Australian Arabian Breeding. Part One

Transcription

1 Australian Arabian Breeding Part One Written by Richard Cerveny

2 1. 19 th Century Arabians in Australia It often surprises people to know that the history of the Arabian horse in Australia is almost as long as that of European settlement, which only commenced in Of course the priorities of our earliest settlers were very different to 21 st century man, and any horse destined for the long boat ride to Sydney Cove was going to be expected to earn its keep in ways that modern horses are spared through the modern convenience of the motor vehicle. In a country where farms the size of some European countries were to be found, good horses were essential to transport goods and livestock and for the most fortunate of master an Arabian mount was the ultimate in status symbol. The earliest Arabians which travelled to Australia were mostly intended to be the prize possessions of wealthy and well connected military officers and civil servants. They were introduced to improve on the poor quality of animal in the infant colony, to sire the future domestic stock and to help lift the quality of the fledgling race horse industry. In the same way as the Godolphin Arabian of years past had impacted on the British racing industry, so did the Arabian in early Australia. While a few names live on in the Australian Studbook, most have disappeared with time. However this certainly was no indication of lack of quality. The stallion Nazeer Farrib was just one imported Arabian to have arrived in Sydney in the early 1840 s. Imported by Australia s first Postmaster-General, James Raymond s interest was in racing. In the portrait shown above Nazeer Farrib is described as a High Caste Arab the property of Ja. Raymond Esq of Varroville.

3 2 Sir James Penn Boucaut It took until 1891 for the man oft described as the grandfather of Australian Arabian horse breeding to appear on the scene. Sir James Penn Boucaut started a tradition that lasted until 1956, at which time the Arabian Horse Society of Australasia (now Australia) was formed, by registering his stock in the British General Studbook. By so doing he ensured that breeders today would still be able to appreciate the attributes inherited from his early imports. Sir James Penn Boucaut believed passionately in the Arabian horse as the savior of horse breeding through its ability to improve the quality of stock, even when bred with mares of very ordinary quality. In order to achieve this he desired only the purest of blood and to source this he went to the stud which in time would become famous- Crabbet Park. From there he purchased the yearling colt Rafyk (Azrek x Rose of Sharon) and Faraoun, and the mares Elzaba [sic] and Namusa (Ahmar x Narghileh). His purchases also included the brood mares Dahna (Kars x Dahma) and Rose of Jericho (Kars x Rodania). The Boucaut sale was considered to be a particularly important one, and every effort was made to present the best available prospects. Lady Anne Blunt reportedly said, Rafyk is really far the best I still much prefer Rafyk to represent the Stud. Namusa, dam of Nasik, Nureddin II and Naufal, was also described by her as a small but lovely mover. However, her small size did not stop her from founding one of Australia s most noted families through the mare Barada II (more about this mare in Part 2). Sadly many of the significant early Australian imports did not fair as well. The lack of a local studbook & proper organisation would haunt the breed in decades to come. The early Crabbet imports Francolin, Purple Stock, Kars (Sire of Dahna and Rose of Jericho), Hadban (Rafyk s maternal grandsire and the sire of Nefisa and Rose of Sharon), Nejran and Rose of Jericho all left no direct descendants in Australia. Rafyk sired 18 registered Arabians and numerous part-bred stock. Among Rafyk s offspring are the stallion Badaween and the mares Ayesha, Mecca, Rabi, Sherifa, Al Caswa and Sekh. Dahna, foaled in 1883, founded Australia s oldest female line through her daughter Sherifa. The largest branch is through her daughter Deryabar. Rose of Jericho foaled in 1883, had 4 foals in Australia including Badaween, however, she left no descendants in Australia. Her 2 foals in the UK were the mares Rose of Dawn and Rose Diamond.

