Braime won another nice race for Mr. Alexander with Andover , who had also come to him with the Kingsclere lot. Later in the season Andover also credited the stable with such races as the North Derby, at Gosforth Park, the Knowsley Dinner Stakes, at Aintree , and the Champion Breeders Stakes, at Derby . At the end of the yearBraime could point to he winners of eighteen races value £11,104, a result which firmly established him upon the highroad to success.
A Hunt Cup Winner.
In the following season Andover only won one race, but when I tell you that it was the Royal Hunt Cup you will understand that owner and trainer were not disposed to be dissatisfied with the horse. I remember that Andover was strongly fancied for the big Ascot handicap but there was such a furore for the Foxlill horse, Sir Daniel, at the eleventh hour that you were able to secure 10 to 1 about the Burbage horse. Sir Daniel gave a sorry display, and Andover , ridden by B Lynham, won comfortably by a couple of lengths from Pharisee.
That was another good year for “Sandy” Braime, though the total value of the stakes won by his horses was not so great as in the preceding season. He won some excellent prizes with a good mare called Bitters, who was unlucky enough to run up against such a smasher as Pretty Polly in the Oaks at Epsom, where she was second, but she won the less important Yorkshire Oaks, and continued her successes at Ascot and other meetings as a four-year old. There was another useful performer in the stable at this time called Chuckaway, who also was a winner at Ascot. For Mr. Alexander “Sandy” trained a winner of the Liverpool SpringCup in Zorzal, who though by no means one of the favourites, made a rare example of her field.
Since the [First World] War.
I hardly need tell you that the death of Mr. Alexander was a blow to Braime, and in the years of the war he only had a few horses at Burbage. However, the stable soon got back to strength when racing was resumed on its normal lines especially as it received an influential new patron in Mr. A P Cunliffe. “Burlington Bertie”, so admirably characterised by Miss Ella Shields, says that when he is on the rails at Sandown Park , “You ought to see Cunliffe watch me!” I don’t know how the owner in question takes this little reference to himself in the popular song, but, at any rate it serves to mark Mr. Cunliffe’s important standing in the racing world. He has long held the reputation of being one of the most wide-awake men on the Turf. You will remember the notable days of Druid’s Lodge which was as formidable as any stable of its time. I do not propose in this article to go exhaustively into Mr. Cunliffe’s racing career, though it would make interesting reading. I content myself with recalling the good luck which fell to him when his Aboyeur received the Derby upon the much discussed disqualification of Craganour.
Charlebelle.
Among the yearlings which Mr. Cunliffe sent to Burbage two years ago was a filly sired by Charles O’Malley, a horse who had earned his colours with much distinction. Called Charlebelle, she was always conspicuous in the Burbage string on account of her unusual colour—black. “ Sandy” Braime soon found that she could gallop but the season was wel1 advanced when she made her first appearance—in the International Plate at Kempton Park.
Mr. Cunliffe is not in the habit of allowing his supposed good things to run unbacked and we soon found his “dark” filly a pretty strong favourite. What happened to her in the race I could never make out, except that she performed a long way below expectations. Both her owner and trainer had long faces when they saw her beaten out of a place behind Paragon.
Of course, the opportunity was taken of galloping her again at Burbage. She showed them that her running at Kempton must have been all wrong, so when she made her next public appearance, in a big field for a maiden race at Newbury, she was again a strong order in the market. This time she won and though the margin in her favour was only a head, I remember being sufficiently impressed by her performance as to take the offer of 33 to 1 which was being made about her by a North country bookmaker for the Lancashire Nursery later in the season. Bear in mind, the weights were not out then.
Her Classic Triumph.
I had the satisfaction of seeing her win her next race, a nursery at Newbury, in great style. They gave her 7st. 9lb. in the Lancashire Nursery. I had some fine hedging, seeing that she started at 11 to 4 and I was on at 33’s. It was one of the nicest bets I have made in the course of my racing enterprises. To my relief, she won by a head from March Along. Thus, with the exception of that unaccountable initial defeat, she had an unbeaten record as a two year old.
The first time we saw Charlebelle last year was in the Holiday Handicap at Hurst Park on Whit Monday. As usual, she was well backed, being a good favourite in a field of nine Braime’s chief objective at that time, pf course, was the Epsom Oaks and I doubt whether the filly was quite wound up at Hurst Park. Anyway, she ran creditably, finishing second to King’s Idler.
Then came her race at Epsom. Would she be good enough to beat Cinna, heroine of the One Thousand Guineas? Braime had once more galloped her satisfactorily and had satisfied himself that she would stay the Oaks course. So Mr Cunlfffe and his friends again “went out for the gloves” and I imagine they must have had a remunerative race, as, thanks >to the strong public faith in Cinna they were able to secure at least 7 to 2 to their money.
The splendid struggle between the two gallant fillies is still fresh in memory. First one then the other seemed to hold the upper hand, but “Sandy was right about Charlebelle’s stamina. She stayed on just the better of the two and won a great race by a neck. Thus, Mr. Cunliffe enjoyed his second and Braime his first classic triumph.
It was then decided to send Charlebelle to France for the Grand Prix, but the filly had none the best of the luck and did not run again last season.
