The History of the British Riding Pony – review
You lead maintain to wonder how many of the world’s elite riders got their start on a British riding pony.
As whatever bring upwards of a pony-mad kid volition attest, a well-schooled as well as compliant pony is worth its weight inwards gold. That tilt isn’t besides far from the truth, in i lawsuit the chequebook has to come upwards out!
Tom Best, co-founder of Britain’s Waxwing Stud, is an acknowledged practiced on ponies, having bred riding ponies as well as Welsh stock to compete at the highest levels.
His dearest of the breed was passed downwards from his father, also named Tom, as well as he was finally hooked when given his starting fourth dimension pony at the historic menstruum of nine.
by Tom Best
Medina Publishing, Aug 2011
210 x 218 mm Portrait
RRP £35 ($A75; $NZ75; $US88 – ship service free)
Buy now
ISBN: 978-0-9564170-9-1
Best is non i to forgo a challenge, as well as so when Joan Lee Smith, who is patron of Ponies Association UK, as well as the belatedly Elspeth Ferguson, of Rosevean Stud, urged him to pen the history of the breed, he was upwards the task.
And an of import move it is, for approximately breed aficionados were fearful that if its origins were non formally recorded soon, it may lead maintain been lost forever.
Best’s long career inwards instruction served him well, equally good equally his obvious attending to detail. He set virtually writing a history that extends to 299 pages.
The outcome is a fascinating history of a breed. Best describes how the expertise of a handful of influential breeders brought together suitable bloodlines from thoroughbred, arabian as well as native pony breeds to do the British riding pony.
Four of Naseel’s Irish-bred progeny: (from left) Eureka, Glide On, My Pretty Maid, as well as Pretty Polly.The move is also a valuable social history equally it journeys dorsum to a greater extent than than 100 years into the breed’s past, which began inwards the belatedly 19th century.
Initial breeding efforts were directed to creating suitable polo mounts, precisely the British riding pony of today is a stalwart of the present ring, providing children amongst suitable mounts to ride.
The breed history is non the entirely layer to this book.
In laying out the breed’s history, it explores to a greater extent than than a century of social history.
In many respects the breed’s history goes dorsum fifty-fifty further.
In 1535, King Henry VIII introduced laws designed to breed bigger ponies. In the Act of 1541, reference was made to restrictions placed on stallions nether xv hands, which should non hold upwards allowed to run amongst mares inwards forests as well as moors.
In 1740, King George II followed adapt amongst laws that would suppress races of “poneys” as well as other pocket-sized as well as weak horses.
The novel breeding policies began to accept effect, starting to shape the British native breeds that are familiar today, as well as which contributed to the British riding pony known today.
Native pony enthusiasts volition uncovering considerable involvement inwards the book, looking at the formative work such breeds played inwards the evolution of the British riding pony.
It volition also involvement thoroughbred as well as arabian Equus caballus enthusiasts, equally the inputs of both breeds were crucial to the modern-day riding ponies.
Best explains how bloodlines emerged over the years as well as how the types nosotros forthwith come across inwards present rings lead maintain been developed.
The publishers depict it equally a definitive account, as well as it is impossible to disagree.
Best has produced a really good written as well as good organised history.
The illustrations lonely constitute a fascinating glimpse into history.
Readers may hold upwards surprised to know that today’s riding pony stemmed from the need, inwards the 1850s, for a pocket-sized high-class Equus caballus for polo. Polo breeders sought arabians as well as pocket-sized thoroughbreds equally foundation stock, as well as of the 57 stallions inwards Britain’s starting fourth dimension polo pony studbook, in that location numbered 24 arab or barb horses imported the Middle East or Bharat including Mootrub, as well as eleven pocket-sized thoroughbreds, including the famous Rosewater.
Two welsh cob stallions were amidst the 12 welsh or welsh partbreds, as well as the other 12 stallions included the partbred hackney Birthday, past times Tip Top, as well as ii “Wilson” ponies, bred past times Christopher ‘Kit’ Wilson of Rigmaden Park inwards Kirby Lonsdale.
The mares, however, were a dissimilar story, amongst many native as well as cross-bred ponies represented. So the adage “Blood over Bone” was really much evident inwards the early on days of the riding pony.
In 1893 the Polo Pony Society became the Polo as well as Riding Pony Society, recognising the many other uses that ponies had – other than playing polo. Other pony breed stud books were formed inwards the early on 1900s as well as inwards 1913, amongst the demand for polo ponies diminishing, the onetime Polo Pony Society became the National Pony Society.
The histories of influential ponies from now-famous breeders such equally Criban Stud, Cusop, Coed Coch, Bwlch, Rosslyn, Leamington, Briery Close, Rosevean, Oakley, Sandbourne, Yealand, as well as Whalton amidst others are discussed as well as illustrated, as well as the involvement of people including the Bullen menage unit of measurement (Catherston Stud), the Lee-Smiths, Elspeth Ferguson, Vivian as well as Pat Eckley, as well as Glenda Spooner are also noted.
