Prince Rose was a Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 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

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

, often referred to as the best horse in Begian racing. Bred in England

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 by Lord Durham

Frederick Lambton, 4th Earl of Durham

Frederick William Lambton, 4th Earl of Durham was a British peer, a Liberal politician, and the son of George Lambton, 2nd Earl of Durham. He inherited the Earldom from his twin brother, John Lambton, 3rd Earl of Durham, when the latter died with no legitimate children.He married Beatrix Bulteel...

, Prince Rose was sired by Rose Prince out of the mare Indolence. His grandsire was Prince Palatine

Prince Palatine

Prince Palatine was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. He was named for County Palatine of Lancaster near where his breeder William Hall Walker had been raised....

, a two-time British Horse of the Year and his damsire was Gay Crusader

Gay Crusader

Gay Crusader was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the English Triple Crown in 1917.Owner/breeder Alfred W Cox mated his horse Bayardo with the mare Gay Laura to produce the ill-tempered colt Gay Crusader...

, winner of the 1917 English Triple Crown.

The Earl of Durham died in 1929 and his estate sold Prince Rose to Dr. H. Coppez who brought him to Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

. At age three, Prince Rose won the Grand Prix de Bruxelles, beat the great French filly

Filly

A filly is a young female horse too young to be called a mare. There are several specific definitions in use.*In most cases filly is a female horse under the age of four years old....

 Pearl Cap

Pearl Cap

Pearl Cap was a French champion Thoroughbred racehorse who is considered one of her country's greatest racing fillies.Owned and bred by the Esmond family, she was raced under the name of Miss Diana Esmond...

 in the Grand International d'Ostende then was third to her in the 1931 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year, usually on the first Sunday in October.Popularly referred to as the...

. In 1932, Prince Rose won the Prix du President de la Republique

Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud

The Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Saint-Cloud over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in late June.-History:...

 at Hippodrome de Saint-Cloud.

As a sire

Retired to stud

Horse breeding

Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...

 duty after winning sixteen races in twenty starts, Prince Rose sired seven offspring in Belgium before being sent to the Haras de Cheffreville breeding Farm in France in 1938 where he would produce another thirty-five. The most notable of his French-bred was the colt Prince Chevalier who won a number of important races in France and became a leading sire there and in England. Another son, Prince Bio won the 1944 Prix Noailles

Prix Noailles

The Prix Noailles is a Group 2 flat horse race in France which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in April.-History:...

 and the Poule d'Essai des Poulains

Poule d'Essai des Poulains

The Poule d'Essai des Poulains, sometimes referred to as the French 2,000 Guineas, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts...

, among others. However, most important for horse racing in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, in 1939 Prince Rose had been mated with the mare Cosquilla who, because of the onset of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, was shipped to safety in Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

. There, Cosquilla foaled Princequillo

Princequillo

Princequillo was a Thoroughbred racehorse conceived in France and born in Ireland. He is known for his performances in long-distance races and his successes as a sire.-Background:...

 who would eventually be sent to race in the U.S. and who would become a very influential stallion.

Prince Rose is the grandsire of the U.S. Champion

Eclipse Award

The Eclipse Award is an American thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. The Eclipse Awards, honoring the champions of the sport, are sponsored by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association , Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers...

 filly Misty Morn

Misty Morn

Misty Morn was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred and owned by Gladys Mills Phipps' Wheatley Stable, at age three Misty Morn broke the Jamaica Racetrack track record en route to winning the 1955 Gallant Fox Handicap. The filly ended up the year as the U.S...

, and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame

The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...

 colts, Hill Prince

Hill Prince

Hill Prince was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who earned Champion honors in his first three years of racing. Trained by Casey Hayes for owner Christopher Chenery, at age two Hill Prince won six of the first seven races he entered and was the American Co-Champion Two-Year-Old Colt, sharing the...

 and Round Table

Round Table (horse)

Round Table was an American Thoroughbred Hall of Fame racehorse. He is considered the greatest turf horse in American racing history. He was foaled at Claiborne Farm in Kentucky, on the night of April 6, 1954...

. Other important offspring of Prince Rose includes Mill Reef

Mill Reef

Mill Reef was a Champion Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was bred in the United States but was trained in the United Kingdom throughout his racing career which lasted from 1970 to 1972. Mill Reef won twelve of his fourteen races and finished second in the other two...

, Fort Marcy

Fort Marcy (horse)

Fort Marcy was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. His grandsire was the important Italian horse, Nearco. In 1970 he earned three Champion titles including Co-Horse of the Year honors. He competed for six years until his retirement at the end of the 1971 racing season.Fort Marcy died in 1991 at...

, Sham

Sham (horse)

Sham , an American thoroughbred race horse, was one of the fastest horses of the 20th century, but was overshadowed by his larger-than-life peer and half-cousin, Secretariat. He was a dark seal brown in color. While racing, he wore green and yellow blinkers...

, and the immortal U.S. Triple Crown champion, Secretariat

Secretariat (horse)

Secretariat was an American Thoroughbred racehorse, that in 1973 became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in 25 years, setting new race records in two of the three events in the Series—the Kentucky Derby , and the Belmont Stakes —records that still stand today.Secretariat was sired by Bold...

.

Tragically, as a result of World War II Prince Rose was killed by military gunfire in 1944.

The Grand International d'Ostende at Hippodrome Wellington

Hippodrome Wellington

The Hippodrome Wellington was a horse racing track in Ostend in the Flemish Region of Belgium built in 1883 and named for the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington....

 in Ostend

Ostend

Ostend  is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....

 was renamed the Grand Prix Prince Rose in his honor.