Ardennais

Origin
France and Belgium

History
The ancient Ardennes breed of heavy horse originated in the Ardennes Mountains bordering both Belgium and France. It is thought to be descended of the prehistoric horses whose remains were found at Solutré. The Ardennais was known to Julius Caesar, who praised them for their hardiness and stamina. It formed  undoubtedly  the basis for the great horses of the Middle Ages.
From the 17^th until the 19^th century, the Ardennais horses were both ridden und used as light draft horses. During the French Revolution in 1789, and in the following years of the Empire, they became renowned as the best artillery horses in Europe. In 1812 during the Napoleon´s disastrous Russian campaign, it was said that they were the only horses hardy enough to withstand the rigors of the winter retreat from Moscow and bring home a substantial part of the Emperor´s wagon train.
At the beginning of the 19^th century the Ardennais was crossed with Arabian blood, later with Percheron, Boulonnais, and Thoroughbred. However, the impact of these last three was transitory, except possibly in the related Auxois.
Three distinct types of Ardennais evolved over the years: a smaller sort, closest to the old type; the bigger and more massive Ardennais du Nord, also known as the Trait du Nord, which resulted from crosses with the Belgian Draft Horse and comes largely from Lorraine; the powerful Auxois from Burgundy is similar to the Ardennais du Nord, but was more influenced by the 19^th-century Percheron and Boulonnais crosses.
Losses during both World Wars led to the importation of Dutch and Belgian stallions but today such crosses are much less frequent.

Description

• Head:
  massive, straight-profiled with a squared-off muzzle, prominent eye sockets, a low, flat forehead and small active ears, spaced far apart
• Conformation:
  -crested, short, very muscular neck, thick at the base
  -huge, well sloped, muscled shoulders
  -low but well defined withers
  -strong and wide back, unusually short
  -wide and rounded quarters, the muscles being particularly short, thick and powerful
  -sturdy, short, and muscular legs carrying a lighter-coloured feathering, not as thick as that of many cart horse breeds
  -strong hooves, in comparison with the massive top, smaller than expected
• Average height:
  15.3 h.h. and above
• Colour:
  it may be bay, roan, chestnut, grey or palomino. Black is excluded from registration and very uncommon
• Temperament:
  calm, tolerant attitude, extreme docility, and exemplary gentleness, can be handled easily , even by children
• Today:
  it is raised for the meat market as well as for use as a heavy draft horse.