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Reading Raswan |
Bint Helwe, "the broken-legged mare," of pure Ali Pasha Sherif descent. The Blunts imported her to England, where she fractured her near fore leg and injured the other. When Spencer Borden saw her he bought her daughter, Ghazala, bringing her to America. She left five offspring here and they in turn produced many of our finest Arabians. |
| AT CERTAIN INTERVALS (lasting throughout many centuries) Government and private breeders in Europe sent expeditions to Arabia and acquired horses directly from the desert not only to increase the number of Arabians, but to regain certain qualities and Arabian characteristics which Arabian foals born in Europe had lost because they had been bred to doubtful (not authentic) Arabians or to stallions of mixed strains. The demand for "size and bone" had brought into Europe from the Near East taller and more "impossant horses" (as they were called at that time), but many of them were not Arabians at all, but Turkomans (Turcomans or Turkmen) and Persian horses which had come to Europe through Turkey and Russia as genuine Arabians. |
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Hungarian part-bred Arabian. Many of these look like the finest Kuhaylan desert horses.
Gruzinka, an Arabian race horse in Poland. |
THE OTHER instances of so called "Desert"Arabians
had come from Nubia and Dongola or (at their best) from North Africa --
usually called: "famed Arabian Race Horse from the Sahara" (Blunt
even imported some of these Barbs herself). For early records see Bruce's
"Journey to the Source of the Nile" and Burkhardt's "Travels
in Nubia." Burkhardt states that these Nubian horses of Africa
had all the good points of the Arabian plus size and bigger bone. This
sounds like the sweet voices of many of our own horsemen who forget that
a small Arabian stallion bred to a tall mare produces the size of the mother
plus "bones" and plus Arabian characteristics.
WHAT A temptation it was for Arab fanciers in Europe to read such (only too true) reports of Mr. Burkhardt and his fellow travelers. Why go to Inner-Arabia they argued, when you can get bigger Arabians from Nubia or Turcomania, Persia, Turkey and North Africa. The Sahara sounds just as romantic. |
| IT APPEARED with regularity that many offspring
of imported "Arabian" stallions in Europe deteriorated quickly
or were born without Arabian characteristics from otherwise typical Arabian
mares. The change of climate, feed and water were blamed for it, even the
surroundings or "atmosphere" which were supposed to have influenced
the "psyche" or soul of the poor brood mare -- but the real cause
was not discovered until the end of the last century when representatives
of the famous historical stud farms of Europe went to Egypt to attend the
dispersal sale of Ali Pasha Sherif stud farm in Cairo on March 26, 1897.
ALI PASHA SHERIF, an Egyptian, raised in the French Army, later high official under Muhammad (Medhemet) Ali and President of the Legislative Council of the Government, was the outstanding breeder of Arabian horses of the last century. Horse breeding in Egypt had been at a low during the rule of the Turks and Muhammad Ali regime (1805-1848). Their reckless despotism and "personal" wars in Arabia and against the Greeks, Nubians and his own Sultan (Turkey) had ruined the country of Egypt and had discouraged the horse breeders (whose fine animals Muhammad Ali had seized for military use). MUHAMMAD ALI of Egypt, the tyrant, has been romanticized too much. Historical fact is that the few good horses which the Mamelukes had left in Egypt, were picked up by papers of Europe in 1839 and announced that "Muhammad Ali of Egypt has dealt a death blow to Arabian horse breeding in his own country. Not one private stud farm has survived his purge, the Arabian horse has ceased to exist in Egypt and only new importations from Arabia can save the situation, as Egypt is still an ideal country for raising horses." THIS MUHAMMAD ALI was forced to do something about it, as his finances came from political sources in Europe and important European rulers and their diplomats were great horse fanciers and connoisseurs who had been aroused by these reports in the European press. Muhammad Ali hastened to establish a stud farm of Arabian horses near Cairo which, however served only as an "illustrious" background for his oriental palace and the splendor of his court. IN ARABIA itself Muhammad Ali's son Ibrahim Pasha wrought undescribable damage to horse breeding when he conquered the Inner-Arabian provinces, leaving nothing but ruins and fields strewn with dead behind him. Famine and disease ravaged the settled districts and spread into many parts of the desert, destroying