George Fordham (1837–1887) was a British flat racingjockey. He was Champion Jockey every year between 1855 and 1863, as well as four other occasions in his own right and once as joint champion. He then won the Derby in 1879, won the Oaks five times, and the Grand Prix de Paris three times. His career high was 165 wins in 1862.[1] He was described in 1910 as "one of the greatest jockeys of all-time".[2]
Background
Fordham was born in Newmarket,[3] the son of James Fordham in Cambridge on 24 September 1837. His uncle was travelling head lad to Richard Drewitt in Middleham, North Yorkshire and it was here he became an apprentice. He was trained by Drewitt and Edward Smith, and at the age of thirteen had his first ride at Brighton after Drewitt moved to Lewes, Sussex.
Riding career
George's first mount may have been on Cora [3yrs 5st 1lb] at Epsom [badly away and unplaced] on Tuesday 5 November 1850 for Mr Douglas.
In October 1851 he gained his first victory in the Trial Stakes at the Brighton autumn meeting. He won the Cambridgeshire in 1853 on Little David, for which he received a bible and a gold-mounted whip,[4] and in the following year unexpectedly won the Chester Cup on Epaminondas. From this time Fordham became a very popular rider. In 1855, he was at the head of the list of winning jockeys with 70 winners, and during eight succeeding years he occupied the same position, his best record being 165 wins in 1862. In 1859 he won his first important race, the 1,000 Guineas on Mayonaise. The same year he won the Oaks on Summerside.
Fordham won the Ascot Cup five times, the Alexandra Plate once, the Gold Vase six times, the Ascot Stakes twice, and the Prince of Wales's Stakes four times. He rode several favourites for the Derby, but only won it in 1879 upon Sir Bevys. Fordham had, in all, twenty-two mounts for the Derby, his last appearance in the race being in 1883, when he was unplaced on Ladislas. He never won the St. Leger, though he rode twenty-two races. He won the Oaks five times. For the 2,000 Guineas, Fordham also had twenty-two mounts, but only won twice. He secured the 1,000 Guineas seven times out of twenty-one mounts. Many of Fordham's best efforts were in small races, when he frequently succeeded against expectation by his singular skill and resolution. His greatest achievement is said to have been in 1871, when he won the Cambridgeshire on Sabinus. His only Cesarewitch victory was in 1857, when the famous dead heat occurred between three.
Fordham was a great favourite on the continent, and especially in France, where he frequently rode. He won the Grand Prix de Paris in 1867, 1868, and 1881, the French Derby in 1861 and 1868, and the French Oaks in 1880. He had no superior as a rider of two-year-olds. His weight was only 3 st 12 lb when he won his first Cambridgeshire. His services were much in request from a very early period and one owner presented him with a Bible, a testimonial pin, and a gold-mounted whip, all of which he preserved through life, religiously following the motto engraved upon the whip of 'Honesty is the best policy.' He also received souvenirs from the Rothschilds, the Prince of Wales, and other patrons of the turf. He was frequently offered £1,500 a year to ride in England and France, but he would never agree to receive a fixed salary.
During the latter part of his career failing health frequently kept him out of the saddle. Between 1875 and 1878 he was not seen in public. His last win was in Leopold de Rothschild's colours on Brag in the Brighton Cup of 1883, and his last race the Park Stakes at Windsor in August 1884. He carried the most implicit confidence of all his employers, and was kind to young jockeys. It was said that he never attempted to take advantage of a youngster at the start.
Personal life
Fordham was twice married: first to Miss Penelope Amelia Hyde of Lewes, who was the niece of the trainer Richard Drewitt. She died in early 1879 in the Isle of Wight, aged 40. His second marriage was to Lydia Selth in the last quarter of 1879. She survived him, dying in the Brighton area at the end of 1918 aged 74.
After the loss of his first wife he went to reside at West Brighton, where an accident in riding produced a concussion of the brain. He was in a serious condition for weeks. At the close of 1884 Fordham left Brighton and returned to Slough, where he had previously lived, and he died there 12 October 1887.
