A horse's grave

Image: © Dave Thompson Taken: 24 Aug 2015

It turns out that the monument was erected by General Henry Grosvenor, one-time master of the Cottesmore Hunt, who lived at nearby Stocken Hall in Stretton some two hundred years ago. Grosvenor was a well-known figure who ran his own stud farm at the hall, providing the Duke of Wellington with his famous horse Copenhagen. The story goes that Grosvenor’s favourite horse, one ‘Black Butcher’, died on the spot beneath his owner during a hunt. Grosvenor then erected the gravestone to commemorate a much-valued steed. Seen today, the memorial is much eroded, although the image of the horse on the front remains striking. A poem on the reverse has been totally obliterated. The unknown stonemason chose soft ashlar stone for the carving and inscription, but his choice has fared badly with our country’s changeable weather. However, the Rutland Online website has provided a full transcription of the tribute: “Within old Morcary Wood you hear the sound Of Lowther's voice encouraging the hounds. Pass ye not heedless by this pile of stones For underneath lie honest Butcher's bones. Black was his colour yet [his] nature fair, Where ere the hounds went Butcher would be there 'Tis graven to be a tribute to his worth, Better hunter ne'er stretched leathern girth.”

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