The Trait Breton is a French

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...

draught horse A draft horse (US) or draught horse (UK), also known as dray horse, carthorse, work horse or heavy horse, is a large horse bred to be a working animal hauling freight and doing heavy agricultural tasks such as plough, plowing. There are a nu ...

. It originated in

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

, in north-west France, from

cross-breeding A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. A domestic animal of unknown ancestry, where the breed status of only one parent or grandparent is known, may also be called a crossbreed though ...

of local horses with various other breeds. It is strong and muscular, and often has a

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Description ...

coat. There are two principal subtypes: the Postier Breton is an agile harness and light draught breed; the Trait Breton is heavier, and best suited to agricultural work. The Breton was used as a

working animal A working animal is an animal, usually domesticated, that is kept by humans and trained to perform tasks. Some are used for their physical strength (e.g. oxen and draft horses) or for transportation (e.g. riding horses and camels), while oth ...

for

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

and

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

purposes; in the twenty-first century it is reared principally for horsemeat. A

stud book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry, the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders wh ...

was started in 1909.

History

The Breton was originally bred for strength and durability."Breton"
''The International Museum of the Horse''. Referenced 1 August 2011. One theory is that they were brought to Europe during the

Aryan ''Aryan'' (), or ''Arya'' (borrowed from Sanskrit ''ārya''), Oxford English Dictionary Online 2024, s.v. ''Aryan'' (adj. & n.); ''Arya'' (n.)''.'' is a term originating from the ethno-cultural self-designation of the Indo-Iranians. It stood ...

migration from Asia over 4,000 years ago, while another school of thought has them descending from horses bred by

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

warriors before their conquest of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

."Breton"
''Oklahoma State University''. Referenced 6 January 2008. The original ancestors of the Breton were a population of horses that lived in the Breton mountains, possibly descended from steppe horses ridden by Celts. During the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

, these mountain horses were crossed with oriental horses to create a type known as the Bidet Breton. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, the ancestral Breton horse was sought by military leaders, partly because of its comfortable

gait Gait is the pattern of Motion (physics), movement of the limb (anatomy), limbs of animals, including Gait (human), humans, during Animal locomotion, locomotion over a solid substrate. Most animals use a variety of gaits, selecting gait based on s ...

, which was said to be partway between a brisk trot and an amble. Due to its gaits and the fact that it only stood about high, it was nicknamed the ''Bidet d'Allure'' or ''Bidet Breton.'' Horses of other bloodlines brought back to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

during the

had a strong influence on the Breton, and two types subsequently developed.''Simon & Schuster's Guide to Horses and Ponies''. Bongianni, Maurizio. Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1988, p. 90. . The ''Sommier'' was the common, heavier type, used mainly as a

pack horse A packhorse, pack horse, or sumpter refers to a horse, mule, donkey, or pony used to carry goods on its back, usually in sidebags or panniers. Typically packhorses are used to cross difficult terrain, where the absence of roads prevents the use o ...

and for farm and draft work. From the ''Sommier'', the ''Roussin'' was developed, was used mainly in

wars War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of State (polity), states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or betwe ...

and on long journeys. The ''Roussin'''s natural

ambling An ambling gait or amble is any of several four-beat intermediate horse gaits, all of which are faster than a walk but usually slower than a canter and always slower than a gallop. Horses that amble are sometimes referred to as " gaited", pa ...

gait made it popular as a lighter riding horse. A

stud-book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry, the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders w ...

was started in 1909. There were originally separate books for the Trait and Postier types, which in 1912 became two sections of a single book, and in 1920 were merged. Also in 1920, a

breed association Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members ...

, the , was formed. In 2018 the was made the official national association in its place. The breed retained its mountain roots with its main stud, the National Provincial Stud, being located in the mountain country of Langonnet. In 1920, the decision was made to permit no new outside blood into the studbook, and in 1951 the studbook was officially closed to outside horses. In France, breeding is concentrated mainly in the four Breton départements of Côtes d'Armor,

Finistère Finistère (, ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. Its prefecture is Quimper and its largest city is Brest, France, Brest. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.Ille-et-Vilaine Ille-et-Vilaine (; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Ill-e-Vilaenn'', ) is a departments of France, department of France, located in the regions of France, region of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in the northwest of the country. It is named a ...

and

Morbihan The Morbihan ( , ; ) is a departments of France, department in the administrative region of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Gulf of Morbihan, Morbihan (''small sea'' in Breton ...

