History | The Welsh Pony And C

Early Stud Book History

The Society was founded in 1901 and published the first volume of the Welsh Stud book the following year.

Initially, it contained four sections.

Welsh Section A

The Mountain Pony is considered to be the original foundation from which the other ponies and cobs of Wales are descended, so this section is therefore placed first in order.

The full breed description was much the same as we see today, the only marked differences being the height limit, which was not exceeding 12.2hh (now 12hh). Additionally, any colour was permitted.

Welsh Section B

The description and points given in Section A for the Mountain pony would seem to be appropriate for the larger pony entered into Section B. These ponies, however, are, as a rule stronger built and have somewhat of the cob character as described under Section C and D.

Welsh Section C and D

The same points apply to both these Section C and D as descriptions of the Welsh Cobs. The only difference between those entered in each of these sections of the stud book being the height and proportionate strength and power of the larger cob entered in Section D. It was thought advisable to divide the cobs into two sections, for the breeding of whichever the breeder wished to make their speciality. It was also considered that the Section D would encourage the breeding of cobs

specially adapted for Mounted Infantry and other Remount work for the Army.

The main breed description for these sections was again much the same as we see today. A notable difference to today is that there was no upper or lower height limit specified.

Stud Book Refinement

By 1960, the Stud Book and Breed Descriptions had undergone major changes.

Additional sections had been created and revisions to existing sections made in order to better cater for the changed post-war equine landscape.

Welsh Section A

By now, the full breed description was much the same as today. Accepted colours were any except piebald and skewbald, and the height limit had been reduced to 12hh.

Welsh Section B

As today, the Breed Description for the Section B was an extension of the Section A description, but that was differentiated as with a greater emphasis on 'riding type'.

The Section B was described as a 'riding pony', with quality riding action, adequate bone and substance, hardiness and with pony character.

Welsh Section C and D

The same points applied to both these Section C and D as descriptions of the Welsh Cobs.

The main breed description for these sections is very similar to that seen today.

However, by 1960, there had been a lower height limit placed on the Section C at 12hh, with an upper height limit of 13.2hh.

The Welsh Cob did not have a height limit.

Welsh Section E

(Gelding Register)

Notably, a gelding register had now been opened. This recorded animals registered as geldings, and also animals that were registered initially as colts but were subsequently castrated and then transferred into the gelding register. All geldings registered in Section E were allocated a number preceded by the letter 'G'.

Welsh Part-Bred Register

In 1951, the Welsh Part Bred register (WPBR) opened to registrations.

The initial conditions for entry explained that a Welsh Part Bred horse or pony would be accepted for registration provided that the breeding showed not less than 50% of Welsh blood from registered ancestry. Within a few years of the section's inception, by 1960 this had been refined to not less than 25% of registered Welsh blood calculated from either sire, dam or cumulatively from both.

Entries would be accepted without inspection but subject to a condition to the Council to inspect should it be considered necessary or desirable.

Animals were identified by a number preceded by W.P.B.R.

Welsh Ponies and Cobs in History

Indigenous Welsh ponies and cobs have been referred to in literature since Roman times. So called 'Celtic' Ponies were found by the Romans, and it is said that their arrival with Arabian horses as part of their occupation was the first 'outside' blood that was crossed with the native ponies, beginning to shape the breed towards that which is seen today.

That Celtic pony is a descendant of the earliest known equines in Europe that remained in Britain following the end of the last Ice Age and, thriving best in, and adapting to cope with the difficult upland environment in Britain.

As a result of this hardship, these ponies have developed a hardiness of constitution and an intelligence which has made them one of the finest foundations for horse breeding in the world. Indeed today, it is often acknowledged that the Welsh Mountain Pony is the most beautiful pony in the world.

Following the Roman occupation, the first written references to ponies or cobs in Wales appear in the Laws of Hywel Dda, ruler of Deheubarth (present day South West Wales). These laws were written in AD 930. As a result of these laws, Wales was the only European Nation to have a National Literature as distinct from Latin, and it is this text that mentions the indigenous ponies and cobs. It categorised the equines into three different types:

The Palfrey (the riding pony)
The Rowney or Sumpter (a pack horse)
The Equus Operarius or working horse (a lighter able bodies working horse, for pulling a sledge or small gambo - a Cob type rather than Shire type)

Later, post-Medieval literature describes the equines in Wales in further details. In the 16th Centaury, The Welsh Mountain Pony, running wild on the hills and mountains of Wales brought itself to the attention for the wrong reason. They became a nuisance for hill shepherds and farmers in an every increasing pastoral landscape and economy, which was driven by an uptake in pastural farming, particularly sheep, throughout the 15th and 16th centuries. As Landlords looked for ever cheaper and yet more profitable ways to make money from their land, the Welsh Mountain Ponies being a pest, running feral amok across the hills thus brought unto themselves considerable persecution.

In a further unfortunate turn of events, King Henry VIII considered that only equines capable of going to war were of any value and passed a law ordering the destruction of all stallions under 15hh and mares under 13hh. The intelligence, and adeptness of the Welsh ponies and cobs ensured they escaped much of the persecution by seeking shelter in the most inaccessible and remotes spots in the Principality. Thankfully, King Henry VIII's daughter, Queen Elizabeth I partially overturned this law, due to poor lands not being suitable for the weight and size of horses desired by Henry VIII.

