Historic Lavington Stud put up for sale by Macdonald-Buchanan family

Lavington Stud, a historic stud farm steeped in thoroughbred history having produced Derby winners and Classic-winning fillies, is up for sale and will be offered by Knight Frank on behalf of the Macdonald-Buchanan family.

The West Sussex stud - which was founded by Lord Woolavington, the great grandfather of current owner Alastair Macdonald-Buchanan - was created out of a former dairy farm and covers an area of 340 acres, with 100 stables across five different yards on the property.

Lavington Stud's name is synonymous with a number of champions, including Hurry On, winner of the 1916 St Leger and regarded by Fred Darling as the best horse he ever trained.

Owned by Lord Woolavington, he was subsequently retired to Lavington having been unbeaten at three and produced seven Classic winners, including two homebred Derby winners in Coronach and Captain Cuttle.

Catherine Macdonald-Buchanan went on to manage her father's racing and breeding interests after his death in 1935, and she was responsible for breeding the 1941 Derby winner Owen Tudor out of her mare Mary Tudor II.

Another outstanding horse bred by her at Lavington was Abernant, widely considered the greatest British sprinter of the 20th century, his 14 victories including back-to-back wins in each of the July Cup, Nunthorpe and King George Stakes in 1949 and 1950.

Coronach: winner of the Derby in 1926 and son of Lavington Stud's outstanding Hurry OnCredit: Lavington Stud

Lavington later stood a number of stallions in the second half of the 20th century, such as Sing Sing and Derby winner Morston, while Captain John Macdonald-Buchanan subsequently bred the brilliant filly In The Groove, winner of the Irish 1,000 Guineas, International Stakes, Champion Stakes and Coronation Cup for David Elsworth.

Alastair Macdonald-Buchanan said: “It is with a heavy heart that we have decided to sell. The fact is that running a stud farm of this size has proved increasingly challenging due to my commitments and the logistics involved when I am based in Northamptonshire.

“The stud has been in our family for over 100 years and has been a source of immense pleasure and pride. On account of the stallions that have stood there and the outstanding horses bred on the premises, Lavington Stud has, I hope, earned its place in the history of the sport.”

He added: “We will continue to breed from our small band of broodmares, but they won’t be based at Lavington. It is a wonderful location and one deserving of being the base for a larger, more commercial operation than we have at the moment.”

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