, but extends into northern

Loire-Atlantique Loire-Atlantique (; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Louére-Atantique''; ; before 1957: ''Loire-Inférieure'', ) is a departments of France, department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean. ...

and parts of

Maine-et-Loire Maine-et-Loire () is a department in the Loire Valley in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France. It is named after the two rivers, Maine and the Loire. It borders Mayenne and Sarthe to the north, Loire-Atlantique to the west, Indr ...

, the Massif Central and the

Pyrenées The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

. New registrations in 2017 were just over 2300; of these, more than 900 were in Brittany, and almost 900 in the

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of Nouvelle Aquitaine and Occitanie in the south-west of the country. The Breton has been exported to many countries, and has influenced a number of breeds. It may have influenced the Canadian Horse, the Freiberger or Franches-Montagnes of Switzerland, and the Italian Tiro Pesante Rapido. In India, Breton mares were used to produce

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...

s, and contributed to the development of the Indian Half-bred; at

Saharanpur Saharanpur is a city and a Municipal corporation (India), municipal corporation in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is also the public administration, administrative headquarters of Saharanpur district. Saharanpur city's name was given after the Sain ...

some were put to an Anglo-Arab

stallion A stallion is an adult male horse that has not been gelded ( castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cre ...

named Mystère to produce carriage horses. The Hispano-Bretón breed of Spain derives from

of imported Breton stallions with local mares; the Bréton Empordanès is a population in the Empordà region of Catalonia. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

a Breton stallion was used to improve the conformation of the German Schleswig Coldblood. In Japan the Breton is among the imported heavy breeds that contribute to the Ban-ei Race Horse.

Characteristics

The Breton normally stands about at the

withers Withers are the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, this ridge is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, catt ...

, depending on type. It is most commonly

, flaxen chestnut or chestnut roan;

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

and blue roan are less usual, and

black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

is rare. Limited white markings are tolerated. The head is of medium size, the profile straight or convex; the neck is long and well set on, the shoulder long and sloped, the chest broad, the breast deep, the back broad, the croup broad and double, and the legs muscular. Registered animals may be branded with a heraldic ermine on the left side of the neck.

Subcategories

There are several subtypes of the Breton breed. Two, the Trait Breton and the Postier Breton, are officially recognised,Le Trait Breton
Syndicat des éleveurs du cheval Breton; Les Haras Nationaux (in French) Accessed August 2011 while others such as the Centre-montagne or Central Mountain Breton are not. Older types that have disappeared include the Grand Breton and the Bidet Breton or Bidet d'Allure. The Postier Breton was developed as a result of cross-breeding with the Norfolk Trotter and the Hackney during the 19th century. Its name originates from its use in pulling mail coaches. The Postier was used extensively by the French Horse Artillery, and it has been described as a lighter version of the Suffolk Punch draft breed from Great Britain. The Trait Breton is derived from an infusion of

Ardennes The Ardennes ( ; ; ; ; ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. Geological ...

and

Percheron The Percheron is a horse breed, breed of draft horse that originated in the Huisne river valley in western France, part of the former Perche province, from which the breed takes its name. Usually gray (horse), gray or black (horse), black in col ...

blood. It is very strong relative to its size and has short but muscular legs. This type has absorbed another, older type, called the Grand Breton, a heavier horse that was used to improve many other draft breeds. The Centre-montagne or Central Mountain Breton is a smaller draft type.

Uses

The Breton is used in many capacities owing to the various sub-types of the breed. Smaller types can be used under saddle and for fast, light draft work, whilst larger types are ideal for heavy

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

and

work. They are also commonly used to improve other breeds through crossbreeding. Today the breed is used as a draft horse on small farms and to gather seaweed. It is also bred for

meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...

production; horse meat is a dietary staple in many European countries, including France, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland.

References

External links

Site officiel du Syndicat des Éleveurs de Chevaux Bretons

Le règlement français du Stud-Book de la race

Le Trait Breton
sur le site du Haras de Lamballe {{good article Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in France Draft horses