King Charles III visited his newly-inherited racehorses at Sandringham's stud farm in his first trip to the royal residence since the Queen's death.
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The monarch inherited 60 racehorses and 38 brood mares upon his mother's death on 8 September. And in pictures obtained by the Daily Mail, Charles could be seen keenly inspecting the horses alongside a trio of estate staff.
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At one point, the 73-year-old let loose a big grin before pointing at one of the racehorses in a curious manner.
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After visiting the horses, Charles scaled back the number of royal livestock and sold a total of 14 horses for more than £1million at Tattersalls auction house in Newmarket. "It's nothing out of the ordinary. Every year they would sell horses," Tattersall's spokesman Jimmy George told the BBC. "The Queen had brood mares of her own, she would breed them and sell them. You can't keep them all.
© Photo: Getty ImagesKing Charles is a huge polo fan
"Every year owners sell stock. His Majesty is just doing what owners do," he added.
Among the 14 horses sold at auction was Love Affairs – the Queen's last winner before her death – and Just Fine, Charles' first winner at Leicester on 4 October. While Just Fine went for a staggering £300,000, a younger colt named Tack sold for £4,000.
Although King Charles keenly follows the sport, it was his mother who displayed an unwavering passion for racing and racehorses. The committed equestrian had her first riding lesson at the age of three and continued to ride well into her 90s.
© Photo: Getty ImagesThe late Queen rode into her 90s
The Queen's moment of glory came in 2013 when she scooped the Ascot Gold Cup with her thoroughbred, Estimate. Her Majesty made history as the first reigning monarch to win Royal Ascot's Gold Cup.
In a recent interview for ITV regarding Royal Ascot, Queen Consort Camilla praised the late monarch's impressive breeding knowledge. "She can tell you every horse she's bred and owned, from the very beginning, she doesn't forget anything.
"I can hardly remember what I bred a year ago, so she's encyclopaedic about her knowledge," Camilla said.
