The Rambouillet is a breed of

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

(''Ovis aries''). It is also known as the Rambouillet

Merino The Merino is a list of sheep breeds, breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monop ...

or the French Merino.

History

The development of the Rambouillet breed started in 1786, when

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

purchased over 300 Spanish Merinos (318 ewes, 41 rams, seven wethers) from his cousin

Charles III of Spain Charles III (; 20 January 1716 – 14 December 1788) was King of Spain in the years 1759 to 1788. He was also Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I (1731–1735); King of Naples, as Charles VII; and King of Sicily, as Charles III (or V) (1735� ...

. The flock was subsequently developed on an experimental royal farm, the ''Bergerie royale'' (now ''Bergerie nationale'') built during the reign of Louis XVI, at his request, on his domain of Rambouillet, 50 km southwest of Paris, which Louis XVI had purchased in December 1783 from his cousin Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, Duke of Penthièvre. The flock was raised exclusively at the ''Bergerie'', with no sheep being sold for years, well into the 19th century. Outcrossing with English long-

wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...

breeds and selection produced a well-defined breed, differing in several important points from the original Spanish Merino. The size was greater, with full-grown ewes weighing up to 200 lb and rams up to 300 lb. The wool clips were larger and the wool length had increased to greater than 3 in (80 mm). In 1889, a Rambouillet Association was formed in the United States by Larmon Bronson Townsend & Larmon George Townsend in Ionia, Michigan, with the aim of preserving the breed. An estimated 50% of the sheep on the US western ranges are of Rambouillet blood. Rambouillet stud has also had an enormous influence on the development of the Australian Merino industry through ''Emperor'' and the Peppin Merino stud.

Value of the fleece

The fleece was valuable in the manufacture of cloth, at times being woven in a mixed fabric of cotton warp and wool weft.

Uses

The breed is well known for its wool, but also for its meat, both

lamb and mutton Lamb and mutton, collectively sheep meat (or sheepmeat) is one of the most common meats around the world, taken from the domestic sheep, ''Ovis aries'', and generally divided into lamb, from sheep in their first year, hogget, from sheep in thei ...

. It has been described as a dual-purpose breed, with superior wool and near-mutton breed characteristics. This breed was also used for the development of the "Barbado" or American Blackbelly sheep, which was crossed with Barbados Blackbelly and mouflon for their horns at hunting ranches.

References

1786 establishments in France Sheep breeds Sheep breeds originating in France Louis XVI Charles III of Spain {{Sheep-stub