OBITUARIES
The following two excepts are from “A Biographical Dictionary of Racehorse Trainers in Berkshire 1859-1939” by David Boyd:
"BRAIME Herbert (1869-1935). Born in Liverpool, Herbert (“Sandy”) Braime was a stable lad at Seven Barrows working for Charles Jousiffe and Garrett Moore. The latter installed him as nominee trainer there. He started 1892 with 57 horses, the stable having had about 40 inmates the previous year. Braime continued to hold a licence to ride under JC Rules up to 1897. In 1896 he was training 52 horses for the six owners in the stable. Soon afterwards Braime set up as a public trainer at Lambourn but his stables were immediately destroyed by fire. He moved to Westcourt House at Burbage and trained the winner of the 1899 Craven Stakes there. That year he trained ten winners. In 1901 his string was 12 including horses of his own. After Kingsclere became a private stable at the end of the 1903 season Mr. Francis Alexander (died 1914) sent his horses to Braime who won the Ascot Gold Cup the next year. Other winners included the 1904 Yorkshire Oaks and another Craven five years later. By 1905 he was training a string of 25 and had 21 the following year. The stable was 23 in 1908 and in 1909 he was up to 29 but by 1915 he was down to 9. His stable had effectively shut itself down by that June and he joined other trainers in Ireland. Following the closure of Druid’s Lodge he trained some of Mr. Percy Cunliffe’s horses and won the Oaks for him with Charlebelle (Albert Whalley) in 1920. Cunliffe later himself took out a Flat licence from 1923 to 1928 at Druid’s Lodge). In 1917 his stable was nine, his owners including Mr. Etienne de Mestre. In 1921 he was training 28 horses, his owners including himself and Mr. William Higgs. At the beginning of 1922 his string was 28 but he was down to ten by the following year. Braime trained two future winners of the Grand National though neither was in his stable at the time of its victory. Other important wins included the 1931 Newbury Autumn Handicap, the 1930 Liverpool Autumn Cup, and the 1932 Queens Prize. In 1926 his stable was much increased to 28 but in 1929 went down to 10. A quiet and reserved man, much respected, Sandy Braime trained his last winner a month before his death at Westcourt House on 22 September 1935.”
“.. .Because of lack of opportunity in England during the Great War Rogers and several other trainers (including Sandy Braime, Leonard Cundell and Thomas Schofield) took out licenses to train in Ireland.”
And from a local paper:
"The late Mr. Herbert Braime. Funeral at Lambourn. The funeral of the late Mr. Herbert Braime, the well-known Burbage racehorse trainer, took place at St. Luke's, Lambourn, on Thursday in the presence of a large and representative attendance of friends and fellow trainers.
The chief mourners included the widow, Mr. J.S. Braime and Mr. L. Braime (sons) Mrs. F. Vines (daughter), Mr. R. Braime (brother) Mrs. J.S. Braime and Mr. F. Vines. Mr. E. Wigan, one of his oldest patrons, was prevented by illness from being present, but Mrs. E. Wigan was there and others included:- Capt. Guy Alexander, Mr. C.L. Morgan, Mr. W.H. Morgan, Mr. G.S. Cooper (Easton Royal), Mr. J. Whitton Aris (representing the Marquis of Ailesbury) Dr. E.R. Sarra (Twyford), Mr. A.H. Graves (representing the Earl of Cardigan), Mr. R.F. Ford (Woodborough), Mtr. G. Smith (Reading), Mr.C.A. Butler (Beckhampton), Mr. M. G. Hartigan (Ogbourne), Mr. W. Vines (Burbage), representative the Lambourn Garages, Mr. J. Keating (Ogbourne), Mr. C. Easterbee (Stockbridge), Mr. H.G. Fergusson, Mr. Chas. Pratt, Mrs. V. Hobbs, Mr. J. Mine, Mr. J. Linton, Mr. F.B, Cleek, Mr. H. J. Rodbourn, Mr. H. Vinney, Mr.D. Fraser and employees of the Burbage establishment.
There was a wealth of floral tributes, amongst which were wreaths from the stable employees, Major Barclay, Capt. Guy and Major Alexander, Mr. Joe Lawson, Brownie Carslake, Joe Childs, Sam Wragg, Capt. Rivers. Capt. Williams, etc.”
I have extracted the following data is from the 1924 “Racing up-to-date”, published by the Sporting Chronicle, and concluded that given that as they only had a maximum of 29 horses, the Braimes were running a very successful stable at this time.
In 1924 Mr. H Braime was training for F.J. Alexander, F.M. Garda, E.A. Wigan and himself. Mr. Wigan also had horses at Mr. Gore of Findon.
During that year’s flat racing season he had 9 horses which won races:
VERITA 4 outings, 1 win, 2x3rds, 1x4th. (Won the Beckhampton Plate at Newbury on 11th April, £167)
CANTATA 4 outings, 1 win, 2x3rd. (Won the Scurry Plate at Haydock on 24th May, £172)
DESULTOR 9 outings, 2 wins, 1x2nd, 1x3rd. (Won the Maiden Plate at Salisbury on 30th May, £167, and the Beckhampton Handicap at Newbury on 21st October, £250)
CHECKTAKER 6 outings, 1 win, 1x2nd, 1x3rd, 1x4th. (Won the Birmingham Handicap at Birmingham on 23rd June, £442)
DEMI-VOLT 11 outings, 1 win, 2x3rd, 2x4th. (Won the Bramcote Handicap at Nottingham on 7th July, £171)
STARGAZER 6 outings, 1 win, 2x2nd, 1x4th. (Won the Cliff Plate at Folkestone on the 6th of September, £100)
FLAITH MOR 5 outings, 2 wins, 1x2nd. (Won Southwell Maiden Handicap at Nottingham on 6th October, £266, and the Maidley Maiden Handicap at Wolverhampton on 14th October, £166)
LUNATOI 8 outings, 1 win, 1x3rd, 1x4th. (Won the Mill Maiden Selling at Windsor on 7th November, £197. Mr. G. Hooper bought the horse, which was owned by Mr. Braime, for 340 gns.)
GOLDSTAR 4 outings, 1 win, 1x3rd. (Won the Coventry Handicap at Warwick on 18th November).
Performance:- 57 outings, 11 wins, 5 seconds, 10 thirds, 6 fourths
Total prize money from the winners: £2352.