Horses of the Middle Ages
Common Types of Horse from the 13th Century
The horses of the middle ages differ from that of the modern breeds in that they were types rather than distinct breeds. Prior to the 13th Century very few pedigrees or breeding lines were recorded so common types of horse were the destrier, palfrey, courser, hobbey or rouncey.
The Destrier
The destrier was the most expensive type of horse used in the Middle Ages. It was highly prized by Knights and Men at Arms as they were renowned as a war horse. The destrier was well trained with good speed and agility. Described by an unknown 14th Century writer, 'the destrier is tall and majestic with great strength'.
The destrier was often described as a great horse because of its size, though it was small in comparison to large breeds such as the Shire or Clydesdale today. By mediaeval standards, a large horse was anything over 14 hands. In an attempt to increase the size of the English War horse, Kin Henry VIII decreed that stallions under 15 hands and mares under 13 hands should not be bred. Many were destroyed rather than risk breeding the smaller animals. In Europe, stallions were the preferred choice for war horses. Naturally aggressive animals they were often seen fighting one another by biting and kicking while their riders were engaged in hand to hand combat. As well as having to have the strength to carry a knight into battle wearing full armour, war horses even had armour of their own.
The Courser
For general battle the coursers were the horse of choice as they were not as expensive to purchase as the destrier. The courser was lighter and faster than the destrier and it is believed that they got their name from their gait, from the old French word 'cours' meaning to run or the Italian word 'corsiero' meaning battle horse.
The Palfrey
The palfrey was a general purpose horse. The name is believed to have come from the German word for horse 'pferd', with both the word palfrey and pferd coming from the Latin word 'paraveredus' meaning post horse or courier horse. The German word for palfrey is 'zelter' which means ambler.
A well bred palfrey which had been well schooled was as expensive as a destrier to purchase. It was a popular mount for gentry, namely noblemen, ladies and knights. One of the reasons for this was the gait of the palfrey. Unlike the trot which is a 2 beat gait, the palfrey's amble is a 4 beat gait making it a smoother, more comfortable ride than the trot, but not as fast as the canter. The amble wasn't tiring to the horse which made it the perfect gait for both horse and rider if long distances needed to be covered.
The Hobby
The hobby was a light weight horse standing 13-14 hands, which by today's standards would be considered as a pony. It was a quick horse making it a popular choice for light Calvary men known as hobelars.
The Rouncey
The general all-purpose horse was called a rouncey. Although their most common use was for riding, the rouncey was also used as a light pack horse and it was a common choice for a wealthy knight to purchase for use by his retinue.
Although the Scythians were thought to be the first people to geld male horses, it didn't start to become more common in Britain until after Henry VIII started to increase the War Horse and thus selective breeding became common place which led to the development of specific breeds rather than types.
Sources;
- Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Armouries.org
- Middle Ages.org
- Princess Tina's Pony Book, Published by Fleetway
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