Crabbet - A History

HISTORY OF THE ARABIAN AND IN PARTICULAR CRABBET ARABIANS.

 

While its exact origins are unknown, somewhere between Northern Egypt and the Euphrates, where history began, dwelled an ancient breed of horse, known today as the Arabian. The Arabian is the only original "hot blood." There is no known link between the Arabian and any of the other branches of the prehistoric horse, he is unique unto himself, possessing qualities and characteristics unlike any other breed. His prepotence in passing on his characteristics is unrivaled, when preserved in his pure form, as he has remained virtually unchanged over thousands of years.

 

The Bedouin tribes of the desert were the first to recognize the extraordinary qualities of these horses. The harshness of the nomadic desert life required tremendous endurance and stamina from these horses, and only the strongest survived. As war raids were a regular part of Bedouin culture, the mare chosen to be ridden into battle had to be as swift as the wind, unflinchingly brave and blindly obedient. Stallions had to be extremely prepotent in passing on the most desired traits, for to keep a stallion who did not, was a luxury the Bedouins could ill afford. Only the best sire quality colts were kept, all others being killed at birth. And so, as a matter of dire necessity, only the best of mares were bred, only the best of stallions were kept. The ability to exist on the most meager of rations, the braveness of heart and the supreme devotion to a human master were characteristics that evolved gradually, through superior individuals who were best able to accommodate themselves to the dreadful hardships of their lot. Ironically, a frugal land and its people, who had little to offer in the way of riches, became the source of a breed of horse which would become legendary for their great beauty.

 

Mohammed Ali the Great, ruler of Egypt during the early 1800s, was amongst the first of what would become a succession of very elite, discriminating breeders who became enthralled, even obsessed with these fascinating desert beauties. Sending his agents out into the desert to acquire the most magnificent and precious of these treasures, Mohammed Ali eventually assembled one of the largest and finest collections of desert Arabians in the history of the breed.

 

After his death, Mohammed Ali was succeeded by his son Ibrahim and later by his nephew, Abbas Pasha. It was Abbas Pasha's absolute commitment to perpetuating these living masterpieces according to the breeding practices of the Bedouins that set the standard. Abbas Pasha, determined to acquire the very finest of the breed, sent his emissaries to comb the desert, enduring great hardships and danger, to seek out the most prized stallions and mares. Aware of the great importance the Bedouin bestowed upon the pedigree, Abbas Pasha paid huge sums of money to obtain those horses whose pedigrees were held in the highest esteem. He went to great lengths to ensure that these pedigrees were of first class quality and unquestionably reliable. The information acquired during this formidable quest was compiled into book form, and is known as the Abbas Pasha Manuscripts.

 

After the death of Abbas Pasha, and the subsequent dispersal of his legendary stud, the torch was again picked up and carried forward. Ali Pasha Sherif, like Abbas Pasha, had an obsession for breeding magnificent desert Arabians. He acquired 40 of the original Abbas Pasha stock (which included the acquisitions of Mohammed Ali the Great), and continued to add to his herd, bringing in more fine desert bred stock. At its peak, the stud of Ali Pasha Sherif numbered more than 400!

 

Early in the 19th century, transportation modes had improved and the privileged wealthy class of Europe began to explore the Middle East. Lady Anne Blunt, a seasoned world traveler, made several daring trips into the desert, along with her husband Wilfrid Blunt. They were in search of Bedouin stock of the highest quality with which to establish their breeding farm in England, Crabbet Park. Lady Anne became so enamored with the desert horses, that she eventually became a devout student of Bedouin breeding, and adopted the Bedouin fervor for perpetuating only those Arabians of the purest of pedigree. She became committed to the Bedouin's definition of "asil " type, believing that horses of such ancestry were marked by certain physical characteristics which gave testimony to their purity, and left no question as to their authenticity.

 

Period One 1878-1920

 

The Blunt's began breeding Arabians in 1878 and continued together until their agreed separation in 1906. With the importance of the horses in their lives, it is not surprising that they also chose to partition the Crabbet Stud. Not all details of the division are precisely known, but it can be followed in a broad sense. Wilfred moving his section of the stud to Newbuildings, and Lady Anne remaining with her portion at Crabbet Park. Thus in terms of their influence on Crabbet history, beginning with the foal crop of 1907 we can distinguish in most breeding decisions the planning of Blunt or of Lady Anne. The record shows that both "Crabbet" and "Newbuildings" bred individuals of the very highest distinction. Crabbet Park and Newbuildings were ancestral properties in Wilfrid Blunt's family.

