Pennal The Great

Description

			Nebo Black Magic
		Brynymor Welsh Magic	Hywalong Briallan
Sire:	Thorneyside The Terminator
		Thorneyside Welsh Model	Brynmor Welsh Magic
			Menai Lady Corona
			Tynged Calon Lan
		Pennal Calon Lan	Pennal Lady Model
Dam:	Pennal Lively Maid
		Rhystyd Fashion	Llanarth Meredith Ap Braint
			Rhystyd Lively Maid

Bred in 2002 by Dai & Sian Harris of the Pennal Stud; Pennal The Great, by Thorneyside The Terminator out of Pennal Lively Maid was purchased as a foal by Brian & Shona Thomson as a future show stallion. Pennal The Great won the hearts and minds of all who met him from the very first day he set foot in the showring as a foal. He was destined for the very top from the day he was born and he has without a doubt, lived up to his name, many, many times over.

Pennal The Great’s ridden career took off in 2008 when as a 6 year old Novice, partnered by Fiona Cork, the combination set the Mountain & Moorland ridden world alight with his power fuelled, ground covering way of going, his inimitable Welsh Character and mezmerizing presence. Pennal The Great is a truly Great example of his breed who remains an all time favourite of the professional producer/rider, ridden judges and trainers alike.

Performance:
2008 Royal of England, Champion HOYS Ridden Mountain and Moorland. 2nd place Horse of the Year Show, Section D Ridden. Winner Royal Lancs Section D Ridden.
2009 Royal Highland Show, Champion HOYS Ridden Mountain and Moorland. NPS NFU Overall Welsh Champion. BSPS Scotland Supreme Champion. HOYS Finalist.
2010 Supreme Champion Scottish Welsh Association in hand and under saddle. Supreme Champion PUK Scotland, qualified RIHS Winner Royal Highland Section D in hand and HOYS Ridden Section D. Supreme NPS Scotland Clarendon in hand finals. Supreme NPS Scotland Baileys Horse Feeds Open Ridden Finals HOYS Finalist.
2011 NFU NPS Welsh Performance Champion. National Welsh HOYS Ridden Champion. Qualified HOYS. NCPA Ridden Section D Pony of the Year.

Pennal The Great is a true to type Welsh Cob Stallion of exceptional beauty, with exceptional blood lines and an exceptional Career as a ridden Welsh Cob Stallion and in hand breed Stallion.
Exceptional Beauty
Pennal The Great is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful Welsh Cob Stallions in the world today. Not only is he breathtakingly beautiful with the most stunning head and eye, he simply oozes Welsh pony character together with a truly mesmerising Stallion presence.

Exceptional Blood Lines by Dai Harris President of WPCS 2015
The illustrious female line of Pennal The Great can be traced back on a continuous female line to 1886. Mr W. L. Harris who registered the Pennal Stud was one of four Brothers of the Rhystyd Stud.
Pennal The Great is the Grandson of the Pennal Stud’s foundation mare, Rhystyd Fashion. In her lifetime, Rhystyd Fashion produced four Royal Welsh Winners and she was a Royal Welsh Winner herself, winning Reserve Female Champion in 1978. Rhysted Fashion’s dam is also the full sister of Royal Welsh Male Champion, Rhysted Prince and her daughter, Pennal Lively Maid, Dam of Pennal The Great, is also a prolific breeder who just like her Mother has produced Royal Welsh Winners and Champions. Pennal Lively Maid is also the Dam of Pennal Brynmor, himself the youngest ever recipient of the George Prince of Wales Cup.

‘There are times in life when a breeder instinctively knows that an exceptional animal has been born. I remember the day well in 2002 and saying to my wife Sian, that Lively Maid’s new colt foal is truly a Great one! To which my Sian immediately replied, ‘We will have to name this colt, Pennal The Great!’
From that day forward, Pennal The Great has lived up to his name and more!

Exceptional Performance
A ridden career that spanned five years during which time Pennal The Great dominated the ridden Welsh Section D classes at National level. Always lightly shown throughout his career, The Great competed in only nine HOYS qualifiers to achieve five times qualification to the Horse of The Year Show with three of the qualification achieved at the first attempt.

There were many wins and championships. Two most memorable days has to be winning the ridden Mountain & Moorland HOYS Championship at the Royal Agricultural Show of England where from over 200 of the very best Mountain, Moorland and Welsh Ponies in the country, the six year old Stallion was selected as RASE Ridden Hoys Champion. Another hugely memorable day saw the Stallion selected as the overall Supreme In Hand Mountain & Moorland pony at the National Pony Society Blair Finals in the morning and followed this achievement by being awarded the overall Supreme Ridden Championship in the afternoon.

