History of Welsh Cob
 

The description of the Welsh Cob found in the poetry of Tudur Aled from the sixteenth century. It was reiterated by Captain Howson, the secretary of the WPCSA from 1028 to 1048, as follows:

As the very name implies, a Welsh Cob must be a short-legged animal of Herculean strength. In build it is distinctly the duel-purpose ride and drive type, combining quality activity, and a spirited yet kindly temperament with a subtle ‘personality’ entirely its own. It may be anything from under 14 to something over 15 hands in height and shows much pony character all over, but especially about the head and forehand and in the silky forlock, mane and heel tufts. Viewed from the front a Cob should display some width of chest and from behind the thighs must be extremely powerful and full- a split-up silty looking cob is an abomination. It must walk quickly and collectedly and its trotting paces must be very forceful, free and fast, with every joint in use. It must get away in front with full play on the shoulders, knees well up, with forelegs straightened out and feet brought lightly to the ground, without the slightest tendency to drop upon the heels. The hocks must be flexed vigorously and the hind legs switched electrically beneath the body in order to support the weight, give proper balance, and provide propulsive power. The action should be straight and true allround, although a few exceptionally fast trotters are inclined to go a trifle wide behind.

The Welsh Cob is an ancient breed descended from the tough native mountain ponies of Wales. Evidence of the existence of the Welsh Cob in the middle ages and even earlier can be found in past age’s literature and pictures. Poetry of fifteenth-century Welsh poets describes horses in Wales at that period and those descriptions would fit the ideal type of Welsh Cob in Wales five hundred years later. Poet, Gutro’r Glyn also refers to pedigrees of stallions tracing them back to romances and the stallions of Arthur of the round table. Wales is the only nation in Europe which can refer to horses pedigrees between 1200 and 1600.

Pedigree of a Welsh Cob
By Guto’r Glyn (c, 1445-75)

He is the son of ‘Du o Brydyn”
He would win the race in any fair field;
His mother was daughter to the stallion of
Anglesey which carried eight people,
They are descendants to Du’r Moroedd
And I know that he is one of them.
He is nephew to Myngwyn Ial.
In Powys no fetter could hold him,
He is of the stock of Ffwg Warin’s stallion,
And that stock grinds its fodder small
With its strong jaws.
He is a stallion of the highest pedigree
In Anglesey.
From the line of Talebolion.

With great admiration throughout the ages and written about in mediaeval literature the Cob is described as extremely strong and able to carry substantial weight on his back. He had to be hardy and versatile, jumping, swimming and extremely fleet of foot with ability to jump rivers and carry heavy weights on a daily basis. The farmer needed and depended on his horse to do the farm work and bring him and his family to church and market. Long before the introduction of larger breeds all the heavy work of the upland farms had to be done by the families trusty Cob; from bringing in the hay to bringing large loads of timber from the forest. At the end of a long work day the Cob stallion would often be ridden down the road several miles to the neighbors place where he would service a good Cob mare only to be ridden back to return home just before night time. No doubt he was rubbed down and fed his fodder by the grateful farmer.

With good reason, the Welsh Cob is believed by many to have been the original Morgan stallion, Figure, and the British troops speculated to have brought Cobs to the Eastern United States. . The Morgan Horse almost certainly owed his origin to the Welsh cobs left behind by the British Army after the American War of Independence at the end of the 18th century.

Welsh Cobs have been imported by breeders and governments of countries to many countries to improve their native breeds or bred in the pure state. They are capable of holding their own against all fashionable breeds of other countries. The import expense is enormous to countries as United States and Australia although it has not proved to be a deterrent. The Welsh Cob is appreciated for their beauty, type, conformation, versatility and ability to excel in so many different equine disciplines. No doubt, the performing prowess of the Welsh Cob has been a source of great pride for ages.

The sturdy and reliable Welsh Cobs have been used in war times throughout history as well as in industry and family transportation. No doubt since this breed often described as ‘the best ride and drive animal in the world’, has evolved throughout the centuries for his tremendous courage, tractability and powers of endurance.

Both in times of peace and war he has played his part. No doubt in 1485 the British throne was gained by Henry Tudor with the help of the Welsh Militia on cobs which he gathered round him on his arrival from France at Milford Haven as he traveled up the west coast of Wales.

So valuable was he to the Army for the mounted infantry and for pulling heavy guns and equipment over rough and often mountainous terrain that premiums were paid to the best stallions by the War Office.

Here is a portion of what is recorded conversation between God Almighty and Job in the chapter of Job from the Holy Bible. Here God is speaking about creation. (I love this chapter.)