More recently, the value of the Welsh ponies and cobs were recognised by farmers, tradespeople and the military. Infusion of Thoroughbred, Eastern and Hackney blood throughout the 18th and 19th centuries shaped the breed more drastically, refining the animals and introducing more variation in colour. Traditionally, the indigenous Welsh equines would have been black, bay or chestnut, colours considered to be the oldest and signifying hardiness. The introduction of grey, particularly into Welsh Mountain Ponies is thought to be due to the introduction of Arabian and Thoroughbred stallions, turned out onto the hills and mountains of Wales to improve the ponies.

In the 19th centaury, the ponies and cobs were a valued tool, famed for their speed and agility. They were often the chosen mount for people living in remote areas and needing to travel distances quickly, before the advent of the motor car. This ensured a good trade for the ponies, and many farmers recognised this and included ponies and cobs in their herds, either for their own use as transport and for farm work, but also to sell. Thus, a strong tradition of horse fairs in Wales began, with hundreds, even thousands changing hands at autumn fairs.

In 1901, the Welsh Pony and Cob Society was formed by a number of landowners, farmers and enthusiasts who believed the benefit of a Stud Book Society would be advantageous to the Welsh ponies and cobs - other breeds had already benefited from such interventions throughout the 19th century. At the preliminary meeting on the 25th of April 1901, the feeling of those present was unanimous in favour that a Society should be established, and arrangements were made to make the objects of the Society known throughout the Principality.

The Animals in War - Annual Remembrance Ceremony 2024

It was great to be joined by my wife Ingrid, Angela & Suzy Kember and John & Jacky Kirk of the Donys Stud at the Animals In War Memorial, located not far from Speaker’s Corner at Brook Gate, Park Lane, London, for this year’s gathering to commemorate the animals that gave their lives during the two world wars and the armed conflicts involving Great Britain and the Commonwealth; it was Jacky who first encouraged the WPCS to become involved in laying a wreath at this very moving and poignant annual ceremony and thanks go to her again this year for providing the distinctive wreath laid annually by the WPCS.

This year was even more important for me, as Chairman of the WPCS Council, it was a great honour to have been invited by the organisers to address officials and celebrities, animal charity representatives and onlookers on the topic ‘Animals Affected by War’, at the ceremony.

The 58’ x 55’ monument, made from Portland stone and designed by sculptor David Backhouse, is symbolic with three principal elements, set on two levels with a dominating powerful wall between the two, providing an impressive backdrop amidst the hustle and bustle of traffic passing around Park Lane.

On the lower level are two heavily laden bronze mules struggling through an arena, enclosed by the dominant wall inset with various animal carvings symbolising the war experience. The mules approach a flight of steps that leads through the wall. Beyond the wall, on the upper level, a bronze horse and dog stand facing north into the gardens beyond, bearing witness to the loss of comrades and representing hope for the future. The speakers form up on the step, in front of the wall where the wreaths are finally placed either side of the bronze mules to close the ceremony.

Beneath the main Animals in War heading, there are two simple inscriptions carved into the stone below.

‘This monument is dedicated to all the animals that served and died alongside British and Allied Forces in war and campaigns throughout time’

and ‘They had no choice’

There were representatives from most of the animal charities, welfare organisations and the military in attendance. Some of them had brought along animals to represent the fallen, so there were a number of dogs, cats and pigeons, as well as two horses and their riders from the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment as there had been millions of Equidae lost in military conflicts, particularly in the Great War.

(EG & actress and Mane Chance Sanctuary trustee Jenny Seagrove)

To address those gathered and to consider the theme of this year’s remembrance ceremony, ‘Animals Affected By War’, as opposed to animals serving in war, the strong, hardy and beautifully versatile Welsh Ponies and Cobs that I know were brought to mind as they haven’t always been blessed with good luck and prosperity.

The Welsh Mountain Pony - From Prized to Persecuted.

Surviving the effects of glacial related climate change or as beasts of burden caught up in harsh mining activities, carrying supplies, driving machinery and pulling gun carriages in the numerous theatres of the Great war, we also remember animals as they were affected by war such as the Welsh Mountain Pony.

The foundation of the five sections of the 5 Welsh breeds sits with the Welsh Mountain Pony, that evolved during the Holocene period over 12,000 years ago, at a time when mountain and moorland pony breeds were hunted across the Doggerland, the tundra like land mass that once ran between the Thames in the West and the Rhine in the East, before retreating glacial ice separated Britain from Europe by the North Sea.

In Bronze Age Britain 2,500 years ago, the domestication of the Celtic Pony took place from which the Welsh Mountain Pony and its native cousins, such as the Dartmoor Pony were derived and revered as quick, sure-footed ponies that were trained to pull chariots and used in the armed conflicts between the British tribes.

