The Arabian Horse - From the Desert to Now

The Arabian horse is the ultimate riding horse, evolvingKing Sisismund II established a royal stud in 1560,
through antiquity to become the most popular breed inperhaps the earliest European breeding program. King
America, and one of the top breeds worldwide. WarJames I imported the first Arabian stallion to England in
and trade spread the influence of the Arabian horse,1616. In Russia, Arabians were imported and bred by
and its bloodlines are to be found in virtually everyPeter the Great in the early 1700's, Catherine the
modern horse breed today.Great in the late 1700's, as well as Count Orlov, Count
DESERT PURITYStroganov and Prince Shcherbatov a century later. In
Beginning thousands of years ago, Bedouin nomadsSpain, Queen Isabella II and her son, King Alfonso XII,
bred Arabian horses as war mounts, using them forbred purebred Arabians for pleasure and war in the
quick raids on enemy camps. The Bedouins had amid 1800's. At roughly the same time, Wilhelm the
close relationship with their horses, keeping prized warGreat was forming the Weil stud in Germany. In the
mares inside the family tent for shelter from theearly 1800's in Egypt, Muhammad Ali Pasha began a
elements and protection from theft. In addition, thelegendary stud that would be passed on from Pasha
horse relied on his human caretaker for food andto Pasha. Those horses eventually were the
water in a harsh desert climate. This unique relationshipfoundation of the Crabbet Park Stud in England that
resulted in a breed that combines the alertness andwas begun by Lady Anne Blunt, a granddaughter of
high spirits necessary in a warhorse with the docility ofLord Byron.
a companion animal.In the United States, Arabians appealed to the
Through centuries of selective breeding and insistencemeritocracy, people who had made their fortunes
on purity and pedigree, the Bedouins created a horseelsewhere and then indulged a lifelong dream of
that is not only functional, but is also a great beautybreeding Arabian horses. Two luminaries were W.K.
with instantly recognizable type: the enormous,Kellogg, who built his fortune in cereal, and William
wide-set eyes, the large nostrils set on a small muzzle,Randolph Hearst, the legendary newspaper magnate.
the alert ears and the dished profile.Presidents Martin Van Buren, in 1840, and Ulysses S.
The influence of the Arabian horse also spreadGrant, in 1877, received Arabian horses as gifts from
through the teachings of the prophet Muhammad. InSultans.
the seventh century A.D., he bade his disciples to careFAMOUS HORSES OF WAR
for Arabian horses and treat them kindly, with theFamous men-of-war, including Genghis Khan and
added admonition that extra special care should beAlexander the Great, rode Arabian horses. George
given to the mares, to ensure propagation of theWashington rode a grey Arabian named Blueskin
breed. Allah created the Arabian horse, saidduring the Revolutionary War. Napoleon Bonaparte
Muhammad, and those who treat it well will have arode a grey Arabian stallion named Marengo through
reward in the afterlife.many battles. The stallion was wounded eight times,
MIXING IT UPand was captured in the Battle of Waterloo. He was
Muslim warriors conquered the Iberian Peninsula by thetaken to England and ended up under the care of a
year 720 on horses of mixed Arabian ancestry. DuringGeneral in the British Army's Grenadier Guards.
the Crusades, many knights returned from PalestineMarengo died at the ripe old age of 38. His skeleton is
with Arabian horses captured as spoils of war,displayed in London at the National Army Museum.
spreading the bloodlines throughout Europe from theA VERSATILE BREED
year 1095. The Spanish Conquistadors brought horsesFrom their history as war mount through their evolution
of mixed Arabian blood to the Americas in the 1500's.as a pleasure ride, Arabian horses now dominate
Many escaped into the wilderness to become themany disciplines in the show horse world as well. Their
American Mustang.strong constitution makes for tough competitors in
THE NOBLE PUREBREDSendurance riding. They are excellent trail horses. Due
The purebred Arabian horse appealed to royalty andto their intelligence, trainability and natural athleticism,
nobility, who were obsessed with pedigrees. One ofthey excel in most categories of equine sport. But it is
the earliest breeders of purebred Arabians was anperhaps the animal's gentle disposition that makes it a
Egyptian Sultan, Al-Nasir Muhammad, who establishedpleasure and a privilege to ride and to own an Arabian
a stud farm in El Naseri in the early 1300's. In Poland,horse.