by Ruth Belena

Created on: July 05, 2008   Last Updated: June 25, 2009

The Clydesdale horse is best known as a driving horse, a gentle giant with a willing nature, and well suited for heavy work. Clydesdale is the original name for an area of Scotland now known as Lanarkshire, where eighteenth century farmers started to interbreed their native horses with Flemish stallions. The first Flemish stallion in Scotland belonged to the Duke of Hamilton, and crossbreeding with his stud resulted in a new breed of heavy horse which could meet all local agricultural needs. This docile breed became known as the Clydesdale.

In the nineteenth century Clydesdales were commonly used in Lanarkshire for logging, and as cart horses at the local coal pits. They were also used for heavy haulage in the city of Glasgow.

The reputation of the Clydesdale horse soon spread beyond the Clydesdale area of Scotland. The breed became standardized with the hiring out of stallions for stud. Records were kept from the early nineteenth century, and these show that many Clydesdales were exported as far away as America, Australia and New Zealand.

The Clydesdale Horse Society was established in Scotland in 1877, and more than a thousand stallions were registered in the Society's first stud book. The American Clydesdale Horse Association was formed the following year.

Many Clydesdale horses were used by the British Army in the First World War. Their strength was needed for hauling heavy gun carriages and for transporting essential supplies.

As working farm animal, Clydesdale have continually been used around the world, but less so since the introduction of lorries, tractors and mechanized farm equipment.

In the mid-twentieth century the Clydesdale horse went into a decline, when its numbers began decreasing rapidly, and by 1975 it was listed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, a conservation charity aiming to restore endangered breeds of British livestock. Happily the number of Clydesdales has increased over the past thirty years. The Clydesdale is still classified as a rare breed, but it is not in serious danger of dying out.

There are now around seven hundred registered brood mares in the United Kingdom and about one hundred registered stallions. Clydesdales are growing in popularity for showing and driving, and are being re-introduced into traditional farming, for environmental or educational purposes, as a tourist attraction, or simply because of the growing popularity and enthusiasm for heavy horses.

The Cawdor Cup for best female Clydesdale is awarded annually at the Royal Highland Show, and the Cawdor Cup for best male is presented at the National Stallion Show. Entries of these beautiful animals are growing every year at these events, and at many other horse shows around the world.

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