Fordham was devoted to his family. He was never known to give a vote for a parliamentary candidate in his life. He was extremely reticent on horse-racing, had a deep aversion to gambling of all kinds, and was anxious to keep his son from following him into a career on the turf. His own career was scrupulously honourable. He did, however, perform somewhat below his best on one occasion. Riding for Sir John Astley at Lewes, he was beaten a head in a close finish by a horse belonging to Mrs Drewitt the widow of his old master. Afterwards, he confessed to Sir John, "Well, you know, Mrs Drewitt has not been able to pay her rent, and all through the race I could not help thinking of that damned rent, and, you know, I ought just to have won'.
^Editorial staff (5 November 1887). "Death of George Fordham - Obituary". No. Vol. XI No. 19. San Francisco: Breeder and Sportsman. p. 1. Retrieved 17 January 2021. Death of George Fordham. Death has been very busy lately in the world of sport, and now we have to chronicle the end of George Fordham, who passed quietly away on Wednesday evening at his residence, Montrose Villa, Slough. That insidious disease, consumption, had set its seal upon him for some time, and for the last week his life had hung in the balance. George Fordham was born at Newmarket on September 21, 1837, and at the age of eleven was apprenticed to Drewitt, of Mickleham. His first mount was on Isabella at the Brighton Autumn Meeting in 1850, when he scaled 3 st 8 lb, and he scored his first win on Hampton, in the Trial Stakes, at the same meeting in the following year. As a jockey he gained world-renowned fame, principally for his fertility of resource, and, though never so great a public idol as Fred Archer, he was considered by many good judges of riding to be his superior over certain courses, among which the Derby Course cannot, however, be reckoned. To chronicle all his achievements would fill columns, for during his career he rode 2,479 winners, but we must just glance at his principal performances. The first great hit was made by his riding of Little David in the Cambridgeshire of 1853, which he won by six lengths, and in the following year he achieved another fine victory on Epaminondas for the Chester Cup. He has ridden a winner in every event of consequence, except the St. Leger, in which he was unluckily second three times. In the Derby, too, he was unfortunate, for, though several times placed, his only success was on Sir Bevys, in 1879. In the Two Thousand Guineas be steered Vauban in 1867, and Petronel in 1880, both these winners being the property of the Duke of Beaufort. In the former year we well remember Fordham being at Badminton, and, mounted by the Duke, he rode as well to hounds as might be expected from so brilliant a horseman. Seven times he carried off the One Thousand Guineas: on Mayonnais. in 1859; Nemesis, in 1861; Siberia, in 1865; Formosa in 1863; Scottish Queen, in 1869; Thebais, in 1881; and Hauteur, in 1883. Five times he won the Oaks: on Summerside, in 1859; Formosa, in 1868; Gamos, in 1870; Reine, in 1872; and Thebais in 1881. He won the Cesarewitch once on Prioress, in 1857; while the Cambridgeshire was recorded to his credit four times, the winners he rode being Little David, in 1853. Old Trick, in 1857; See Saw, in 1868; and Sabinus, in 1871, and those who saw the finish on the latter will never forget it. Six times he steered the winner of the Goodwood Cup, and at Ascot was 6ve times successful in the Gold Vase, three times in the Royal Hunt Cup, and twice in the Ascot Stakes. Among his chief patrons were the late Baron Rothschild, Mr. Leopold de Rothschild, the Duke of Beaufort, the late Marquis of Hastings, M. Lefevre, and the late Mr. Crawfurd. He rode several times in France, winning the Grand Prize three times, and the Prix da Jockey Club twice, and the French Oaks once. The Demon's last win was on Mr. Leopold de Rothschild's Brag, in the Brighton Cup of 1883, and his last appearance in the saddle was in the Park Stakes at Ascot in 1834, when he rode Aladdin. So ended a long and honorable career on the turf, extending over thirty years, during which no breath of suspicion has sullied his fair fame. It will be a gratification to many to know that he died without suffering. Carefully attended by affectionate hands, he has crossed the Valley of the Shadow of Death, leaving behind him a name that, we are sure, will never be mentioned without a kind thought to the memory of one of the fairest riders that ever crossed a saddle. Of all the celebrated jockeys of the century, including Buckle, Flatman and Archer, none exceeded Fordham for his ability in the saddle, and certainly not one has commanded more thorough respect for his character as a man.
Mortimer, Roger; Onslow, Richard; Willett, Peter (1978). Biographical Encyclopaedia of British Racing. London: Macdonald and Jane's. ISBN0-354-08536-0.
