Sir John Lade, Steward of Bath Races

The Bath Races of 1780 were overseen by Sir John Lade as steward. Sir John, who was then 23 years old, was already established as a member of the Jockey Club.

Sir John Lade

He was born the posthumous child of the first Baronet, also named John. His mother was the sister of the brewer and MP Henry Thrale.

Through his close connection with the Thrales, Samuel Johnson was his godfather. One piece of advice he offered Lady Lade was "Endeavour, Madam, to procure him knowledge; for really ignorance to a rich man is like fat to a sick sheep, it only serves to call the rooks about him." 

As Lade grew up, Johnson became increasingly disillusioned about the young man's abilities, so much so that when asked for advice about Sir John and the possibility of marriage, he responded angrily.

"I would advise no man to marry, Sir, who is not likely to propagate understanding;" and left the room.

However, this did not stop Johnson from proposing "half in earnest" a marriage between Sir John and the novelist and long-term Bath resident Fanny Burney.

On his attaining the age of twenty-one, he gained control of the vast fortune his father had left him and which he proceeded to dispose of through a combination of extravagant spending and gambling. 

On the positive side, he did develop a reputation as a remarkable judge of horseflesh. Particularly notable, in retrospect, was his discovery of the horse Medley, a grey which was one of the first thoroughbreds to be imported into America. His racing colours were a familiar sight at races throughout England, including Bath.

Taplow Lodge near Clivedon
 at one the home of Sir John's stud

Left to indulge his passions, Sir John spent most of his time in the stables and at race meetings; Lade chose to wear riding clothes and carry a whip to most occasions and in most places. According to the dandy Thomas Raikes, his "ambition was to imitate the groom in dress and in language".

Sir John driving four in hand.

He was widely regarded as a very fine horseman, and his skill as a driver earned the nickname 'Jehu', 

He was one of the founding members of the 'Four-Horse Club' – also known as the 'Four in Hand Club'. He himself famously drove a team of six greys, except when he sat up with the Regent in place of the latter's coachman, driving six matched bays on the road from Brighton to London.

His fondness for the track and for driving, as well as for gambling, caused him to wager vast sums of money on horses as well as on inconsequential feats of skill. In 1795 he bet Lord Cholmondeley that he could carry him on his back, from opposite the Brighton Pavilion twice round the Old Steine that faced it. Lord Cholmondeley was a big man, and as news of the challenge spread, a crowd, including a number of ladies, assembled. As his Lordship was preparing to mount, Lade stopped him and ordered him to strip, saying: "I betted I would carry you, not your clothes; your clothes are more than two pounds overweight. So strip and do not keep the ladies waiting." Lord Cholmondeley proved himself a shy man by withdrawing and settling the bet.

In 1789 Sir John wagered 1000 gs with the notorious 4th Duke of Queensbury, known as Old Q, that he could beat him in a race where they were both mounted on mules. Sir John lost.

Lade racing the Duke of Bedford at Newmarket.

Letitia, who became Lady Lade, was a woman of obscure origins who, prior to being discovered by the royal circle, was probably working in the Drury Lane district and was almost certainly associated with the sex trade in some capacity. She befriended and was probably the mistress of the highwayman "Sixteen String Jack" Rann. After Rann, who was born near Bath, was hanged in 1774, she became the mistress of the Duke of York. Not only was Letty a beauty, but she was hugely admired for her seat on a horse and skills as a whip. So it was probably inevitable that Lade would be attracted by her, and they were married, after a long affair and in spite of his family's and polite society's disapproval, in 1787. 

Letitia Lade by Stubbs

Letitia Lade was a great favourite with the Regent and his set. The Regent commissioned the equestrian portrait of Letty by Stubbs to hang in his chambers. She was more than willing to join them in their wild excesses and once wagered on herself in a driving contest at Newmarket races and bet five hundred guineas on an eight-mile race against another woman. She was particularly noted for her casual use of profanity, and the phrase "swears like Letty Lade" entered common usage. 