4 Ill health resulted in Boucaut dispersing his Quambi Arab Stud on Tuesday September 15, The catalogue listed 2 imported stallions, 2 colts, 1 imported mare and 12 mares and fillies. Little did Boucaut know at the time that his stud would set the roots for a sound ustralian Arabian industry for many decades to come. This small group of Arabians would be dispersed through 3 states and found a number of successful Arabian breeding programs. The dispersal sale proved to be an important event for the future of the Arabian horse in Australia in providing the foundation stock for a number of studs. Samuel Winter-Cooke bought the Stallion Rafyk and the mares Saade (Magistrate x Sherifa), Al Caswa (Rafyk x El Lahr) and Khadijah (Faraoun x Sherifa) to found his stud Murndal at Hamilton in Victoria. He added the stallion Fakreddin (Rijm x Feluka) and later Magistrate. The Al Caswa daughters Mena, Kaaba, Kufara and Mecca 11 were sold to Mr Jos Jelbart Stony Park East near Albury. When Jelbart dispersed his stud in 1949, the NSW Department of Agriculture bought his 18 horses to form the nucleus of their stud. One of Winter-Cooke s legacies was to breed the legendary mare Deryabar. Upon Winter- Cooke's death Dora Maclean of Fenwick Stud purchased three mares, Asil, Johara and Zem Zem. The first two mares died within a short space of time, but Zem Zem s line bred on. She was by Fakreddin x Saade. G. L. Brown bought the stallion Faraoun and the Ayesha (Rafyk x Namusa), the Brown family of Gularganbone, NSW, also imported the stallion Harir (Berk x Hamasa) from Crabbet Park and used the stallion Rief (Sotamm x Ridaa) who belonged to another member of the family. Hamasa was daughter of the Ali Pasha Sherif mare Bint Helwa

5 purchased by the Blunts in The Brown horses became the foundation stock of A. J. McDonald s Tehama Stud. The significant mare Barada 11 is the legacy of this group of horses. 3 The Fenwick Stud In 1925 Mrs A.D.D (Dora) Maclean founded the stud which forever will be synonymous with Arabian breeding in Australia. The Fenwick Stud was responsible for bringing in a number of key individuals, and for nearly the next 40 years Dorothy Maclean maintained a close relationship with Lady Wentworth. Dora Maclean's love of Arabian Horses was inspired by a photograph in a magazine she had discovered as a young woman. The photo was of Wilfred and Lady Anne Blunt dressed in full Arab attire, beside a tent with an Arabian mare. This particular mare became an ideal for Dora and she hoped to one day have a similar mare of her own. In May 1925 her first Arabian mare arrived at Fenwick, and she was purchased from their daughter, Lady Wentworth. The first importation from Crabbet Park consisted of the mare Rafina (Rustem x Risala) and her colt foal at foot Raseel ( sired by Nureddin II). Both survived only through the care & dedication of the sailors that moved them in to their sleeping quarters after a freak wave destroyed their box. Dora Maclean also sought out stock from among the earlier Australian imports. This brought the mares ZEM ZEM (Fakreddin x Saade), ALCOUZA (Khamasin x Khadijad), and DERYABAR (Khamasin x Khadijad) from the Winter Cooke stud to Fenwick during the 1930s. Two further purchases from Crabbet Park brought three of the most significant Arabians to Australia. In 1935 the Naseem son Indian Light (x Nisreen) arrived along with the only progeny of Skowronek to come to Australia, the mare Nasirieh (also from Nisreen) brought Nuralina (Hazzam x Nasira) a mare whose influence in the stud is recognised through the N family named in honour of her. Fenwick Stud s contribution will be covered in far greater detail in parts 2 and 3 of this series.