man and beast -- "plundering" the tribes of many of their finest horses. BUT IN this time of despair rose a savior of the Arabian horse: Abbas Pasha Al-Auwal, Viceroy of Egypt (1854-1859), who imported a great number of the classic-antique type of Arabians from the desert tribes. His emissaries went on long and dangerous missions to the Bedouins and brought choice specimens to Egypt - animals of the pure Saglawi or Kuhaylan strains. Some of these horses were bought for fabulous sums. Five to eight thousand dollars were only average prices; one crippled mare (but of an almost extinct strain) had to be brought across the desert of Arabia in a cart. Abbas Pasha was really collecting "antiques," some cynics even say he recovered old ruins -- but lo! what foals he raised out of these despised "cripples." It was the blood he was after. Abbas Pasha did not care in what condition they arrived in Aat his stud farm in Egypt. Every authority on Arabian horses agrees to this day that finer horses have never come out of Arabia than those which Abbas Pasha acquired. Their blood is still to be found in our stud books of Arabian horses in America. AFTER THE death of Abbas Pasha and at the disposal sale of his celebrated horses by his son Al-Hami in 1890, Ali Pasha Sherif acquired the greater part of these priceless animals. THROUGHOUT THIRTY-SEVEN years (until his death in 1897) Ali Pasha Sherif retained this classic-antique type of Bedouin horses and their descendants from Abbas Pasha stock and by some new additions of his own importations from Desert Arabia. I HAVE MADE a special study of these Abbas Pasha Al-Auwal and Ali Pasha Sherif horses, their pedigrees and origin from the desert and I can faithfully say the "Secret" of the exquisite beauty, style and perfection for which these horses are renowned in our days lies within their blood - the pure blood of their classic-type strains. FAITHFULLY Ali Pasha Sherif bred (1860 to 1897) within the same strain or within related strains of the Kuhaylan and Seglawi producing those priceless and perfect animals which artists and breeders from all over Europe came to admire -- or if they were fortunate -- to acquire -- a great favor indeed, which Ali Pasha Sherif bestowed upon a few only. THE AUCTION sale of Ali Pasha Sherif's Arabian horses in Cairo, March 26, 1897, will stand out forever in the history of Arabian horse breeding. At one stroke it brought more "antique" type Arabian horses into the hands of European breeders than before or since. The axiom still holds good today the more Ali Pasha Sherif blood-lines appear in any of our Arabian horses in America, Europe or Egypt, the more outstanding such an individual in regard to Arabian characteristics. If bred within classic types (Kuhaylan and Saqlawi or their related strains) these Ali Pasha Sherif horses have not even to our day deteriorated -- no matter where they have been bred (Egypt, England, Poland, America) even if outside (new) blood has been added -- as long as this additional blood was of the same strain or related strains (no Mu'niqi or Mu'niqi related blood). For example the Blunts added to their Ali Pasha Sherif mares blood from their own sires which they had brought from Arabia (or vice-versa -- mares of their own selection from Desert Arabia were bred to Ali Pasha Sherif mares. In every case where no Mu'niqi (or Mu'niqi related) blood was added the classic type remained and neither climate, feed, water, surrounding or "atmosphere" caused a change. I only want to mention a few, but they are the best names in our stud books -- and never had a drop of Mu'niqi blood: Abu Zeyd, Ibn Mahruss, Daoud, Rasin, Ridaa, Nasik, Rasima, Mesaoud, Rijm, Nasr(I), Hamida, Mahroussa, Nijma, Rizvan, Nasra, Risala, Rijma, Kafifan (Poland), Kibla, Rodan, Serra, Gulnare, Naseem, Harb, Naziri, Seyal, Nashisha ($30,000), Shahwan, Wazir, Yashmak, Radwan, etc. Peers among Arabian horses -- every one acclaimed in books on horse breeding for their Arabian type and characteristics and every one rich in Ali Pasha Sherif and Abbas Pasha blood lines of the classic type. |
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Ibn Rabdan, owned by the government of Egypt.
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EUROPEAN BREEDERS who arrived in Egypt in 1897
to attend the auction sale of Ali Pasha Sherif's horses were astonished
that all the animals had retained their celebrated classic type in spite
that many were in fourth or fifth generation Egyptian bred. Soft and plentiful
feed and water and the lowland climate had not changed the type of horses,
though their ancestors had come from highland pastures in Arabia, where
they sufferer a life of hardship and privation, always on the move -- emigrating,
hunting and raiding.
