Moifaa
Encyclopedia
Moifaa was a New Zealand
-bred Thoroughbred
racehorse who won the 1904 Grand National
by eight lengths. The jockey
was Arthur Birch and the owner at the time was Spencer Gollan
.
After winning the Grand National the 17 hand
gelding
was purchased for King Edward VII
, but never won again and was soon thereafter retired to the hunting fields of Leicestershire
.
He was the King's favourite horse, and led his funeral cortège in 1910 with a symbolic empty saddle.
A popular myth has grown up in the years since that Moifaa had been thought lost when the ship transporting him to England
was shipwrecked. The horse is supposed to have swum a distance, in some extreme version of the story, up to twenty-five miles to make it to the Irish coast where he was found days later.
The shipwreck did happen, but to a horse by the name of Kiora who is reported to have had to swim a very impressive two miles to reach the safety of the shore before later competing in, but not winning the Grand National
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
-bred Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorse who won the 1904 Grand National
Grand National
The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...
by eight lengths. The jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
was Arthur Birch and the owner at the time was Spencer Gollan
Spencer Gollan
Spencer Herbert Gollan was a sportsman who excelled in rowing and golf and was also a race horse owner.Gollan was born at Napier in New Zealand and became a racehorse owner in Australia and New Zealand. He was also a golfer who twice won the amateur Championship of New Zealand, and was a...
.
After winning the Grand National the 17 hand
Hand (unit)
The hand is a non-SI unit of measurement of length, now used only for the measurement of the height of horses in some English-speaking countries, including Australia, Canada, the UK and the USA. With origins in ancient Egypt, it was originally based on the breadth of a human hand...
gelding
Gelding
A gelding is a castrated horse or other equine such as a donkey or a mule. Castration, and the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male horse to be calmer and better-behaved, making the animal quieter, gentler and potentially more suitable as an everyday...
was purchased for King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
, but never won again and was soon thereafter retired to the hunting fields of Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
.
He was the King's favourite horse, and led his funeral cortège in 1910 with a symbolic empty saddle.
A popular myth has grown up in the years since that Moifaa had been thought lost when the ship transporting him to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
was shipwrecked. The horse is supposed to have swum a distance, in some extreme version of the story, up to twenty-five miles to make it to the Irish coast where he was found days later.
The shipwreck did happen, but to a horse by the name of Kiora who is reported to have had to swim a very impressive two miles to reach the safety of the shore before later competing in, but not winning the Grand National
Grand National
The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...