What well known authors wrote about Maharaja Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla

Apart from being a progressive and sagacious ruler, Maharaja Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla was a gracious host and one of the most famous racehorse owners of his time. Well known writers penned paeans about him which told many a tale about this multi-faceted personality.

Best-selling romantic novelist Barbara Cartland wrote in her classic memoir of the 1920s ‘We Danced All Night’ after the Maharaja had won the Irish Derby in 1926 when his horse Embargo took the honours:

“One very popular person at the Café de Paris and everywhere he went was the Maharajah of Rajpipla, who was always known as “Pip”. In England he was democratic, unassuming and increasingly merry, In India he was very much the dignified ruler over millions of his people who revered him.

Over here Pip won the Irish Derby and the Irish Two Thousand Guineas, and his Sunday afternoon parties at his house at Old Windsor were legendary.

In the East, Pip entertained in his enormous palace those who enjoyed big game hunting, like the Duke of Sutherland, polo players and anyone who wanted to gape at his state army, vast fleet of motor-cars and the royal ceremonial by which he was surrounded.”

The suave ruler’s friend Vivian Charles Buckley, authored ‘The Good Life: Between the Two World Wars with a Candid Camera’ and ‘Good times: At home and abroad between the wars’, besides his autobiography ‘Draw back the curtains’. He wrote an article entitled ‘Rajpipla At Home: Princely Hospitality of the Man Who Won the Derby’ in the Sunday Graphic and Sunday News six days after Maharaja Vijaysinhji’s colt Windsor Lad triumphed in the Epsom Derby of 1934:

"As a personal friend of the owner of Windsor Lad, the Derby winner, I can say none more deserved to win. He is the kindest, simplest and most hospitable person one could wish to meet.

Whether at Windsor, where he owns an old manor house and stays each year for the summer, or in his State in India with its 250,000 population over which he rules, or at his residence in Bombay, he always has a smiling welcome for his many friends.

When the Maharajah of Rajpipla says, 'Come out to India and stay with me,' he means it – not like many people who have a habit of issuing invitations which are not really meant. When I visited him in India it was characteristic that he should send a special railway carriage for my use, attached to the local train at the border station of Ankleshwar. It was magnificent looking, painted white and furnished as a sitting room, with a small kitchen adjoining in case the visitor should want anything to eat on the journey, although only a few hours to the picturesque capital town of Rajpipla.

An A.D.C. meets the train and escorts the visitor, in a car driven by one of the Palace chauffeurs in a smart uniform and turban, to the large white guest house. This is situated near the Palace and surrounded by tall palm trees. At night one can hear the call of wild beasts in the neighbouring jungle.

The Maharajah is always arranging things for the entertainment of his guests. Tiger shoots, tennis picnics, riding his polo ponies before breakfast, or viewing the up-to-date public buildings which are all painted grey - soft to the eyes in the brilliant sun. This kindly host is almost as fond of polo as racing, and every evening in India he either plays himself or watches a game from the terrace of his private gymkhana club with his relations, staff and guests. A military band plays by the side of the ground, and the sound of galloping hoofs may be heard till well after dusk - when the moon rises a golden crescent behind the goalposts."

This offered a delightful glimpse into the unforgettable era between the two world wars. Much changed thereafter, and indeed an entire lifestyle disappeared forever.

The Daily Telegraph on Epsom Derby 1934 win of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla’s horse Windsor Lad. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘A Maharaja’s Turf’

The Daily Telegraph wrote on the Epsom Derby 1934 win of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla’s horse Windsor Lad:                                                                            

Windsor Lad equals Hyperion’s record in the Derby

The Maharaja of Rajpipla was naturally immensely elated. He is greatly liked by all his English friends, and this magnificent victory has come to him after about a dozen years of ownership on our Turf. I recall a victory on Epsom’s racecourse some years ago when Embargo won for him the City and Suburban. He was no more than a handicapper. Windsor Lad was bought by him as a yearling because he was a son of Blandford, whose stock were winning the big races. Blandford, indeed, has now sired three Derby winners – Trigo, Blenheim and Windsor Lad. It is a great performance for that sire, now, by the way, at the Whatcombe stud in England. 

