Janet Menzies investigates canine lines
Our guide to blue-blooded lines and gundog lineage. (You might also like to read: terriers at the top, small dogs in stately homes.)
Remember, all those dog breeding dukes are the same men who carried out the greatest tree planting programme this country has ever seen, whose long-term vision created the British landscape we value today. Their faith in continuity is to be applauded. (Read: ancient trees grow with ancient families.)
Listed here with the earliest established breed or line first in the order of precedence.
The Marquis of Worcester established a kennel of foxhounds at Badminton in 1640. Records from 1743 to present day, covering 54 generations.
Bred spaniels from the 1660s, establishing the King Charles spaniel and enacting a law that the dog must be allowed into any public place.
Established the Blenheim line of what are now known as Cavalier King Charles spaniels during the mid-18th century.
Set up the Belvoir kennels in the 1700s, with an uninterrupted stud record from 1791.
The fourth Duke established the Gordon setter in the early 1800s, with the sixth Duke further developing the breed. The present Duke is Honorary President of the Gordon Setter Club.
Helped develop the Scottish deerhound by breeding Maida, a deerhound/Pyrenean cross. Earliest established line, the Chesthill, bred by the Menzies clan in the early 19th century.
The fifth Duke introduced retrievers from Newfoundland, with the sixth Duke beginning the line of Buccleuch labradors in 1830.
Bred Malmesbury Tramp in about 1880, which was a co-foundation sire with the Buccleuch labradors, influential in Scottish labrador breeding.
Established the Laverack setter, the major blood-line in establishing the modern English setter. Published his book The Setter in 1872.
His Stratfield Saye line of labrador retrievers has twice won the national Retriever Championship.
The late Queen Elizabeth II bred five FTCh labrador retrievers in her Sandringham kennels. The most famous dog, FTCh Sandringham Sydney, ran in the Championships five times and was a highly influential sire. (Read more on Queen Elizabeth II’s royal retrievers.)
Hungarian vizslas would outrank British dogs in Europe, having been bred originally by the Austro-Hungarian emperors, but foreign titles are not recognised here. The vizsla was saved from extinction during the last century. Princess Antoinette de Monaco continued the tradition of royal patronage.
This article was originally published in 2007 and has been updated.