 

Lady Anne later chose to settle in Egypt at the garden of Sheykh Obeyd, near Cairo. The Blunts had founded a stud at Sheykh Obeyd about 1890; it was reorganized in 1897 and provided a rallying point for the remmant of the famed breeding programs of Abbas Pasha and Ali Pasha Sherif. The original intent had been to exchange stock between the Crabbet and Sheykh Obeyd studs, but when the stallions Rataplan and Jeroboam died at sea on the way to Egypt the enthusiasm for two way transfers was greatly reduced.

 

During this period the General Stud Book of England records 34 mares imported to England from 1878 to 1910 by the Blunts. Of these 21 were of desert origin, 13 coming from Sheykh Obeyd.

 

This period was one of great energy and expansion, and laid the foundation for all that was to follow at Crabbet Park.

 

Period Two 1920 to 1957

Upon the death of Lady Anne in 1917 a family fued between Wilfred and his daughter raged. The situation became quite intense with court action taken.  After being sucessful in her suit, Lady Wentworth was at the helm of Crabbet Park, and went about producing her 'super horses' . These were known as such due to their increased size, and included such animals as Oran and Grand Royal. She continued to narrow the scope of the pedigree base, whilst embarking on large international sales of horses to several countries. Lady Wentworth's major stroke of ingeniousness was the purchase of Skowronek. Although she was noted for breeding the taller type of Arabian she also continued with the smaller Skowronek and later Dargee.

 

Period Three 1957 to 1971

Upon the death of Lady Wentworth, Mr Geoffrey Covey , her manager, inherited the stud, but fate had it that Geoffrey Covey pre deceased Lady Wentworth. The stud was then inherited by Covey's son Cecil, who was also employed at the stud. Cecil Covey continued to breed the Crabbet Arabians, in a much diminished manner due to death duties (80% in England at that time). Covey continued on with the Stud until 1971, when a freeway was to cut through the property, and due to lack of pasture, the horses had to be sold.

 

One might have thought that with the final disbandment of the stud, all the previous efforts would have been lost, but today "Crabbet" has larger implications than any individual breeding program can contain; nearly every modern breeding tradition has been enhanced by contributions from Crabbet and a robust Crabbet heritage maintains its own identity, as straight Crabbet or blended yet retaining predominant Crabbet character.

 

During the 93 years that the Stud operated, it produced many horses that were to go on and found other great studs. Some such notable horses produced were Naseem, who was sold to the Russian Government with over 20 other Crabbet Arabians. Naseem was to stand at the Russian Tersk Stud for 17years, where 19 of his daughters were incorporated into the stud.  Naseem was also to produce the influentual Russian sire Negatiw, the sire of Naborr and Salon. The pure Crabbet mare Rissalma also had an enormous impact on the stud through her son Priboj.

 

At the (now) Egyptian Agricultural Organisation (E.A.O.) Stud there are sixteen mares and forty one stallions listed as root stock in their stud book, of there nearly half were bred at Sheykh Obeyd or at Crabbet Park.  One such example was Kazmeen, who was sold to the Egyptian Agricultural Organisation in 1920 along with several other Crabbet horses. In this stud Kazmeen sired Bint Samih a who went on to produce the much celebrated Nazeer. If this was the only contribution Crabbet blood had in the E.A.O. it would have been outstanding, but the fact is that several of the Crabbet horses bred on in the stud and can still be found in modern Egyptian pedigrees is testiment to their value.

 

One cannot omit Skowronek, whose get from pure Crabbet mares, had major contributions. Several of Skowroneks daughters were purchased by the Duke of Veragua and imported to Spain where they had no small influence on Spanish breeding.

 

The United States of America were also keen buyers of Crabbet Arabians, with large numbers purchesed by Mr Spencer Borden, Mr W.R. Brown, Mr Homer Davenport, and Mr W.K. Kellogg of cereal fame. But is was Bazy Tankersley who purchased the largest consignment of Crabbet Arabians, being 32 horses in 1957. These horses are easily found in current U.S. pedigrees, and are the subject of CMK Group (Crabbet, Maynesborough and Kellogg).

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