The Bluefaced Leicester is the sheep breed known for its distinctive blue-gray face and fleece and British development.
The breed originated in Northumberland, England, during the eighteenth century. Robert Bakewell’s improved Leicester sheep contributed to its development, and selective breeding later produced the narrow head, Roman nose, dark skin, and blue-gray appearance associated with the breed.
Bluefaced Leicesters are valued especially as crossing sires. Their ewes commonly produce prolific, milky daughters when crossed with hill or mountain breeds, helping create productive commercial sheep. The breed is also kept for its lustrous longwool.
The name can cause confusion because “bluefaced” describes coloration rather than a blue wool fiber. It is also distinct from the Bluefaced Leicester mule, a crossbred ewe type widely used in British sheep production.