Said to have been taken from the Turks at the seige of Buda in 1686 and brought to England by James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick, illegitimate son of James II who was aged only 17 when returning from Buda. After being acquired by Matthew Lister, he stood at his Burwell Park stud, near Louth, in Lincolnshire

Sire of 1) Snake, a very successful and significant stallion, sire of a) [William's] Squirrel (1725 King's Plates York, Newmarket, 1726 King's Plate Newmarket and sire of Fair Helen, Foundation Mare of Family 10); b) Smith's Son of Snake [Easby Snake], sire of Mother Western, grandam of Eclipse;

and c) the dam of Squirt, sire of Marske, the sire of Eclipse, through which the Darley Arabian sire line extends to the present day in over 95% of thoroughbreds; of 2) [Rutland's] Coneyskins (1718 King's Plates York, Nottingham, Lincoln, Newmarket, 1719 King's Plate Newmarket); and of 3) a number of mares which breed on including The Hobby Mare, a significant broodmare in Family 23