Page 35 - August 2019

SPEEDLINES
The Royal Stud was founded with King Henry VIII and nearly lost with
THE MARE CONTRIBUTION
Our look at the ties between the Thoroughbred and American Quarter Horse
has focused on the stallion side of the pedigree, especially in the sire line. Now we will look at the contribution of the female side of the pedigree.
When we think about racing in England, we see the vision of a race like the Epsom Derby or other races on an oval racetrack. But in the beginning, the most popular form of racing in England was sprint racing and the horse of choice was the Irish Hobby. The Irish Hobby was developed in Ireland to be
a sprinter. Alexander Mackay-Smith in his Speed And The Thoroughbred reported that the use of the Hobby for sprint racing had its origin in the “pre-Christian” era of the first century A.D.
The success of the Irish Hobby went beyond racing to find them important as riding horses for their ambling gate and their use for hunting. The origin of the Irish Hobby has its roots in the Celtic Horse of the British Isles. There is some confusion as to where the Celtic Horse originated. So, the Celtic horse in England became the Irish and British Hobby, and the Irish did what appears to be a better job of developing and using the Irish Hobby, as they became prized horses for the English.
The Irish Hobby became a prized
breed that was sought by many, not only
in England but in Europe in general. They became diplomatic gifts for the English to European heads of state. The breed was so popular that it became extinct in Ireland, with the Irish Draught Horse of today being one of the few breeds that descend directly from this interesting breed.
The reign of King Henry VIII occurred between 1509 and 1547. King Henry VIII was a noted sportsman, who not only raced but used the Hobbies for hunting and riding. He maintained a stable of racing Hobby geldings. The purchase of Irish Hobby
horses during his reign was the first notable import of these horses into England. These Irish Hobbies became the foundation of
the Royal Stud and the foundation of the Thoroughbred and American Quarter Horse on the mare’s side of the pedigree.
The next type of racehorse Mackay-Smith profiles was the Running-Horse of England. These horses were originally bred by the Monks at the Abbey of Jervaulx in North Yorkshire. They were Irish Monks. They bred two types of running horses in the Hunting- Horses and the Running-Horses. The Hunting-Horse was known for its stamina, with the Running-Horse bred to be sprinters that were valued as racehorses.
When Henry VII seized and destroyed th
Catholic Church during the years 1535-1540
he called on Thomas Cromwell to carry out h
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abbeys and monasteries to purge the Roman
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orders. This called for the dispersal of the Ab
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of Jervaulx horses. Cromwell was later execut
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when he fell out of favor with Henry VIII. Alexander Mackay-Smith tells us that th
were others that imported Hobby Horses, including Yorkshire breeders in 1658 and King James I, who reigned from 1603 to 1625. Mackay-Smith states that North Yorkshire
was a regional area that, at one point, was the center of what became a “Thoroughbred” prototype that was a combination of Hobby and Running-Horse strains that became the English Running-Horse.
The English Running-Horse was a mix
of Irish Hobby, the Barb and the Turcoman horses. The origin of the Barb horses comes from the Barbary Coast of North Africa. They were the horses that carried the Moors in their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula. One of the Barb horses imported to England was the
Old Morocco Barb. He was one of four Barb Stallions that were a diplomatic gift from the Emperor of Morocco to Charles I. This took place in 1637. His pedigree is unknown.
The timeline provided by Mackay-Smith in Speed And The Thoroughbred shows that Charles I became King of England in 1625. He reigned until 1649, but he was dethroned during England’s Civil War where the Parliament had Oliver Cromwell take over. Cromwell ordered the dispersal of the Royal Stud and other breeders faithful to Charles
I during his control of England. This spread the horses of the Royal Stud, with the future of the Thoroughbred and American Quarter Horse in jeopardy.
The breed or the development of
the breed was saved by individuals who maintained these mare lines. The Helmsley Stud is one of those breeding enterprises that had a big impact on the development of the modern Thoroughbred. The Helmsley Stud was in North Yorkshire.
Mackay-Smith told the following in Speed And The Thoroughbred, “About 1635 at Helmsley, the Fifth Earl’s niece, wife of the First Duke of Buckingham, bred Old Bald Peg, the most important Hobby strain Thoroughbred foundation mare. Old Bald Peg appears in the extended pedigree of virtually every present-day Thoroughbred.”
Mackay-Smith continues to explain that when the Third Lord Fairfax, “captured and razed Helmsley Castle” under the orders
of Oliver Cromwell, the Second Duke of Cumberland and his mother escaped to France.
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King Henry VIII was a noted sportsman who maintained a stable of racing Irish Hobby,
which became the foundation of the Royal Stud and the foundation of the Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred on the mare’s side of the pedigree.
After England’s Civil War in 1649, Parliament
had Oliver Cromwell take over from Charles I. Cromwell ordered the dispersal of the Royal Stud, scattering those horses and putting the future of the Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse in jeopardy. The breed was saved by individuals who maintained these mare lines.
SPEEDHORSE, August 2019 33