History of King Charles Spaniel in Timeline

The King Charles Spaniel is a small spaniel breed created in 1903 by The Kennel Club. It was formed by merging four separate toy spaniel breeds: the Blenheim, Ruby, and Prince Charles Spaniels. Each original breed contributed one of the four coat colors now present in the modern King Charles Spaniel.

1903: The Kennel Club combined four separate toy spaniel breeds

In 1903, The Kennel Club combined four separate toy spaniel breeds, including the Blenheim, Ruby, and Prince Charles Spaniels, under the single title of King Charles Spaniel.

1903: Kennel Club attempted to amalgamate spaniels

In 1903, the Kennel Club attempted to combine the King James, Prince Charles, Blenheim, and Ruby spaniels into the Toy Spaniel breed. The Toy Spaniel Club objected, but King Edward VII intervened, preferring the name "King Charles Spaniel".

1904: American Kennel Club combined the four breeds

In 1904, the American Kennel Club followed suit and combined the four breeds into the English Toy Spaniel breed. The Japanese Spaniel was considered a toy spaniel but was not merged and remained a separate breed.

1911: Judith Blunt-Lytton's Toy Dogs and Their Ancestors

In 1911, Judith Blunt-Lytton, the 16th Baroness Wentworth, theorized in her work "Toy Dogs and Their Ancestors" that after Princess Henrietta's death in 1670, King Charles II took her dogs for himself.

July 1918: Shooting of the Romanov family

In July 1918, during the shooting of the Romanov family, Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia owned a King Charles Spaniel. Eight days later, Nicholas Sokolov found the corpse of a King Charles Spaniel at the site believed to be where the Romanov family was burnt.

1926: Roswell Eldridge offered a prize fund

In 1926, American Roswell Eldridge offered a prize for Blenheim Spaniels of the old type, long face, no stop, flat skull, not inclined to be domed, with spot in centre of skull as shown in pictures of Charles II of England's time.

1928: The first breed club was created

In 1928, several breeders banded together and created the first breed club for the new Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. The Kennel Club initially listed the new breed as "King Charles Spaniels, Cavalier type".

1945: The Kennel Club recognised the new breed

In 1945, the Kennel Club recognised the new Cavalier King Charles Spaniel breed in its own right.

1960: Princess Margaret attends Princess Anne's birthday

In 1960, Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, attended Princess Anne's tenth birthday party with her King Charles Spaniel named Rolly.

1988: Finnish breed club surveys on patella luxation

Surveys conducted by the Finnish breed club between 1988 and 2007 found that the occurrences of patella luxation were higher in some years, ranging from 5.3% to 50%.

1997: American Kennel Club recognised the Cavalier

In 1997, the American Kennel Club recognised the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

2003: King Charles Spaniel as Vulnerable Native Breed

In 2003, the King Charles Spaniel was identified as a Vulnerable Native Breed by the Kennel Club to promote the breed due to low registration numbers.

2006: Docking and cropping illegal

Since 2006, tail docking and ear cropping has been illegal in the UK and some other European countries.

2007: Finnish breed club surveys on patella luxation

Surveys conducted by the Finnish breed club between 1988 and 2007 found that the occurrences of patella luxation were higher in some years, ranging from 5.3% to 50%.

2008: BBC documentary Pedigree Dogs Exposed

In 2008, the BBC documentary "Pedigree Dogs Exposed" criticised the breeding of pedigree breeds, including the King Charles Spaniel, and highlighted issues involving syringomyelia. The RSPCA ended its sponsorship of Crufts, and the BBC declined to broadcast the event following the program.

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2010: Popularity of the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and English Toy Spaniel

In 2010, the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel was the 23rd most popular breed, while the English Toy Spaniel was the 126th, according to American Kennel Club registration figures. In the UK, the Cavalier was the most popular breed in the Toy Group.