By the time of Julius Caesar’s invasion of Britain in 55BC, the Celtic pony’s use had been perfected in the use of chariot warfare and they were highly prized, so much so that Caesar writes in his Gallic war diaries about the 4000 chariots that shadowed his fleet along the Southern coast of Britain as his forces attempted to land ashore. Caesar goes on to observe the tactics of the charioteers and the fiery ponies in harness:

‘They break the ranks of their enemy with the very dread of their horses and the noise of their wheels’

The Romans occupied Britain for over 400 years, during which time they bred the predecessors of Welsh and other native ponies to their own horses to get a sure-footed pack animal that could travel at good speeds in rough terrain. Julius Caesar also took some ponies back with him to Rome to pull chariots as he liked their speed, willingness and courage. The Romans also cross bred the native Celtic pony and thus the oldest breeds of the world were united and it is believed that the older the breed the more ineradicable the characteristics which goes some way to explain the pre-potency of the Welsh Mountain Pony.

Affected because of war, the concept of Cavalry was hatched and developed for centuries following the Norman invasion and after the battle of Hastings when the English ranks withstood 4 Norman cavalry charges by horses ferried across in ships, as recorded on the Bayeux tapestry.

However, with such an emphasis on breeding for warring purposes, these ponies were affected by war by virtue of the fact that the Welsh Cob, which is bred significantly larger than the Welsh Mountain Pony, but possessing many of the same characteristics, existed as early as the Middle Ages.

The Welsh Cob was developed as a war horse when knights returning from Spain and the Middle East brought back larger stallions to be cross-bred with the revered Welsh stock. The offspring were big and strong enough to carry an armoured knight into battle while retaining pony-like hardiness and stamina. These horses became known as ‘Powys horses’ and were used by knights and armies both in Britain and far away abroad.

Once being prized, they were later persecuted, affected by the evolution of war when the Welsh Mountain Pony and its cousins, as the breeding foundations for larger war horses, were forgotten and could almost have been made extinct forever by the very monarch that their offspring were bred to serve. So by 1535, Henry VIII passed the Breed of Horses Act aimed at improving the height and strength of horses; The smaller pony was no longer considered to be of any use, so that no stallion under 15 hands (60 inches, 152 cm) and no mare under 13 hands (52 inches, 132 cm) were permitted to run out on common land, or to run wild, and no two-year-old colt under 11.2 hands (46 inches, 117 cm) was allowed to run out in any area with mares. Annual round-ups on common land were enforced, and any stallion under the height limit was ordered to be destroyed, along with all unlikely [small horses] whether mares or foals and which could have spelt the end for the pony.

However, it was reported in 1577 that this had "little effect”, so soon after in the successive reigns of queens Mary I and Elizabeth I, laws were introduced with the aim of reducing horse theft, requiring all sale transactions of horses to be recorded and laws calling for the culls of "under-height" horses were partially repealed by Elizabeth I. Many pony breeders showed their appreciation by naming their mares, Bess, Queen Bess, Lady Bess, etc. – with not a Henry to be found. Areas of poor quality land could not support the weight of horses desired by Henry VIII, and were exempted because of ‘their rottenness.’ This luckily allowed many of Britain's mountain and moorland pony breeds to escape slaughter.

In the wild, the Welsh Mountain Ponies survived the harsh winters and sparse vegetation on the remote hills of Wales. The limestone ground and rocky hills made for development of good bones and the ponies who were fast, alert and sure-footed had a better chance of escaping predators, including humans. Only the smartest, fastest ponies survived.

In 1901, the Welsh Pony & Cob Society was formed with over 200 members and the 1908 Commons Act led to the formation of a number of Pony Improvement Societies. The Commons Act enabled breeders to clear the Common Land of all stallions declared undesirable by a committee of horsemen. Only approved stallions, whose owners were paid a premium, could be turned out with the mares. They also changed rules to allow for easier exportation of the ponies, which created a market. A number of dedicated breeders worked with tenacity to preserve the Welsh Mountain Pony in all his glory and we see the fruits of their labour today in the five Welsh sections in the pastures and winning the highest awards in the show rings and pastures.

(Trustees with Angela Rippon)

But it would not be long before the outbreak of World War I, where between 1914 & 1918 and then later over World War II, the combined death of 14 million horses, some Welsh Ponies & Cobs would be recorded, serving their country in cavalry divisions, carrying supplies and ammunition and towing carriages and guns on and off the many theatres of battle in these bloody conflicts.

But it would not stop there, because the effects of war spread even further; despite the larger animals being taken for battle, 1,000’s of ponies were rounded up off the hills and taken down the valley to be culled as a food source and to preserve grazing for other animals. Affected by war, some would be used as coal pit ponies as the war effort meant that the need for power was increased by the coal fired production of steel and weapons.

The ponies worked long shifts and many were kept in underground stables and the effects or war meant that it was not only the battlefield that presented a hard life for both men and ponies.

The ceremony was closed by the symbolic releasing of two white doves. It is vital that we also remember the animals that gave their lives for our freedoms in the many wars and armed conflicts of Great Britain, but we must equally spare a thought for those affected by all that war brings as we look to the current armed conflicts that affect our world today.

‘Lest we Forget’