The first Cavalier Champion

Daywell Roger went on to attain his Champion title at the Welsh Kennel Club Show on 24 April 1948, under judge T. Scott. He is recognised as the first Cavalier King Charles Spaniel to become a Champion.

His achievement represented far more than another championship title. Roger became one of the most influential stud dogs of the formative post-war period, when the breed's gene pool remained exceptionally small.

Historical breed sources record that Roger sired 11 champions, while another detailed breed history records that he sired 48 litters. His descendants became an important part of Cavalier breeding programmes in Britain and, as the breed spread internationally, in other countries around the world.

A lasting influence on the breed

Daywell Roger's importance extended well beyond his own show career. His bloodline became deeply embedded in the developing Cavalier breed, with his descendants appearing throughout pedigrees for generations.

His influence can be traced through numerous important Cavaliers, including Ch. Harmony of Ttiweh, a son of Daywell Roger who became the first Cavalier recorded as winning Best in Show at a non-Club show in 1951.

Roger's influence therefore extended through both his direct offspring and the generations that followed.His pedigree is particularly significant when viewed in the context of the breed's early development. Through his dam, Daywell Nell, Roger descended from Ann's Son, the celebrated dog whose type was used as the living example when the early Cavalier breed standard was formulated in 1928.

Roger therefore carried within his pedigree some of the bloodlines that had helped shape the emerging Cavalier from its earliest recognised days.

A remarkable legacy

Daywell Roger was born at a pivotal moment in Cavalier history. The breed had survived the severe disruption of the Second World War, and in 1945 the Kennel Club agreed to separate registration for the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. In 1946, the breed was granted Championship status and the first Challenge Certificates were awarded.Against this historic backdrop, Roger became the first Cavalier Champion, achieving his title in 1948.

His significance lies not simply in being the first dog to hold the breed's Champion title, but in the extraordinary influence he subsequently exerted as a sire.

Born on 7 October 1945, awarded the Dog Challenge Certificate at the first Cavalier Championship Show in 1946, and becoming the breed's first Champion in 1948, Ch. Daywell Roger became one of the defining dogs of the early modern Cavalier.His name continues to appear throughout Cavalier pedigrees, reflecting the remarkable extent to which his bloodline contributed to the development and expansion of the breed.

Ch. Daywell Roger was not merely the first Cavalier Champion. He became one of the foundation pillars of the modern Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

Daywell Roger

Name: Ch. Daywell Roger
Breed: Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Colour: Blenheim
Born: 7 October 1945
Sire: Cannonhill Richey
Dam: Daywell Nell
Breeder: Lt. Col. & Mrs Brierley, Daywell kennel
Owner: Jane Pitt (later Jane Bowdler)
First Championship Show: 29 August 1946
First Championship Show result: Dog Challenge Certificate
Champion: 24 April 1948, Welsh Kennel Club Show
Notable breeding achievement: Sired 11 champions
Recorded litters: 48
Notable descendant: Ch. Harmony of Ttiweh
Date of death: 1957