Neapolitan horse
Encyclopedia
The Neapolitan Horse, , Neapolitano or Napolitano, is a horse breed
that originated in the plains between Naples
and Caserta
, in the Campania
region of Italy, but which may have been bred throughout the Kingdom of Naples
. The Neapolitan horse was frequently mentioned in literature from the 16th to the 19th century and noted for its quality. Corte wrote in 1562: "in Italy the horses of the Kingdom of Naples are greatly esteemed; [there] many fine coursers are born ... suitable for use in war and in the manège and for every service that the rider may require". The decline of the breed was noted in the early 20th century by Mascheroni (1903) and Fogliata (1908). Some sources state that by 1950, the original Neapolitan horse was deemed extinct, but its lines were incorporated into other breeds, most notably the Lipizzaner
. However, a breed called the Napolitano exists in Italy today, and is recognized by the Italian government. According to Gouraud, "a dedicated breeder ... is hoping to be able to rebuild it". La Repubblica reports that the attempt is based on a single stallion, Neapolitano "Il Vecchio", which belonged as a foal to Marshal Tito
and passed when old to a Serbian farmer, from whom it was purchased and imported to Italy in 1989.
The Napoletano as it is known today is one of the fifteen indigenous horse "breeds of limited distribution" currently recognised by the AIA, the Italian breeders' association, under the terms of Ministerial decree D.M. 24347 dated 5 November 2003; its status was listed in 2007 as critical by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. In 2005, a total population of 20 mares and 4 stallions was registered.
, "burnt chestnut"
or grey
, and must stand at least 150 centimetres (14.8 h) (59 in.) at the withers
. The head is "proud and square," the forehead broad, the eyes large, the profile straight becoming convex over the nose, the nostrils flattened, the ears small. The neck is muscular, long and elegantly curved, the mane
thick and long. The shoulder is deep and well sloped, with high and well-pronounced withers. The croup
is broad, rounded and almost double, the tail thick and long, set on medium low. The legs are well-proportioned and very muscular, particularly behind, dry and with pronounced tendons, the joints broad and dry. The action is "elegant, pronounced and majestic," the temperament "lively, bold and generous."
This may be compared with the description of the Neapolitan Horse given in The Sportsman's Dictionary in 1800:
and the surrounding regions were known for their high-quality Neapolitan horse
s. The best horses were bred by nobles for transportation and cavalry
. At the beginning of this time period, the horses were likely small, coarse and heavy, suitable for carrying heavily-armored warriors
. However, as elsewhere, the use of firearms brought on the desire for a more attractive, agile horse. This was achieved through selective breeding, but also through the use of horses from the Near
and Middle East
. The horses from these arid lands were, if not properly Arabian
themselves, at least in type would have been very like Arabians, Barbs
, and Akhal-Teke
s.
Neapolitan breeders, it seems, regularly exchanged stock with those in Andalusia
, which would have encouraged the Barb influence. As a result, the Neapolitan horse fit the Baroque horse
mold. The head was straight to convex in structure, but dry-featured. The body was deep and broad but short-backed, with wide round hindquarters and a crested, powerful neck set on high.
Neapolitan horses are often mentioned in the history of European horse breeds. A modern breed considered similar to the ancient Neapolitan is one of its descendants, the Lipizzan
er.
1567 - 1,200 mares are selected for a project by Phillip II of Spain to breed the "perfect" Spanish horse. They are crossed with Neapolitans, which had been heavily crossed with Andalusians during the time of Ferdinand.
1572 - The first foals of Phillip II’s project are born and he decides to save these animals for his own use and to present them as gifts to other royals. Highly colored, they are elegant, with an elevated gait, and capable of performing the difficult “Airs above the Ground.”
1624 - Classical dressage is being taught in Italy. Neapolitan stallions perform the “Airs above the Ground” between pillars.
1767 - Conversano, a black Neapolitan stallion
, is foaled, later to become a foundation sire
for the Lipizzan breed.
1790 - Neapolitano, a brown stallion from the Po Region of Italy, is foaled. He is another foundation sire for the Lipizzan breed.
1819 - Maestoso is foaled in Hungary. He is half Spanish, half Neapolitan, and another foundation sire of the Lipizzan breed,
1950 - The Neapolitan is thought to have become extinct.
1989 - The stallion Neapolitano "Il Vecchio", which belonged as a foal to Marshal Tito
is imported to Italy, with the hopes of rebuilding the Napolitano breed.
2003 - The Napoletano is recognised by the AIA under the terms of Ministerial decree D.M. 24347
2005 - A total population of 20 mare
s and 4 stallions was registered.
2007 - The status of the Napoletano was listed in 2007 as critical by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
and as a saddle horse, but particularly for dressage and haute école
.