Royal Congratulations

The Maharaja was speedily on the course, waiting to lead in his horse. One of the first to congratulate him was the Aga Khan. Many others cordially extended their felicitations. Very soon after the jockey had weighed in, the Maharaja was invited to proceed to the Royal box and there receive the congratulations of the King and Queen. He was truly delighted with the warmth of the reception on every hand, and will certainly never forget this wonderful day in his life.

The Maharaja of Rajpipla is entitled to be satisfied on the result that he has the best colt in the country. There is less conviction that Colombo was beaten on his merits. Meanwhile the owner of the winner can look forward to receiving some important cheques from bookmakers on Monday which splendidly garnish the stake and the honours of the race itself. A long time ago, the Maharaja made a bet, before he left India, of £4,000 to £400 and £1,000 to £100 a place. There were other wagers since at shorter prices. The total amount has doubtlessly been well liquidated by what a generous and delighted owner has already disbursed in presents, especially, of course, to those who were chiefly instrumental in bringing about the victory.

(Author Indra Vikram Singh, grandson of Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla, can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com. Follow Indra Vikram Singh on Twitter @IVRajpipla).

A Maharaja’s Turf

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Published in India by Sporting Links

Fully Illustrated

Hardcover 8.75 x 11.5 x 0.6 inches (landscape)

140 Pages

MRP Rupees 1995

Indra Vikram Singh’s latest books published by Sporting Links:

A Maharaja’s Turf  ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket  ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

Don’s Century  ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

Crowning Glory  ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

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How Maharaja Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla relentlessly chased his dream and finally triumphed. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘A Maharaja’s Turf’

This story begins in the early years of the 1930s. “Steve Donoghue (the famous jockey) tipped me on the shoulder, ‘Marcus,’ he said, ‘I’d like you to meet the Maharajah of Rajpipla’,” so wrote Marcus Marsh, the future trainer of Windsor Lad, in his book Racing with the Gods (Pelham Books Ltd., London, 1968). Marsh continued, “The Maharaja was small and dark and handsome and possessed of considerable charm. He steered me into a quiet corner. ‘I would like you to train for me,’ he said. I came to know him very well in the months and years that followed. He was very kind-hearted and you couldn’t help liking him. The racecourse crowds were particularly fond of him and referred to him affectionately as ‘Mr. Pip’. He had a big Victorian mansion outside Windsor and lived in a romantic twilight world of the Charleston, champagne, and the like. Whenever I think of Pip, I see him in my mind’s eye emerging from his chauffeur-driven Rolls, beautifully turned out, a cigar in his hand.”

By then, of course, Maharana Shri Sir Vijaysinhji, KCSI, Maharaja of Rajpipla, had already come a long way. When he was born as Kumar Shri Vijaysinh on 30^th January 1890, his grandfather Maharana Gambhirsinhji was the 34^th Gohil Rajput Raja of Rajpipla, the British Empire was at its zenith and Queen Victoria was in the 53^rd year of her momentous reign. Automobiles were just about being invented, and kings, warriors and men of means still rode horses. Infant Vijaysinh’s parents, the then Yuvraj Chhatrasinhji and Yuvrani Phul Kunverba, daughter of the ruler of Wankaner, could not have realised at the time that their son’s reign would turn out to be the pinnacle of the 600-year sway of the Gohils over the principality, and Rajpipla would appear indelibly on the map of the racing world.    

Like his father, young Vijaysinh received his schooling at Rajkumar College, Rajkot, and like all princes learnt to ride and shoot at a very early age. As The Illustrated Weekly of India noted many decades later in its Coronation Supplement dated May 9, 1937, the prince “even as a boy, showed great skill as a sportsman having himself ridden a horse to victory and won a reputation as a marksman when not much over 10 years of age.” By then he was already Yuvraj, or heir apparent, of Rajpipla. He went on to become head boy of Rajkumar College in 1908, a recognition of his allround excellence. Military training followed at the Imperial Cadet Corps, Dehra Dun.