It was to Sir John that the Prince turned in the greatest crisis of his racing career. Known as 'the Escape affair, ' the issue at stake was whether the Prince's regular jockey Samuel Chifney had deliberately and dishonestly ridden the Prince's horse Escape to lose to manipulate the odds in a subsequent race that he won. A letter from Sir John commanded Chifney to attend the Prince at his home in Carlton House. At this interview, the Prince informed him that Sir Charles Bunbury, the leading figure in the Jockey Club, had told him that "if he suffered Chifney to ride his horses, no gentleman would start against him". The  Prince said he had told Sir Charles that rather than abandon Chifney, he would leave racing. Shortly after this, the Prince and Chifney went to Sir John Lade's house, where the Prince declared that he believed Chifney to be an honest man and that he would grant him a pension of £200 a year.

Chifney in action

In addition to his interests in and wagering on the Turf, Sir John was an active member of the "Fancy", who supported prizefighting. In 1807 he was in the huge crowd who had gathered to see Belcher fight Cribb, where he stood alongside the Duke of Clarence, later William IV, the Duke of Beaufort, the Marquess of Tweedsdale, Sir John Shelley and Lord Byron, all of whom were happy to ignore the fact that boxing was at that time illegal.


Sir John's chosen lifestyle meant that even the vast Lade fortune was eventually exhausted, and he spent some time in a debtor's prison. Lade was rescued by the Prince Regent and received a pension as George's "driving tutor".

Lade's marriage, his debts, and his disdain for polite society caused him to be generally regarded as a disreputable figure. When Lord Thurlow, a friend of George III, met the Prince, Sir John, and Lord Barrymore, a notorious ruffian, in Brighton, the Prince asked Thurlow to come and dine with him. Thurlow replied, "I cannot do so until your Royal Highness keeps better company". 

On another occasion, when Thurlow had accepted an invitation, the Prince apologised for the party being larger than he had intended but added: "that Sir John was an old friend of his, and he could not avoid asking him to dinner." Thurlow answered, "I have no objection, Sir, to Sir John Lade in his proper place, which I take to be your Royal Highness's coach-box, and not your table."

Letitia died in 1825, and Lade lived quietly on his stud farm in Sussex until his death in 1838. Queen Victoria records in her diary that shortly after she came to the throne, she discovered that she was paying a pension to "a Sir John Lade, one of George IV.'s intimates".

Lady Lade

The Bath meeting of August 1729

According to Cheny's "Historical List of all horse-matches run etc.", for 1729, two days of racing took place on the 25th and 26th of August.

On the 25th, four horses competed for a £30 plate. The race was only open to horses who had never won a King's Plate. King's plates were prizes given by the Monarch and run for under tough rules specifically designed to encourage the breeding of bigger, stronger animals that had real stamina.

"The Round Course at Newmarket, Cambridgeshire,
Preparing for the King's Plate" -
Peter Tillemans (1684-1734)

Each horse carried 10 st over two heats. The entry fee for the race was 2 gs.

This was a selling race, with the winner put on sale for 150 gs or about £13,000 at current values.

The prize was won by Mr Jones's Chestnut mare, who gloried in the name Sweetest When Naked.

On the following day, four horses competed for a £20 plate again for any horse that had not won a King's plate or won the plate on the previous day. This was known as a give and take, where horses carried weights decided by their height, giving or taking weight relative to a 14 hh horse who carried 9 st. The entry fee was only one guinea, and again, the winner was to be offered for sale at 150 gs.

This race, run over two heats, was won by Mr Robinsen's [sic] chestnut horse Cupid

Entries had to be made 10 days before the start of the meeting,

Cheny funded the "Historical Lists", which he started publishing in 1727 by asking subscribers for a seven-year commitment with a half-crown to be paid with the order, 5s. Annually for the first six years, and, as a reward for loyalty, only a further half-crown in the seventh year. This sum was to be paid to various named persons but could also be given personally to the author ‘as he travels to take his accounts’. In fact, Cheny rode all over England to attend race meetings, obtain breeding information, and solicit subscriptions. He continued to publish his calendar until 1750, with some twenty-four issues in total. From 1743, these included particulars of the pedigrees of all the significant racehorses of the day.

