Clydesdale horse

Lore & Background

The Clydesdale horse takes its name from Clydesdale, the valley of the River Clyde. In the late seventeenth century, stallions of Friesian and Flemish stock from the Low Countries were imported to Scotland and bred to local mares. These included a black unnamed stallion imported from England by John Paterson of Lochlyloch and an unnamed dark-brown stallion owned by the Duke of Hamilton. Another prominent stallion was a 165 cm coach horse named Blaze. Written pedigrees were kept from the early nineteenth century, and a filly born in 1806, known as the 'Lampits mare,' traced her lineage to the black stallion and appears in the ancestry of almost every Clydesdale living today. One of her foals, Thompson's Black Horse (known as Glancer), had a significant influence on the breed.

A system of hiring stallions between districts existed in Scotland, with written records dating back to 1837. Local agriculture improvement societies held breed shows to choose the best stallion, whose owner was awarded a monetary prize and required to take the stallion throughout a designated area to breed to local mares. Through this system and by purchase, Clydesdale stallions were sent throughout Scotland and into northern England. By 1840, Scottish draught horses and the Clydesdale were one and the same. The Clydesdale Horse Society of Scotland was formed in 1877, followed in 1879 by the American Clydesdale Association. In 1883, the short-lived Select Clydesdale Horse Society was started by two breeders who introduced Shire blood into the breed.

Reader's Guide

The Clydesdale horse holds significance as a draught breed that played a major role in Scottish agriculture and road haulage, and was extensively exported, particularly to Australia and New Zealand, where it became known as 'the breed that built Australia.' Its numbers declined sharply in the twentieth century due to the First World War and mechanisation, leading to conservation concern. The breed is now principally used as carriage horses and in parades, most famously by the Anheuser-Busch brewery's Budweiser Clydesdales. The breed's conformation has changed over time, with modern horses taller than earlier compact types. Health issues include chronic progressive lymphedema, a skin condition called 'Clyde's itch,' and sunburn on unpigmented skin. The breed's conservation status has fluctuated: by 2005 the Rare Breeds Survival Trust moved it to 'at risk,' but by 2010 it was back to 'vulnerable.' In 2010, the worldwide population was estimated at 5,000, with around 4,000 in the United States and Canada. By 2024, the Livestock Conservancy listed it as 'threatened.'

Did You Know?

• The first recorded use of the name 'Clydesdale' for the breed was in 1826 at an exhibition in Glasgow.
• A filly born in 1806, known as the 'Lampits mare,' is listed in the ancestry of almost every Clydesdale living today.
• Between 1884 and 1945, export certificates were issued for 20,183 Clydesdales.
• The breed has a characteristic called 'cow hocks,' where the hocks turn inward, which is not considered a fault in breed shows.