When his father Maharana Chhatrasinhji passed away suddenly in 1915, Vijaysinhji succeeded to the gadi or throne of Rajpipla at the age of twenty-five. His accession took place up above in the hills of the western Satpuras, and deep in the forests, in the mediaeval fort at Juna Raj or Old Rajpipla. Even as he carried out several reforms and initiated numerous works of public utility in his 1,518 square miles (nearly 4,000 square kilometres) first-class State in the Rewakantha Agency of the Bombay Presidency, lying largely between the rivers Narmada and Tapti, Maharana Vijaysinhji’s fascination for horses only grew stronger. The end of the First World War saw the young ruler come into his own.

At a very early stage, Maharaja Vijaysinhji decided to follow his passion, horse racing. Success on the turf came to him early. His horse Tipster won the first-ever Indian Derby, held in Calcutta in 1919. On 1^st January 1921 the British bestowed on him the hereditary title of Maharaja, and increased the permanent gun-salute from 11 to 13-guns.

In 1922 Maharaja Vijaysinhji set sail overseas and extensively toured the United Kingdom, Europe and United States of America. He saw his first Epsom Derby, which kindled in him the intense desire to one day bag this blue riband of the turf. He registered his colours in England in 1924. Soon, on 1^st January 1925, he was knighted (Order of the Star of India). He was barely thirty-five years of age then.

Triumphs abroad too did not take long to come. His horse Embargo won the Irish Two Thousand Guineas, and the Irish Derby at Curragh, in 1926, ridden by the famous Steve Donoghue. Embargo next won the City and Suburban, and the Grand International of Belgium at Ostend, in 1927. He also ran second as a three-year-old for the Royal Hunt Cup. The Maharaja’s eyes were now set firmly on Epsom.          

And the ambition of every owner of thoroughbred racehorses is to win The Derby, the pinnacle of triumphs at the courses. It is a remarkable story of a man pursuing his goals relentlessly, with patience and perseverance, intelligence and commonsense, and with single-minded determination. He sought the advice of everyone who mattered. As a consequence he bought a thoroughbred yearling colt or two each year. He even started a small stud farm in England with his Irish Derby winner Embargo as sire.  

As Marcus Marsh observed in his Racing with the Gods: “In the state of Rajpipla, Pip ruled a-quarter-of-a-million subjects and his every wish was their command. They would fight for him, and, if need be, they would die for him. So naturally enough, his outlook differed from ours. Racing success had come to mean a great deal to him. He had the desire for it. He had the money for it and he could not understand why the rest shouldn’t follow. I only wish it could have been that simple.”

Sure, it was not that simple. Maharaja Vijaysinhji always spent his money wisely even when he was chasing his dream, and notwithstanding the fact that he earned sizeable sums from the sport. He did not own hundreds of horses like some other Indian princes. Rather, he chose experts to pick out colts that could win the big races. In addition to his ambition to win classic races, Maharaja Vijaysinhji knew that thoroughbreds make a very good investment. As Michael Seth-Smith wrote in Country Life, “…..bloodstock is accepted as an international currency on a par with gold, silver and diamonds.” Like his collection of Rolls-Royce cars and priceless properties, a part of Maharaja Vijaysinhji’s fortune was stables of some of the finest horses one would ever find anywhere.

A Maharaja’s Turf  

ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

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Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla, arguably the greatest-ever Indian racehorse owner

A keen horseman, Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji of Rajpipla maintained one of the finest stables of race horses in India and England, marked by quality and not quantity.

His thoroughbreds won several prestigious races, including the first Indian Derby in 1919 (Tipster), the Irish Derby in 1926 and Belgian Grand Prix in 1927 (Embargo), and the blue riband of the turf, the Epsom Derby of England in 1934 (Windsor Lad).

Maharaja Vijaysinhji – or ‘Pip’, as he was affectionately known in the UK - is still the only Indian owner to have bagged the English Derby, considered the greatest horse race in the world, cheered on by an estimated quarter to half a million people which included King George V and Queen Mary of Britain and other members of the royal family. The Maharaja thereby completed a brilliant hat-trick of Derby wins: the first-ever Indian Derby, the Irish Derby and the coveted Epsom Derby of England, making him arguably the greatest-ever Indian racehorse owner.