"A very fine heat" Bath 1772

The second race on the second day of the 1772 meeting on Claverton Down was a 50 guinea sweepstakes for three-year-olds over a four-mile course. Competed for by:

Mr Parker’s grey filly by Shakespeare

Mr Parker is almost certainly John Parker of Saltram House in Devon, who would go on to win the 1783 Derby. He was a close friend of the Prince of Wales and represented Devonshire in Parliament.

The grey filly was probably a horse called Charlotte out of a Regulus mare. Shakespeare, bred by Sir John Moore, was a not-very-successful racehorse that had a solid reputation for breeding good mares.

Saltram House

Mr Wildman’s grey colt by Antinous (named by Mr J Coxe)

Wildman was a wealthy wholesale butcher and stock dealer who had bought the horse Eclipse from the sale of the Duke of Cumberland’s stud on his death. Eclipse is arguably the most important thoroughbred of all time. It is not clear who the J Coxe that entered Wildman’s colt was, but he was almost certainly a connection of the Coxe family who owned Ston Easton Park just outside Bath.

The grey colt was probably a horse called Lamplighter. Antinous was bred by the 3rd Duke of Grafton at Euston and ran for six years, from age 4, beating the top horses of his day in big purse matches.

Wildman and Sons with Eclipse by Stubbs

Mr O’Kelly’s chestnut colt Young Colin

Dennis O’Kelly was a gambler, horse breeder and “husband” of the leading brothel keeper of the eighteen century. He had acquired Eclipse from Wildman in slightly mysterious circumstances, which certainly involved at least one betting coup. O’Kelly earned a large income from Eclipse's stud fees and progeny.

Dennis O'Kelly

Lord Corke and Mr Coxe paid forfeits of 25 guineas each. Betting before the start was Mr Parker’s filly evens, 6 to 4 against the grey colt and 2 to one against Young Colin. In running, bets were offered that Colin would not come last. A very fine heat won with difficulty by the filly carrying 8st 5lb against the colts' 8st 7lb.

Edmund Boyle, 7th Earl of Cork and 7th Earl of Orrery (21 November 1742 – 30 May 1798) was an Irish peer. A younger son of the 5th Earl of Cork, he had succeeded to his half-brother's titles in 1764. He died, aged 56, in Marston House and was buried in St John's Church in Frome in Somerset.

Marston House

The winner took the prize of 200 guineas or about £24,000 in modern terms.

The Rooms and the Turf 1772

The horse racing in Bath on Claverton Down in the eighteenth century attracted sizable crowds and enormously wealthy owners and gamblers.

Many businesses in Bath sought to profit from this, and tradesmen paid substantial fees to have booths on the course.

The Assembly Rooms were no different. So when in 1772 there was a three-day meeting in September, the Upper Rooms put on a pre-season ball as described in this advert in the Bath Chronicle.

The race week in 1772 started on Monday, 21st September,

The meeting started with a race for a plate worth £50 with free entry. The race was contested over two four-mile heats. Four horses started:

Mr Clarke's horse Valentine
Mr Bishop's horse Daniel
Mr O'Kelly's horse Humble
Mr Morris's horse Pluto

Before the race, punters were persuaded that Dennis O'Kelly's horse was the runaway favourite, and even bets on Humble against the field found few takers. It is perhaps worth noting here that Dennis made much of his considerable fortune through gambling. After the first heat, Valentine won easily over Daniel and Pluto, with Humble placed last. The betting changed to 5 to 4 in favour of Valentine against the field.

Rowlandson's The Betting Post
The mounted figure in blue on the right is believed to be Dennis O'Kelly.

That same day there was a sweepstake for 4-year-olds for a 50 guinea stake over one four-mile heat. Four horses competed, creating a 200 guinea prize. They were:

Lord Grosvenor's bay filly by Snap, which was entered on Grosvenor's behalf by Mr Coxe.
Mr O'Kelly's bay colt, Batchelor
Mr Parker's chestnut colt by Villager
Lord Castlehaven's brown colt by Merlin entered on Castlehaven's behalf by Mr Yeates.