Horse breed
Horse breed is a broad term with no clear consensus as to definition, but most commonly refers to selectively bred populations of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a very broad sense to define landrace animals, or...
that originated in the plains between Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
and Caserta
Caserta
Caserta is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. It is an important agricultural, commercial and industrial comune and city. Caserta is located on the edge of the Campanian plain at the foot of the Campanian Subapennine mountain range...
, in the Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
region of Italy, but which may have been bred throughout the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
. The Neapolitan horse was frequently mentioned in literature from the 16th to the 19th century and noted for its quality. Corte wrote in 1562: "in Italy the horses of the Kingdom of Naples are greatly esteemed; [there] many fine coursers are born ... suitable for use in war and in the manège and for every service that the rider may require". The decline of the breed was noted in the early 20th century by Mascheroni (1903) and Fogliata (1908). Some sources state that by 1950, the original Neapolitan horse was deemed extinct, but its lines were incorporated into other breeds, most notably the Lipizzaner
Lipizzan
The Lipizzan or Lipizzaner , is a breed of horse closely associated with the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, Austria, where the finest representatives demonstrate the haute école or "high school" movements of classical dressage, including the highly controlled, stylized jumps and other movements...
. However, a breed called the Napolitano exists in Italy today, and is recognized by the Italian government. According to Gouraud, "a dedicated breeder ... is hoping to be able to rebuild it". La Repubblica reports that the attempt is based on a single stallion, Neapolitano "Il Vecchio", which belonged as a foal to Marshal Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
and passed when old to a Serbian farmer, from whom it was purchased and imported to Italy in 1989.
The Napoletano as it is known today is one of the fifteen indigenous horse "breeds of limited distribution" currently recognised by the AIA, the Italian breeders' association, under the terms of Ministerial decree D.M. 24347 dated 5 November 2003; its status was listed in 2007 as critical by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. In 2005, a total population of 20 mares and 4 stallions was registered.
Characteristics
According to the breed standard, the Napoletano may be bay, blackBlack (horse)
Black is a hair coat color of horses in which the entire hair coat is black. Black is a relatively uncommon coat color, and novices frequently mistake dark chestnuts or bays for black. However, some breeds of horses, such as the Friesian horse, Murgese and Ariegeois are almost exclusively black...
, "burnt chestnut"
Chestnut (coat)
Chestnut is a hair coat color of horses consisting of a reddish-to-brown coat with a mane and tail the same or lighter in color than the coat. Genetically and visually, chestnut is characterized by the absolute absence of true black hairs...
or grey
Gray (horse)
Gray or grey is a coat color of horses characterized by progressive silvering of the colored hairs of the coat. Most gray horses have black skin and dark eyes; unlike many depigmentation genes, gray does not affect skin or eye color Their adult hair coat is white, dappled, or white intermingled...
, and must stand at least 150 centimetres (14.8 h) (59 in.) at the withers
Withers
The withers is the ridge between the shoulder blades of a four-legged animal. In many species it is the tallest point of the body, and in horses and dogs it is the standard place to measure the animal's height .-Horses:The withers in horses are formed by the dorsal spinal processes of roughly the...
. The head is "proud and square," the forehead broad, the eyes large, the profile straight becoming convex over the nose, the nostrils flattened, the ears small. The neck is muscular, long and elegantly curved, the mane
Mane (horse)
The mane is the hair that grows from the top of the neck of a horse or other equine, reaching from the poll to the withers, and includes the forelock or foretop. It is thicker and coarser than the rest of the horse's coat, and naturally grows to roughly cover the neck...
thick and long. The shoulder is deep and well sloped, with high and well-pronounced withers. The croup
Rump (animal)
The rump or croup, in the external morphology of an animal, is the portion of the posterior dorsum that is posterior to the loins and anterior to the tail. Anatomically, the rump corresponds to the sacrum....
is broad, rounded and almost double, the tail thick and long, set on medium low. The legs are well-proportioned and very muscular, particularly behind, dry and with pronounced tendons, the joints broad and dry. The action is "elegant, pronounced and majestic," the temperament "lively, bold and generous."
This may be compared with the description of the Neapolitan Horse given in The Sportsman's Dictionary in 1800:
History
Between the 16th to 19th centuries, NaplesNaples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
and the surrounding regions were known for their high-quality Neapolitan horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s. The best horses were bred by nobles for transportation and cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
. At the beginning of this time period, the horses were likely small, coarse and heavy, suitable for carrying heavily-armored warriors
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
. However, as elsewhere, the use of firearms brought on the desire for a more attractive, agile horse. This was achieved through selective breeding, but also through the use of horses from the Near
Near East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
and Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. The horses from these arid lands were, if not properly Arabian
Arabian horse
The Arabian or Arab horse is a breed of horse that originated on the Arabian Peninsula. With a distinctive head shape and high tail carriage, the Arabian is one of the most easily recognizable horse breeds in the world. It is also one of the oldest breeds, with archaeological evidence of horses...
themselves, at least in type would have been very like Arabians, Barbs
Barb (horse)
Developed on the Barbary Coast of North Africa, the Barb horse is a desert breed with great hardiness and stamina. The Barb generally possesses a fiery temperament and an atypical sport-horse conformation, but nevertheless has influenced modern breeds....
