In 1811 the famous herd of Yorkshire cows at Audley End in Essex ...

he also purchased a cow called Pug, which had been imported by Mr. Michael Fowler from theIsland of Jersey - Testing her, he found that though she gave but 11 quarts -27½ lbs. - of milk, shemade 10½ lbs of butter a week, as against 10 1/4 lbs of butter from the Suffolk cow, which gave 21quarts-52½ lbs - of milk per day. His mind was then made up as to the breed of cows he wouldkeep". A herd book 1882-86 has later been found in a barn at Home Farm, Little Horwood. Thegreater part had been chewed by rodents and is now fragmentary, but the saved copy "containsnames of cows, some details of feeds, individual weekly yields of milk and some details aboutbutter". The Archivists has stated that the occupant of Horwood House at that time was PhilipDauncey.Three herds established before the formation of the Jersey association and a herd book in thecountry, which happened in 1878, still exist, which is that of Her Majesty the Queen at Windsor.The two other herds are staying at Osberton Notts and at Brighstone, Isle of Wight.In 1837 Queen Victoria ascended theThrone, and shortly after granted Her RoyalPatronage upon the JRA&HS. She visitedthe Island with the Prince Albert in 1846.And next year in May the Society sent as agift a two year old heifer and a yearling bullwith another heifer, to Windsor Home Farm.From Buckingham Palace Le Couteur on27th May 1847 received following: "Sir, Ihave received the Command of His RoyalHighness the Prince Albert to acquaint you,that His Royal Highness will have muchpleasure and accepting the Three JerseyPrize Cattle, for which his Royal Highnessbegs that you will return to the Jersey Agricultural & Horticultural Society the Princes best thanks".It is to believe, that the animals short after were moved to the new model farm at Osborne, as it is afact, that the famous animal painter Thomas Sidney Cooper in 1848 was summoned to OsborneHouse in Isle of Wight to paint Queen Victoria’s Jersey Cow "Buffie" which had been presented toher by the Island of Jersey. The first Jersey cow recorded on the Windsor farm was in 1871 with thearrival of Pretty Polly from the “small herd" at Osborne House. In 1992 ten cows at the Windsorherd could be traced back to Pretty Polly.Back in 1866 J.R. Fisk had bought Slate and Marsh Green Farms in Isle of Wight and according tothe first volume of the English Jersey Herd book, published in 1879, his first Jersey bull beingbought from Queen Victoria's herd at Osborne House. Today the owner of Brighstone Jersey,Richard Fisk can trace his herd back to 4 bulls listed in that first issue of the herd book and tracingwithin one or two generations back to stock imported from the Island of Jersey itself.According to "Royal Insight 1999" the two dairy herds at the Royal Farms date back from GeorgeIII's reign. The farms were at a low level during subsequent reigns due to lack of interest, untilPrince Albert raised the farms again to the status of model farms.In 1849, Prince Albert arranged for the pasture land to be stocked with dairy cows, mainly DairyShorthorns but also some Jerseys (known contemporarily as Alderney cows), which were thefoundation of the existing Jersey herd.

The other dairy herd at the Royal Farms is an Ayrshire herd, formed in 1951 in the last year ofGeorge VI's reign. Each herd numbers 150 cows. By tradition, the herds have been kept to Jerseysand Ayrshires.By 1863, there were 80 Shorthorn and 12 Alderney cows being milked at the Windsor Farm.According to David Stiles no official records exist before 1881. But some of the basis for the St.Lambert breeding may have originated here for it is a fact, that Sheldon Stephens’s importationfrom England in 1868 to Canada included animals from Queen Victoria's Shaw Farm at Windsor.(References: David Stiles 1995).Another of the oldest herds in the country is The Osberton herd, as it was started by the Rt. Hon.F.J.S. Foljambe back in 1869 mainly to provide milk and butter for his household and employees.The herd gradually increased to a maximum of 120 cows in 1967 by the founders great grandsonMr. G.M.T. Foljambe.