His phenomenal presence combined with powerful, free flowing movement and superb, natural carriage captured the hearts of Show Judges, Producers, Competitors, Commentators and Spectators in equal measure.

Exceptional Youngstock
There is a common thread of desirable attributes which flows through the young stock sired by Pennal The Great. Their owners have all reported their ‘Harri Foals’ to be beautiful and have an unmistakable look of their Sire, to have generous, trainable temperaments, to possess balanced, athletic, powerful, free flowing movement, of strong limbs with superb length of rein and undeniably Welsh Cobs that are full of Welsh Pony Character.

2026 Up-date:

THE PENNAL DYNASTY

The Bloodline Behind the 2026 Royal Welsh Supreme Champion

Every generation of Welsh Cob breeders hopes to produce that one exceptional horse capable of leaving a lasting impression on the breed. Few breeding programmes, however, continue to influence Welsh Cob breeding over four decades, consistently producing horses of outstanding quality whose achievements can be traced back to one remarkable family of mares.

The Pennal Stud, developed by Mr David Rowland Harris, stands as one of those rare breeding programmes.

The crowning of Glyncoch Capoeira as Overall Supreme In-Hand Champion at the 2026 Royal Welsh Show has once again drawn international attention to the Pennal female family and the breeding philosophy that has quietly shaped Welsh Cob breeding for more than forty years.

For breeders throughout the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, this was far more than the success of one outstanding mare. It was compelling evidence that carefully selected maternal bloodlines continue to define excellence within the Welsh Cob.

The Royal Welsh – The World’s Stage for Welsh Cobs

There is no greater showcase for the Welsh Pony and Cob than the Royal Welsh Show. Each July, breeders from every corner of the world travel to Builth Wells. Many make the journey from the USA, Australia, New Zealand and mainland Europe, while thousands more follow the results through live broadcasts and international media. Winning at the Royal Welsh has always carried significance, but being crowned Overall Supreme In-Hand Champion represents one of the highest honours a Welsh Pony or Cob can achieve.

When Glyncoch Capoeira, bred and owned by Adrian Bowen of Glyncoch Stud, claimed that title in 2026, she did more than win a championship.

She reminded the international breeding community of the enduring strength of one of the most influential maternal families in modern Welsh Cob breeding.

Her achievements in 2026 included:

• Overall Supreme In-Hand Champion, Royal Welsh Show
• Overall Section D Champion
• Price Family Horse of the Year Show Qualifier

These achievements were recognised not only by those present at the Royal Welsh but by breeders across the world who immediately turned to study the pedigree behind this remarkable mare.

The Foundation of a Dynasty

The history of the Welsh Cob is often told through famous stallions.

Experienced breeders know the real story is different.

The greatest breeding programmes are founded upon exceptional mares.

Within the Pennal Stud, that foundation was Rhystyd Fashion.

Her daughter, Pennal Lively Maid, became one of the defining broodmares of the Pennal breeding programme, consistently producing stock of outstanding quality and establishing a female family whose influence remains evident today.

What distinguishes the Pennal dynasty is not one outstanding horse but the remarkable consistency with which this female family has produced champions over successive generations.

The success of Glyncoch Capoeira is simply the latest chapter in that continuing story.

Breeding with Purpose

One of the most fascinating aspects of Glyncoch Capoeira’s pedigree is that Rhystyd Fashion appears on both sides of her ancestry.

Her direct maternal line follows:

Rhystyd Fashion
↓
Pennal Lively Maid
↓

Pennal Free Dancer

↓
Abergavenny Welsh Dancer
↓
Pennal Riverdance
↓
Glyncoch Capoeira

Her sire, Pennal Carwyn, also traces back to Rhystyd Fashion through his maternal line.

This is not accidental.

It represents thoughtful line breeding, reinforcing the qualities of one exceptional mare family through successive generations. More than forty years after those original breeding decisions were made, the Royal Welsh Supreme Championship has once again demonstrated the value of that philosophy.

A Family of Champions

The Pennal dynasty has never depended upon one exceptional individual.

Instead, each generation has produced horses that have strengthened the family’s reputation and laid the foundations for the next.

Pennal Lively Maid’s Progeny –

Pennal Brynmor

At the 2009 Royal Welsh Show, three-year-old Pennal Brynmor achieved one of the most memorable performances of his generation.