, and Akhal-Teke
Akhal-Teke
The Akhal-Teke is a horse breed from Turkmenistan, where they are a national emblem. They are noted for their speed and for endurance on long marches. These "golden-horses" are adapted to severe climatic conditions and are thought to be one of the oldest surviving horse breeds...
s.
Neapolitan breeders, it seems, regularly exchanged stock with those in Andalusia
Andalusian horse
The Andalusian, also known as the Pure Spanish Horse or PRE , is a horse breed developed in the Iberian Peninsula. Its ancestors have been present on the Iberian Peninsula for thousands of years. The Andalusian has been recognized as an individual breed since the 15th century, and its conformation...
, which would have encouraged the Barb influence. As a result, the Neapolitan horse fit the Baroque horse
Baroque horse
The Baroque horse is a term used to generally describe the type of agile but strong-bodied descendants of horses in the Middle Ages such as the destrier. Specific ancestors of this type include the Neapolitan horse, and the Iberian horse of Barb ancestry known in the Middle Ages as the Spanish...
mold. The head was straight to convex in structure, but dry-featured. The body was deep and broad but short-backed, with wide round hindquarters and a crested, powerful neck set on high.
Neapolitan horses are often mentioned in the history of European horse breeds. A modern breed considered similar to the ancient Neapolitan is one of its descendants, the Lipizzan
Lipizzan
The Lipizzan or Lipizzaner , is a breed of horse closely associated with the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, Austria, where the finest representatives demonstrate the haute école or "high school" movements of classical dressage, including the highly controlled, stylized jumps and other movements...
er.
Timeline
1508 - Ferdinand of Spain joins the League of Cambrai, which returns Apulia to Spain, along with southern Italy, the port of Brindisi, and Sardinia, where he founds an Andalusian stud at Abbasanta. Several other Andalusian studs follow. Italian horses receive a heavy dose of Spanish blood.1567 - 1,200 mares are selected for a project by Phillip II of Spain to breed the "perfect" Spanish horse. They are crossed with Neapolitans, which had been heavily crossed with Andalusians during the time of Ferdinand.
1572 - The first foals of Phillip II’s project are born and he decides to save these animals for his own use and to present them as gifts to other royals. Highly colored, they are elegant, with an elevated gait, and capable of performing the difficult “Airs above the Ground.”
1624 - Classical dressage is being taught in Italy. Neapolitan stallions perform the “Airs above the Ground” between pillars.
1767 - Conversano, a black Neapolitan stallion
Stallion
A Stallion is a male horse.Stallion may also refer to:* Stallion , an American pop rock group* Stallion , a figure in the Gobot toyline* Stallion , a character in the console role-playing game series...
, is foaled, later to become a foundation sire
Foundation bloodstock
Foundation bloodstock or foundation stock are horses that are the progenitor, or foundation, of a new horse breed or a given bloodline within a breed. The term is also used in a similar manner when discussing purebred dogs...
for the Lipizzan breed.
1790 - Neapolitano, a brown stallion from the Po Region of Italy, is foaled. He is another foundation sire for the Lipizzan breed.
1819 - Maestoso is foaled in Hungary. He is half Spanish, half Neapolitan, and another foundation sire of the Lipizzan breed,
1950 - The Neapolitan is thought to have become extinct.
1989 - The stallion Neapolitano "Il Vecchio", which belonged as a foal to Marshal Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
is imported to Italy, with the hopes of rebuilding the Napolitano breed.
2003 - The Napoletano is recognised by the AIA under the terms of Ministerial decree D.M. 24347
2005 - A total population of 20 mare
Mare
Female horses are called mares.Mare is the Latin word for "sea".The word may also refer to:-People:* Ahmed Marzooq, also known as Mare, a footballer and Secretary General of Maldives Olympic Committee* Mare Winningham, American actress and singer...
s and 4 stallions was registered.
2007 - The status of the Napoletano was listed in 2007 as critical by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Uses
The Napoletano is suitable for light or medium drivingDriving (horse)
Driving, when applied to horses, ponies, mules, or donkeys, is a broad term for hitching equines to a wagon, carriage, cart, sleigh, or other horse-drawn vehicle by means of a harness and working them in this way...
and as a saddle horse, but particularly for dressage and haute école
Classical dressage
Classical dressage evolved from cavalry movements and training for the battlefield, and has since developed into the competitive dressage seen today...
.
Further reading
- Franchini, Maria & Giuseppe Maresca (2003) La fabuleuse aventure du cheval Napolitain Paris: Zulma ISBN 2-84304-258-5