6 Barada II (Raisuli x Gadara) Photo: Fenwick Stud 4 Shahzada* and his Australian Legacy In terms of stallions there was one import that is now known the world over (partly due to the endurance marathon named in his honour). Shahzada had already made a name for himself in England. Mr A.E. Grace a Sydney businessman and pastoralist imported Shahzada and two mares the pure Blunt mare Miriam (Nadir x Ranya) and Nejdmieh who was desert bred (Nejdmieh was bred in the inner circle of Nejd, in Arabia) in Shahzada s sire Mootrub (a Seglawi Jedran from Nejd) was purchased by General Sir John Hills in India and taken to England. He won races in India and England. Shahzada s dam, Ruth Kesia is descended from the desert-bred mare Kesia, was of the rare Kehailet Nowagieh (Nowak) strain. Shahazada was an outstanding horse, winning races in 1920 and 1922; these races covered distances of 300 miles or 60miles per day for 5 days. At the London Show in 1921 Shahzada stood fifth to Rasim (first) and Skowronek (Second). In Australia, the stallion won eight championships at the Sydney from 1926 to Shahzada* proved to be a superb sire and some 80 years later his type can be clearly seen in modern Arabians bred within this genepool. Studs such as Cudglebar, itself founded by Les Ellery in about 1930, along with the major breeding programs run by the NSW Department of Agriculture (more of this in part II) have ensured that this influence has been preserved.

7 There has been continuing competition and some rivalry between the supporters of these horses, sometimes described as Colonials, and the more main stream supporters of Crabbet influenced studs such as Fenwick. While much of this rivalry is now no more than Arabian folklore and not based on historical reality, one can still see a distinctive look that some find un-arabian when in truth these are VERY Arabian! Years of selective breeding, and significant inbreeding at that, has left its mark on some. The photos below illustrate an individual of the 1940 period, the stallion The Shah (Sirdar x Judith), already linebred to Shahzada*, while the stallion Cudglebar Manak represents the current generation of this breeding program. A sample of Shahzada s significant progeny are listed in Table 1. Table 1: Shahzada Extended Progeny Table Shahzada* Judith (x Miriam) Tatima (x Sa-Id) Sirdar (x Nejdmieh*) Judiala (x Aladdin) The Shah (x Sirdar) Darinth (x Sirdar) Tazar (x Zarafa) Motalga (x Indian Light*) Tarney (x Zarney) Zazouri (x Mamaluke) Gipsy Maid (x Salome) Sheba (x Rissani) Buraida (x Salome)

8 Siralga (x Motalga) The Shah (Sirdar x Judith), 1941 Sydney Royal Agricultural Show Champion Arabian Stallion. Cudglebar Manak (Cairo x Cudglebar Massah)

9 5 Springmead Farm: More than just an Arabian Stud. Rakib* (Nax x Rythama) Springmead Stud, founded by Edward & Marjorie Hirst, during the First World War at Denham Court (now an outer suburb of Sydney but then a quiet rural area only 40 miles from the heart of the city). The property became famous more for its ponies than the Arabians bred there, however the impact of this stud on Australian and world horse breeding is not as well known as it should. By the time the pure Crabbet stallion Rakib* (Nax x Rythama) arrived in 1939, the stud already was famoush for its Welsh ponies. Rakib* was bred by Mrs G. Bromley, and prior to leaving England he was hunted regularly and shown successfully under saddle at the Olympia Horse Show. Rakib* only arrived in Australia months before the outbreak of World War Two. Rakib* was used to breed hard working horses used in this time of fuel shortage. His progeny were excellent saddle horses, and in particular in the new sport of polocrosse, a sport in which Marjorie Hirst was a pioneer. However having sired almost all of Springmead s stock, Rakib* was sold to Mrs ADD Maclean of Fenwick Stud, and in this stud he sired many purebred Arabians that are household names in Australia today. Marjorie Hirst also founded the Ingleburn Horse and Pony Club and was its long time president. It was from ideas put forward by this club that the Australian Pony Club movement was started. Pony clubs in Australia have been responsible for the education of many young Australians in the 70 years since. Pony clubs can now be found throughout Australia, even in the smallest country community. Readers might wonder why I refer to Springmead Stud in this article. Be assured the part this stud plays becomes far more important in the post WWII period of our Australian Arabian history! In the next part of this story we will return to Marjorie Hirst s remarkable contribution to the breed and the horse industry in Australia.

10 Credits & Acknowledgements Early Australian Arabian History by Ken Miller (unpublished) Australian Arabian Horse News, various editions. Arabian Horse in Australia and New Zealand, volume one. Australian Arabian Yearbook, various editions. Fenwick Stud website, with the consent of Mrs Vicki Johnson (nee Maclean). State Library of NSW archives.