"Do you give the horse his might?
Do you clothe his neck with a mane?
“Do you make him leap like a locust?
His majestic snorting is terrible.
“ He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
He goes out to meet weapons.
“ He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
And he does not turn back from the sword.
“ The quiver rattles against him,
The flashing spear and javelin.
“ With shaking and rage he races over the ground;
And he does not stand still at the voice of the trumpet.
“ As often as the trumpet sounds he says, ‘Aha!’
And he scents the battle from afar,
And thunder of the captains, and the war cry.

Job 39: 19-25

In 1901 The Welsh Pony and Cob Society founders decided to register and record this ancient breed together with the Welsh Mountain Ponies and the larger Welsh Ponies in the Welsh Stud Book, dividing them into four sections according to height and type. The description for each section is alike the typical short Welsh pony head with small ears, the large prominent eyes and open nostrils, the well-laid shoulder, short back and powerful muscular quarters with gay tall carriage - standing on good clean legs with dense bone on strong hooves. The characteristic fast trotting action of the Welsh Cob and Pony of Cob Type like that of the Mountain Pony should be true, bold and free, covering the ground with forceful impulsion from the hocks.

A limited number of premiums for Welsh Cob stallions were awarded by the board of light horse breeders which would allow of the free service of these Cobs in 1912 to encourage the revival of breeding the old strain of Welsh Cob. At the end of the second world war there were only about ten Cob stallions and twenty-five Cob mares left in the whole stud book with ten times this number of mountain ponies. During the first world war, the famous equine artist, Lionel Edwards, who served in the Army Remount Service, recalled how he saw hundreds of Welsh Cob mares commandeered into the war effort never to return. During the depression of the thirties, many breeders were unable to pay for registration fees on their good mares and the progeny of these mares had to start all over again into the Welsh Stud Book. The United Dairies and other with a ready market for Harness Cobs, came to Cardiganshire to purchase dozens and dozens of these Welsh Cob mares.

Stallions for service had been a practice in Wales since before recorded history. The livelihood of many large Wales families living on small-holdings depended on the success of a stallion at stud. Popular stallions would have food and stabling for free as they ‘travelled’ around from farm to farm. Children who were brought up and dependant on their father’s income from stud fees were later made famous in the history of Wales. Thousands of working Cobs in the Principality at the turn of the century were sold annually to the dairy and newspaper trades in the English towns. The number registered in the Welsh Stud book were minimal. In Britain and Europe during the eighteenth century, fast trotters were prized. The Royal Commission on Horse Breeding held in 1888 was informed that premiums awarded to stallions would encourage owners to keep a better standard of stallion rather than the ‘cheapest’ stallion and these could be offered to tenant farmers at a maximum fee of 50s each. By the late twenties the premium scheme was doing sterling work for the furtherance of the Welsh Cob breed. Each premium stallion was listed in the WSB along with the route which he would travel and names of the Local Committee members led by the name of the contact person with whom mare owners would liaise. The premiums were to discontinue in 1930 to the great disappointment of Welsh Cob owners. In the 1932 ‘Royal Welsh Agricultural Society Journal and WPCSA writings states;
The Welsh Cob is far too valuable a breed to be allowed to join the many sacrifices on the alter of official lack of vision. In spite of the growth of other means of locomotion, there remains many uses for strong, spanking, lion-hearted Cobs, both in and out of Wales, and it is sincerely hoped that those who own good breeding stock of the true and tested blood will, with the patriotism they have always shown, hold on to it until the dawn of those better times which optimists believe will come again. And optimists are not invariably wrong!
Mr.Meyrick Jones reiterated the same sentiments in the same Journal in his judges report of the Welsh Cob and pony classes. He had attended every Royal Welsh Show except one since the first one in 1904 and was in good position to reflect on the previous thirty years. He was sad and dismayed by the decision of the War Office and Treasury in abolishing the premium grants. By having the withdrawal of premiums Welsh farmers were being sacrificed in order to help to reduce Army Estimates; in spite of the fact on the outbreak of the war in 1914 practically every Welsh mare was speedily taken over for military purposes. In 1934 they again issued some premiums, fewer in number and less in monetary value.

The premium scheme was maintained during the war years with three to four travelling premiums awarded each year. When the stallions ‘travelled’ around the various countries, their leaders would be astride mares walking an average of twenty-five miles per day. The stallion, Brenin Gwalia travelled every year from 1942 to 1953 with owner David Rees riding the mare, Brynarth Titch, who carried him for fifteen years in a row. Thomas Rees first began travelling stallions when he was barely fourteen years old. The Rees family was devoted to the Cob of old Welsh style and they were dedicated to the true breed for 120 years. They travelled their stallions for the first 80 years along long lonely miles, despite all kinds of weather. Thomas Rees had started a strain of Welsh type in the eighteen seventies. He and his families livelihood depended upon the judgement of these stallions, and this was the only source of family income.