And of the early on British arabian studs, the most influential was Wilfrid as well as Lady Anne Blunt’s Crabbet Arabian Stud, inwards Sussex, subsequently run past times their miss Judith, Lady Wentworth.
In the chapter outlining the arabian influence, Best mentions the influence of the famous Skowronek, as well as his grandson Raktha, whom Lady Wentworth purchased from Lady Yule’s Hanstead Stud, inwards arabian breeding of the day.
And inwards 1937 at the Spring Show at Islington Lady Yule’s bay yearling colt Riffal (later exported to Fenwick Stud inwards Australia) won the purebred section, precisely “little attending was paid that twenty-four threescore minutes menstruum to the 3rd placed arab colt, the immature grey Naseel, also bred as well as shown past times Lady Yule.” Naseel had crosses to Skowronek on both sides of his pedigree.
“Naseel’s twenty-four threescore minutes menstruum would come, albeit non inside his ain breed, precisely inside the evolution of a novel type of British Riding Pony that would revolutionise breeding programmes throughout Great Britain as well as beyond,” Best writes.
Of the major sires inwards the riding pony’s history, nosotros read of the renowned Bwlch Valentino, a one-half thoroughbred stallion amongst arab, welsh, as well as polo pony breeding. He narrowly escaped existence gelded before going on to move an outstanding sire of ponies.
But after this, move inwards the arabian sire Naseel, who became the most successful sire of both hacks as well as ponies inwards Ireland.
When bred to Gipsy Gold, Naseel sired Volant, 1950 as well as 1952 Pony of the Year Pretty Polly, 1953 as well as 1955 Pony of the Year My Pretty Maid, as well as Eureka. This cross “highlighted the work of Arab blood inwards the breeding of the developing British Riding Pony, at a fourth dimension when in that location was approximately prejudice against its use,” Best writes.
Post state of war stallions such equally Gay Presto, Morning Magic, Ardencaple, General Grant, Count Dorsaz, as well as Triton would play their parts inwards pony breeding inwards subsequently years.
In the 1950s breeders entered the “Valentino years”, where Bwlch Valentino dominated. Crossing him amongst Naseel a miss would lead maintain been the ‘golden cross’ of the day, as well as from this pairing came Pollyanna, the Royal Show winner as well as 1963 Pony of the Year, out of Pretty Polly. But Pollyanna was exported to the US, ending as well as adventure of a farther legacy inwards Britain.
Enter the likes of Rosslyn, Solway, Rotherwood, as well as Twylands studs through the 70s, 80s as well as 90s, edifice on generations of winning riding ponies. It was the fourth dimension for stallions such equally Bwlch Zephyr, Perdita, as well as Mambrino – sire of Small Land Mascot who was sold to Australia’s Kirrieway stud at the historic menstruum of xvi – to brand their mark.
But non all breeders had gone “the Bwlch way”, as well as these studs were to subsequently render a company outcross for ponies saturated amongst before influential lines.
In the 1980s the 12.2hh stallion Sandbourne Royal Ensign dominated. He was the entirely colt left entire when the Sandbourne Stud dispersed inwards 1984. Remarkably, for a pocket-sized stallion he sired ponies of all heights, including the 14.2hh Royal Emblem, who was Pony of the Year inwards 1990.
These stunning ponies are illustrated throughout the book, as well as many large entitle winners are shown inwards all their glory.
Best offers approximately thought-provoking observations inwards his finally chapter, when he talks of the ascension of native ponies for children’s mounts past times those who consider them to a greater extent than set dorsum for the average immature rider.
Best warns that the present life led past times approximately British riding ponies as well as the weather nether which they are forced to alive tin brand them sour. “They alive similar over-sophisticated children who are kept upwards to dinner besides belatedly at night. They move tired as well as cross.”
“With luck,” he writes, “the British riding pony volition grip its ain as well as move on to grow inwards the future. We promise in that location volition e'er hold upwards a marketplace for a pony for the present ring.”
Best himself is inwards no uncertainty equally to what the British riding pony represents – “a remarkable breed of pony whose beauty as well as elegance has no equal inwards the equine world”.
While breeding the generations of British riding ponies has been the studied pursuit of adults, i matter is clear from the many pictures inwards the book. It is the immense enjoyment many generations of children lead maintain had from riding these ponies that boundary out of the photographs.
The smiles are everywhere.
Tom Best is an acknowledged practiced on ponies. Co-founder of Waxwing Stud, he has bred as well as produced riding ponies equally good equally Welsh ponies at the highest level, qualifying them for the Horse of the Year Show as well as taking championships at all the major shows. He is also a national as well as international judge.
He was persuaded past times Joan Lee-Smith (Patron of Ponies Association UK) as well as the belatedly Elspeth Ferguson (Rosevean Stud) to tape for posterity the history of the British Riding Pony before the bear witness of its origins was lost inwards the mists of time. The resulting tour de strength provides a unique overview of the evolution of the breed from the belatedly 19th century, when ponies were required for polo, to the nowadays twenty-four threescore minutes menstruum when ponies are used extensively inwards the present telephone for children to ride.
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