Noble Decree

Noble Decree
Sire	Vaguely Noble
Grandsire	Vienna
Dam	Hidden Secret
Damsire	Promulgation
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	6 March 1970
Country	United States
Colour	Bay
Breeder	Kinsman Stud Farms
Owner	Nelson Bunker Hunt
Trainer	Bernard van Cutsem
Record	9: 3-3-0
Major wins
Observer Gold Cup (1972)
Awards
Top-rated British 2-y-o colt (1972) Timeform rating 127 (1972), 124 (1973)

Noble Decree (foaled 6 March 1970) was an American-bred British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. As a two-year-old colt he won two of his first five races before ending his season with a win in the Observer Gold Cup. He was rated the best colt of his generation in the 1972 Free Handicap. In the following year he was narrowly beaten by Mon Fils in the 2000 Guineas before suffering a career-ending injury in the Epsom Derby. He had no success as a breeding stallion.

Noble Decree was a "strong, shapely, most attractive" bay horse with a very small white star bred in Florida by Kinsman Stud Farms. He was sold twice at auction in the United States, fetching $75,000 as a foal in 1970 and $145,000 as a yearling in the following year. On the latter occasion he was bought by representatives of the Texan oil billionaire Nelson Bunker Hunt who sent the horse to be trained in Europe. The colt was sent into training with Bernard Van Cutsem at his Stanley House stable at Newmarket, Suffolk. At the time, Van Cutsem was one of the most successful trainers in Britain, handling major winners including Park Top and Karabas (Washington, D.C. International Stakes).

Noble Decree's sire, Vaguely Noble, won the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 1968 before becoming a successful breeding stallion whose best progeny included Dahlia, Exceller and Empery His dam Hidden Secret was a stakes winner and half-sister of the Hollywood Derby winner Terry's Secret. Her dam Secret Session was also the female-line ancestor of the Kentucky Derby winner Strike the Gold.

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