Royal Charger

Royal Charger
Sire	Nearco
Grandsire	Pharos
Dam	Sun Princess
Damsire	Solario
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	1942
Country	Great Britain
Colour	Chestnut
Breeder	Sir John Jarvis
Owner	Sir John Jarvis Irish National Stud (1946 at stud) George D. Widener, Jr. (1953 at stud)
Trainer	Jack Jarvis
Record	20: 6-7-2
Earnings	£5,057
Major wins
Queen Anne Stakes (1946) Challenge Stakes (1946) Ayr Gold Cup (1946)
Last updated on 23 November 2006

Royal Charger (1942–1961) was a British Thoroughbred that was successful as a racehorse, but much more important as a sire.

Royal Charger was a chestnut horse sired by the important stallion Nearco. His dam, Sun Princess, was a descendant of the famous broodmare Mumtaz Mahal. He was owned by Sir John Jarvis and trained by his unrelated namesake Jack Jarvis at Newmarket, Suffolk.

Royal Charger failed to win as a two-year-old in 1944, but showed some promise when twice finishing second. As a three-year-old, he finished third in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket on 9 May, beaten a neck and two lengths by Court Martial and Dante. Later that year, he was placed in the Duke of York Stakes and won the Challenge Stakes.

As a four-year-old, Royal Charger won the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Ayr Gold Cup (carrying 133 pounds).

Retired after his four-year-old racing season in 1946, Royal Charger was sold to the Irish National Stud for £52,000. There, he sired a number of important horses before being purchased in 1953 by American George D. Widener, Jr., who brought him to stand at his Old Kenney Farm (now Green Gates Farm) in Lexington, Kentucky. A three-quarters brother to the important sire Nasrullah, which also was brought to Kentucky from England, Royal Charger sired more than 55 stakes winners. Among his Irish progeny was Turn-To, which also was sent to the U.S., where he was the leading juvenile sire in 1958, notably through his colt First Landing. Other offspring included:

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