Lord Corke, Mr King, and Mr Brereton had all failed to enter their horses but paid forfeits, adding 75 guineas to the prize fund worth about £18000 at today's prices.

In a race described by the Bath Chronicle as "exceeding fine," Mr Parker's horse started as favourite but with few bets being offered on such an evenly matched field. Until the last circuit of the course, Batchelor looked set to win, but Batchelor had a tenancy to knap, and so was overtaken by Lord Grosvenor's horse at the post.

On Tuesday, they started the meeting with a race for the Ladies' purse of £50 for 5 and 6-year-old horses. This was competed for over 3 four mile heats by:

Sir Richard Bamfyldes's bay gelding Banble
Mr Wildman's bay horse Frolic
Mr O'Kelly's bay horse Catchpenny
Mr Compton Willis's bay gelding

The word ahead of the start was that the race would go to Banble, and bets on him were taken from evens to 5 to 4, with 20 to 1 being offered against the unfancied Mr Willis's gelding. After the first heat won by Catchpenny from the Willis gelding, the punters still kept faith with Banble, who beat Frolic into second place with apparent ease. The betting going into the final heat was 6 and 7 to 4 on Banble, who went on to win.

The next race was a 50 guinea sweepstakes run over 2 miles by three-year-old horses. Before the start, Lord Corke and Mr Coxe withdrew their entries and paid the 25 guinea forfeit. The starting prices at the betting post were even money on Mr Parker's grey filly by Shakespeare, probably a horse called Charlotte, 6 to 4 against Mr Wildman's grey colt Antinous which had been entered on his behalf by Mr Coxe and 2 to 1 against Dennis O'Kelly's chestnut colt Young Colin. Further bets were placed during the race that O'Kelly's horse would not be last, which he was, In a very close run race won by Mr Parker's filly.

The Bath Cup worth 100 guineas and a further prize of £30 raised by subscription was competed for a day earlier than had been advertised by three horses over four miles. The close race was won by Mr Yeat's brown horse Little David beating Mr Wildman's bay mare by, Squirrel, the pre-race hot favourite and Mr O'Kelly's Mileston.

Wednesday started with a £50 give-and-take race over three four-mile heats. The race was competed for by 
Sir Richard Bampfylde's bay horse Weazel, Mr Strode's bay horse Gudgeon and Mr Sparrow's grey mare Heathcropper. The race was won by the evens favourite, Weazel. Sir Richard, his owner, was MP for Devon.

Five 4-year-old horses raced for a £50 plate over three heats on the Thursday following the ball. The local punters were severely deceived by the pre-race intelligence, making Mr Helyer's bay colt Sprightly the clear favourite. At the betting post, 4 to 1 was offered that neither Dennis O'Kelly's colt Batchelor or Mr Wildman's colt Slip could win and 10 to 1 against Mr Strode's colt Garcon and Mr Parker's Marquisette.

After Batchelor's easy victory in the first heat, the local punters still supported their chosen favourite, who came third and continued to bet against Batchelor and Slip. After the second heat was won easily by Garcon, the punters started to hedge their bets by offering odds against Sprightly, but there were few takers. The final heat was warmly contested, but victory went to Batchelor ahead of Garcon, with Sprightly placed third. Given that a sizable portion of Dennis's considerable fortune was based on betting coups, one must wonder if there was more to all this than meets the eye.

The meet's final race was the Beef Stakes, to which 21 people had subscribed 10 guineas each. The race rules required that every horse carry 15 stone over the four-mile course and that they must be ridden by gentlemen, i.e. not by paid jockeys. There was little betting, and the prize worth about £15,000 at today's value was won by Mr Yeats riding his own horse, Minor beating Mr Bowen's horse Garret ridden by Captain Sweedland.

Mr Parker accepted the role of steward for the following year's meeting.