Brian Fanshawe
Master of the Cottesmore Hunt renowned for his horsemanship and his prolific fox-catching
BRIAN FANSHAWE, who has died aged 82, was one of the most renowned Masters of Foxhounds and amateur huntsmen of the 20th century. A day following his hounds was unforgettable: proceedings were entirely dominated by the tall figure with a distinctive nose who commanded the mounted field to “get involved”, but not to interfere with his hounds.
Fanshawe was comparatively rare in excelling as an exceptional horseman, as well as being a gifted hound man in widely differing hunting countries. Fortunately, his imprecations in the hunting field were seldom coherent enough to cause offence, but they did provide a discipline which helped him to achieve remarkable sport, with a high tally of foxes caught.
Off a horse, Fanshawe was mildmannered and widely popular, with a keen sense of humour.
On being congratulated at the end of a long, thrilling hunt with the Cottesmore hounds, he replied: “It wasn’t much good; we didn’t catch the fox.”
When the Leicestershire hunting personality, Urkie Newton, telephoned Fanshawe to ask if his next meet was “good”, he replied: “We do not have bad days in the Cottesmore country.”
When Fanshawe was about to take over the Cottesmore Hunt in 1981, the late Lord Kimball asked: “Will he be able to ride our country?” He was told firmly: “The only problem will be to keep anywhere near him.”
Brian Edward Fanshawe was born on September 13 1936, the younger son of keen foxhunting and riding parents, Major Richard Fanshawe and his wife Ruth, who both hunted the South Oxfordshire hounds. Ruth Fanshawe hunted them solely during the war; her brother was the distinguished
Master and huntsman of the Portman, Sir Peter Farquhar.
After leaving Stowe school, Brian Fanshawe gained experience of riding and training horses in Newmarket racing yards, before going to Sandhurst and being commissioned into the 9th/12th Lancers. He served in Germany, Cyprus and Northern Ireland, and kept up his horsemanship.
In 1960 he married Elizabeth (Libby) Pugh of Temple Guiting, Gloucestershire, a fine horsewoman who shared all her husband’s sporting interests.
Fanshawe was a top-class point-topoint and hunter ’chase rider, reaching his peak in 1967, when he won Cheltenham’s National Hunt ’Chase on Master Tammy. His brother-in-law, the leading trainer David Nicholson, advised him not to resort to the whip after the last fence, but only to use hands and heels. Fanshawe achieved victory by a neck in a thrilling finish.
After leaving the Army in 1962 with the rank of captain he helped to run the Warwickshire country, acting as Field Master then joining the Mastership, and hunting the hounds from 1965. In 1969 Fanshawe took the Mastership of the famous Galway Blazers in Ireland. He and Libby thoroughly enjoyed riding thoroughbreds over Galway’s old turf and myriad stone walls.
In 1972 they returned to farm in Devon, but could not resist the opportunity of taking the North Cotswold Mastership in 1975, with Libby serving as Joint Master with her husband.
The Shires beckoned in 1981 when Fanshawe was appointed Master and huntsman of the Cottesmore, one of the finest countries remaining in England, well fenced and ideal for hunting hounds over a broad terrain. He rose to the challenge immediately, swiftly overcoming initial opposition in the Hunt from some who wanted a professional huntsman. Potential critics became fervent supporters.
As well as supervising the Hunt Kennels he ran the stables and managed the hunting country, making many friends among farmers and landowners. As a hound breeder he was highly innovative, using outcrosses from Ireland, France, America, and some Welsh lines from his cousin Ian Farquhar’s pack at the Bicester.
From all these sources, Fanshawe produced a formidable working pack tuned into his own drive and energy in the hunting field. He was an excellent judge of hounds and horses.
In 1992, at the age of 55, Fanshawe gave up the hunting field completely. He said it was a case of “all or nothing; much better to go out at the top.” Returning to Gloucestershire, he devoted himself with great energy and persistence to the cause of preserving hunting in the face of growing political threats. He served as Director of the Council of Hunting Associations, and helped produce new disciplinary rules for the hound sports.
A countryman in every sense, he argued firmly for registered foxhunting as the best form of conservation of the quarry. He gave evidence to the Burns Committee inquiry which presaged Labour’s Hunting Act of 2004 intended to ban hunting with hounds.
Fanshawe continued to argue that to repeal the Hunting Act it is essential to make the case to politicians and the public that hunting with hounds under strict codes of conduct is the most humane form of wildlife control, and the best way to achieve balanced conservation of the quarry species.
He strongly supported the Veterinary Association for Wildlife Management, and the Middle Way group, in pointing out that rural foxes have suffered far more from indiscriminate slaughter throughout the years since the Hunting Act came into force.
Fanshawe persisted in the campaign to repeal the Hunting Act, despite failing health in recent years.
As well as his wife Libby, Brian Fanshawe is survived by his son James, the Newmarket trainer, a younger son, Antony, who was an international polo player and is currently Polo Manager of the Guards Polo Club, Windsor, and by a daughter, Rose, who is a prize-winning orchid grower in Sussex.
Brian Fanshawe, born September 13 1936, died May 30 2019