SINCE my departure from the training ranks, there are still a few native English-speaking trainers plying their trade here.

Andrew Hollinshead (GB) and Gavin Hernon (IRE) are here in Chantilly with Eoghan O’Neill (IRE) and Louisa Carberry (GB/IRE) doing well in the provinces.

While I was training, there tended to be two or three of us at any one time. Initially when I arrived there was Charlie Milbank and Jonathan Pease, then later Richard Gibson and Rupert Pritchard Gordon.

However there is a notable history of English-speaking trainers in Chantilly.

Indeed, four English families, or effectively dynasties, dominated the training centre here from around 1830 until well after World War II.

Tom ‘genius’ Carter was the pioneer, arriving in 1835. Two of his young protégés were the Jennings brothers, Henry and Tom, who arrived aged 17 and 13 respectively. Tom was to train the great Gladiateur, winner of the English Triple Crown in 1865.

Channel hopping

Ironically, although French-owned he was trained at Phantom House in Newmarket while Tom also retained his stable in Chantilly at the same time.

He crossed the channel 30 times that year to oversee both stables, quite a feat!

Henry’s training career was based in Chantilly. Apparently a man of a somewhat caustic nature he made a bit of a stir by marrying his niece following the death of his wife when well in to his 70s. The niece promptly produced a daughter who was to become the mother of Alec Head.

The other two families of note were the Cunningtons and the Watsons.

All had heaps of children with much intermarriage being indulged between the four families producing a seemingly endless number of trainers. Hence the dominance that lasted well over 100 years.

Although the Watsons, Carters and Cunningtons are long departed the line continues through Freddy Head and Carlos Laffon-Parias, who is married to Patricia, daughter of Criquette.

Starting training in France was not difficult, maybe easier than in Britain or Ireland. Curiously, things become more difficult when the numbers increase. Economies of scale do not work when you are training horses, particularly in France where the working hours are strictly monitored and the national insurance payments are eye-watering.

But I was very lucky to get to train some superstar horses for some lovely people and was blessed too with excellent staff. Those good riders and headmen are gold dust, invaluable, when you have good horses. You can’t do it without them.