After retiring from racing he suffered fertility problems, but still sired Orme, who won the Eclipse Stakes twice.

Ormonde was a bay colt, bred by Hugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster and foaled in 1883 at Eaton Stud in Cheshire.

Bend Or was a successful stallion, his progeny included Kendal, Ossory, Orbit, Orion, Orvieto, Bona Vista and Laveno.

Lily Agnes began to experience problems with her lungs as a four-year-old, to the extent that jockey John Osborne said he could hear her approaching before he saw her.

The Duke's stud-groom Richard Chapman stated that for several months after foaling, Ormonde was over at the knee.

The treatment he received for this held his training back considerably, with him only having easy cantering exercises until the summer of 1885.

[1] Ormonde grew into a well-built horse standing 16 hands (64 inches, 163 cm) with excellent bone and straight hocks.

Porter stated the horse was fond of flowers and would even eat the boutonniere from the jacket of anyone within reach.

[7] Prior to his racecourse debut, Porter ran Ormonde in a trial against Kendal, Whipper-in and Whitefriar.

The Duke rode him in a couple of canters and remarked "I felt every moment that I was going to be shot over his head, his propelling power is so terrific.

As they neared the closing stages, Archer let Ormonde go and he quickly pulled away from the field to beat his stablemate, Whitefriar, easily by four lengths.

The race was considered a clash between Ormonde, the unbeaten Middle Park winner Minting and Saraband.

Three days later he faced a stronger field in the Hardwicke Stakes including 1885 Derby and St Leger winner Melton.

While Ormonde was galloping one morning shortly before the St Leger Stakes, Porter noticed him making a whistling noise.

Ridden again by Archer, he pulled away half a mile out and won easily by 4 lengths from St. Mirin, without even being asked for an effort.

[14] He then won the Newmarket St Leger in a walkover[6] and the Champion Stakes as the 1/100 favourite by a length from Oberon.

Starting the 1/7 favourite and carrying 9 st 2 lb, he won by eight lengths from Mephisto, to whom he was conceding 28 lbs.

[16] The sweepstakes was an originally scheduled as a match race between Ormonde, The Bard, Melton and possibly Bendigo, the 1886 Eclipse winner.

His return was assisted by an experimental treatment involving "galvanic shocks" being applied daily to his chest and throat.

Minting's trainer Matt Dawson was confident that his horse could win this time due to Ormonde's breathing problems.

During the race George Barrett, aboard Phil, impeded Ormonde and he was made to struggle for the first time in his career.

He was sent by train to Waterloo Station, then walked to Grosvenor House in Mayfair, where he was the guest of honor at a garden party to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee.

Ormonde went to the Duke of Westminster's Eaton Stud in 1888, where he sired seven foals from the sixteen mares he covered, including Goldfinch and Orme.

In 1889, he was moved to Moulton Paddocks in Newmarket, but became sick and could only cover a few mares, with only one live foal produced in 1890.