His honours included:

• First Prize – Three-Year-Old Section D Colt
• Male Champion
• Overall Section D Champion
• Overall Supreme In-Hand Champion of the Royal Welsh Show

His victory demonstrated the extraordinary consistency of the Pennal breeding programme and confirmed the continuing strength of the female family established through Pennal Lively Maid.

Pennal Free Dancer

Foaled in 1999 and later purchased by the Abergavenny Stud in 2005, Pennal Free Dancer quickly established herself as an exceptional mare.

At her very first show in 2006 she qualified for the prestigious Cuddy In-Hand Championship, before going on to achieve silver and bronze medal status throughout her successful show career.

More importantly, she became an outstanding broodmare.  Among her progeny are horses that have themselves become champions and international ambassadors for the bloodline.

Pennal Princess Royal

Perhaps no daughter better illustrates the strength of the family than Pennal Princess Royal.

Her achievements include:

• Champion at the Lampeter Stallion & Cob Show
• Royal Welsh Champion

She represents another generation in which the Pennal female family continued to produce Welsh Cobs capable of winning at the very highest level.

Pennal The Great

Among the sons of Pennal Lively Maid, one horse occupies a particularly significant position.

Pennal The Great combined outstanding conformation with exceptional ridden performance, becoming one of the most admired and successful ridden Welsh Cobs of his generation.

A token of his achievements include:

• Champion Ridden Mountain & Moorland – Royal Show of England
• Champion Ridden Welsh Cob – Royal Highland Show
• Horse of the Year Show Qualifier every year from 2006 to 2012
• Pennal The Great has established an international reputation as a sire, producing champions and successful performance horses across the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. His progeny have excelled in in-hand competition, Horse of the Year Show level ridden showing, Working Hunter, Dressage and Carriage Driving, demonstrating not only the quality of his conformation but also the athleticism, temperament and versatility that have become hallmarks of the Pennal bloodline.

Today, Pennal The Great continues to influence breeding programmes through his frozen semen, preserving a direct genetic link to Pennal Lively Maid and the remarkable female family founded by Rhystyd Fashion.

The Dynasty Continues

The influence of the Pennal breeding programme has not diminished with time.

Recent years have continued to demonstrate the family’s ability to produce horses of exceptional quality.

Pennal Royal Command (by Pennal The Great) was crowned Overall Supreme Champion at the Lampeter Stallion & Cob Show in 2025, while Glyncoch Capoeira (By Pennal Carwyn) has now added the highest accolade of the Royal Welsh Show to the family’s remarkable record.

These are not isolated successes.

They represent over four decades of disciplined breeding decisions founded upon one exceptional maternal family.

Why This Matters to Australian Breeders

Australian Welsh Cob breeders have long recognised the importance of proven bloodlines.

Many travel regularly to the Royal Welsh Show to study the finest examples of the breed, while others closely follow every result from home.

The success of Glyncoch Capoeira has once again highlighted the continuing importance of the Pennal female family.

For Australian breeders, this is not simply a story of history.

It is a story of opportunity.

Professionally stored frozen semen from Pennal The Great is held in Australia by International Horse Breeders (IHB), Victoria, providing immediate access to one of the few remaining direct sons of Pennal Lively Maid available to breeders outside the United Kingdom.

The relevance of these genetics was evident during the 2026 Royal Welsh Show itself.

Overseas breeders arranged to meet specifically to discuss the Pennal bloodline, while European breeders, having watched Starloch Princess Bride, a daughter of Pennal The Great, compete in the ridden mare class, confirmed that Pennal The Great would form part of their future breeding programme.

Those conversations reflected something important.

Experienced breeders continue to recognise proven genetics when they see them.

More Than a Legacy

The success of Glyncoch Capoeira is not simply another Royal Welsh victory.

It is contemporary evidence that the breeding philosophy developed by Mr David Rowland Harris continues to influence the Welsh Cob at the highest level.

More than forty years after Rhystyd Fashion laid the foundations of the Pennal dynasty, her descendants continue to produce champions admired throughout the world.

For breeders, this is more than a remarkable chapter in Welsh Cob history.

It is an opportunity to preserve and build upon one of the breed’s most proven maternal families. Through Pennal The Great, that opportunity remains available today.

Terms of Sale of Semen: Three inseminations provided for the stud fee, one pregnancy permitted. If mare is not in foal at 45 days a refund of 30% will be refunded.

Please find “Harri” on facebook under “Pennal the Great”
Standing at Starloch Stud in the UK.

Website:

About Pennal the Great