IN 1942 -- forty-five years after the historic auction in Egypt -- some breeders have still retained this Ali Pasha Sherif type of Arabian horses by allowing only the Kuhaylan and Saqlawi strains to be mated together. Only the mixing of opposite types (or foreign blood) can possibly cause the deterioration of pure Arabian horses -- and we don't have to import Arabian horses from the desert any more to re-infuse certain qualities and Arabian characteristics. We have a sufficient number of animals of the classic strains in this country and England to preserve their type. The celebrated Ali Pasha Sherif Arabians, who are nothing but the ancient type of Bedouin horses, which, ungroomed and emaciated from taking part in raids, are often a sore sight for the eyes of horsemen. The rough outer shell hides the "glorious beauty," the "paragon" of perfection. The celebrated classic type which will appear on the surface and surprise and reward t the owner who will feed the starving animal regularly, put ointment on her scars of battle and groom her rough coat until the silken hair will glisten with a golden or silvery sheen. |
| THE BLUNTS (Sir Wilfred and Lady Anne) and
their friends persuaded the Thoroughbred people in England to accept registration
of their newly imported Desert Arabians in the British Stud books for Thoroughbreds
on the argument that several hundred Arabians and other Near Eastern horses,
the foundation sires of the recorded Thoroughbreds in England, were entered
in early British stud books.*
THE JOCKEY CLUB of America accepted later the registration of these Arabs and their offspring into the American stud book of Thoroughbreds -- and so did the French -- until an Arab Society in England and an Arab Club in America were founded which issued their own stud books with registrations for pure-bred Arabian horses. The French and British Thoroughbred people accepted registrations of imported Arabians up to 1921. Since that time Messrs. Weatherby and Sons, the keepers of the Thoroughbred stud book in England decided that no fresh entries of imported Arabians could be included in the General Stud book, unless they can be traced to ancestors (strains) already accepted in the earlier volumes of the book and the Jockey Club of America will accept registration of Arabians only if they are already recorded in English and French Thoroughbred stud books. THUS IT can be seen that the Double-Registration of Arabian horses has nothing to do with special qualities or merits of an individual horse -- though such a prejudiced impression exists among many horse lovers. PERSONALLY I am of the opinion that the Thoroughbred people should cease the registration of Arabian horses completely except of the Mu'niqi-Hadruj strain (the Race strain Arabian) and only for those individuals who are either pure-in-the-strain or who carry at least Mu'niqi-Hadruj bloodlines or Dam's and Sire's side. Mu'niqi-Sbaili (or any other Mu'niqi sub-strain) should not be entered into Thoroughbred registers. I might suggest to record the Jilfan, too -- but I don't think any pure-in-the-strain Jilfan exists anymore in Arabia. MY PROPOSITION might also close the controversy between the Arab and Thoroughbred people as to the question, which is the better horse, and prove that the Thoroughbred and the Arab stand each supreme on their own ground, each surpassing the other in its special field. THE POLES have raced Arabians for years, competing against each other, but not against Thoroughbreds. Many of the Polish Arabians trace to foreign or "unknown" strains -- that is Turkish, Persian, Turcoman, Nubian and Barb -- blood, also the Arabs of Germany and France. The Hungarians have kept a small nucleus of Arabians of doubtless pure desert Arabian origin, but the majority of the others are called "Orientalen" or part bred Arabs. These "half bred" Arabs (we might call them) are often extremely handsome and of Arabian type. The reason is that they are inbred on Kuhaylan and Saqlawi lines, though they were founded on native Hungarian mares in the 17th and 18th centuries. They are of a fixed type, representing the ideal in Cavalry horses to the Continental European. WE IN America and in England are very fortunate that we have studbooks of Arabian horses which are more accurate than any I have seen on the Continent in Europe. War, revolutions and political upheavals in the last thirty years have destroyed priceless documents in Hungary, Poland and Russia. In America and England we are still in our "infancy"as far as Arabian horse breeding is concerned. This early stage is not of a detriment at all. In the first place we are close to the original desert blood -- yet. In the second place we may learn from mistakes these Europeans made -- by ignorance, by speculation, experiments and - conceit. Intricate as Arabian breeding seems where the strains are concerned, it is very simple when we look at the work Abbas Pasha and Ali Pasha Sherif did. They bred the classic handsome, curved type from Kuhaylan and Saqlawi (and their related) strains and here in America we had Randolph Huntington who bred the tall, Thoroughbred type of Arabians simply by using only the Mu'niqi-Hadruj. These methods boil down to the very same "system" the illiterate Bedouins use (and by the way our great scientists too), the orderliness of a reasoning mind which devised that "like produces like"-- and they fared well by doing so. WE CAN do the same in America by selective breeding of the strains (pure-in-the-strain or within related strains.) or we wait until our Arabian horses in America are so thoroughly mixed that an all around type of Arabian develops that would be overwhelmingly Kuhaylan (strength) with a "dash" of beauty (from the Saqlawi and related strains) and a "bit" more size, bone-circumference and speed from the Mu'niqi and related strains. Thence we might still have a better Arabian than the Continental Europeans have -- because we are sure at least from the records of our Arabian stud books that all the ancestors actually came from Desert Arabia and not from the Turcomans, Nubians and Barbary breeds. PERHAPS WE might thank a few Americans for that; Homer Davenport, W.R.Brown, W.K.Kellogg, Roger A. Selby, J.M.Dickinson, L.W.Van Vleet, Albert W. Harris, Henry B. Babson and I must repeat again Randolph Huntington, who tried to save the Mu'niqi-Hadruj, the strain, I am accused of to despise -- but heaven and my readers know -- the strain I admire the most if it has blood lines of its own strain on the sire's side too. *Vol. XIII of the General Stud Book of England, 1877, contained for the first time a special Arab section. Two of the first three entries were Mu'niqi-Hadruj (and pure-in-the-strain too!) Zuleika and Haidee, both purchased by Mr. Skene, British Consul at Aleppo, 1703, who bought Manak and shipped him to England -- Manak, the Darley Arabian, the most important ancestor of all Thoroughbreds! |
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Davenports: Articles of History Arabian Visions' |
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