Stallion owners would challenge other stallion owners to races held on main roads and this had much influence on the evolution of the Welsh Cob. Those prized stallions have provided us with the earlier records of Welsh Cob blood-lines, like Trotting Comet, Welsh Flyer, True Briton and Cymro Llwyd. Before the advent of the motor driven vehicle, the Welsh Cob was the speediest mode of transport for the doctor or tradesman and others needing to get from here to there in the shortest time. Businessmen in South Wales were, known to select a cob by trotting him all the way from Cardiff to Dowlais - some 35 miles uphill all the way. The best would do this in less than three hours never slackening or changing pace from start to finish. Preachers would become famous for the speed of their mounts and not the eloquence of their sermons. Local boys would ‘borrow’ the preacher’s cob during a sermon while the reverend gentleman was occupied in the pulpit and hold races with other local cobs or cover their mares.

Before race licensing was introduced stallions and breeding stock were selected by this kind of test and by means of the old trotting matches which took place with a stopwatch over a measured distance on many roads in Wales. Such names as Comet, Flyer and Express abound in the early volumes of the Welsh studbook testify to their speed.

When the Welsh Cob and Pony Society (WPCSA) started in 1902 the main aim was to encourage the breeding of pure Welsh Cobs. Fortunately there were some diehard breeders in Wales who had stuck to the old ‘Welsh’ type which had been formulated in the first half of the century and before.

In 1932 Welsh Cobs (at the Royal Welsh Show) numbers had reached a dangerously low level with only four stallions, eight mares and two youngstock. If Welsh Cob entries in 1934 were poor, in 1935 the situation was desperate with only three stallions, five mares and four young Cobs. In 1936 in the ‘Journal’, Captain Howson, wrote that things had gone from bad to worse. He bemoaned the total number of twelve Cobs and blamed the withdrawal of the War Office and Treasury Premium grants. He stated, “ In spite of the growth of other means of locomotion, there remain many uses for strong, spanking, lion-hearted Cobs, both in and out of Wales and it is sincerely to be hoped that those who own good breeding stock of the true and tested lines of blood will hold on until the dawn of those better times” His vision was justified by the 536 in-hand Welsh Cobs entered for the 1997 Royal Welsh Show.

In the last 35 years or so the percentage of the Welsh Cobs as compared with registrations has increased ten-fold. The increase in cob gelding registrations is encouraging, brought about by the high prices brought by reliable performance geldings at sales and successes achieved by geldings against all other breeds for riding and driving etc.

Recently the Welsh Cobs well established abilities in all equine sports and activities have been fully recognized throughout he world The Welsh Cob is, beyond doubt, the user-friendliest versatile equine in existence. Long ago he established a reputation as the best ride and drive animal in the world.

The ability for jumping the Welsh Cob has been well documented for four centuries. A poet of the early sixteenth century, Tudur Aled, wrote:

He was a jumper of rivers, His jump was like that of a roebuck from a snake;
He would face anything he wished, Even if it were a roof-beam, he would attemp to clear it.

Now with show-jumping having become so professional and so exacting, the place has been largely taken over by the Welsh Cob part-breds where many are unsurpassed, but the pure-bred is still often to the fore in the Hunter Trials and in great demand for the hunting field. They hold their own against all native breed qualifiers at Wembley and Olympia, winning the Wembley championships in 1996 and 1998.

With a quality that shines in the show ring, along with strength hardiness and stamina shown in the hunting field, the Welsh Cob is unbeatable in all three phases of driving trials. Their natural exuberant action assists them in dressage, their extreme power makes light work of cross country and their intelligence and agility get them through the hazards. This is a natural ability for a horse who for centuries was used to work on the farm and deliver milk and newspapers in large cities. They outclass the other native breeds in driving competitions. Welsh Cobs are noted for their fearlessness, willingness, immense intelligence and kind temperaments.

When the FEI combined driving started in the United Kingdom, the Welsh Cob was a natural choice for many competitive drivers who wanted to win. The fiercely contested driving classes are dominated by the Welsh Cob at the Royal Welsh Show. They also had an un-tapped source of natural extension at the trot which was unknown outside the Principality and created great interest in the dressage community. With their sloping shoulders, equable temperaments and in bred intelligence the Welsh Cobs proved their worth in the dressage competitions.

Welsh Cobs have carried the shepherds over the Welsh mountains for centuries. The loss of shepherd trade has been taken over by the trekkers who lend out to families for the winter months. Some trekking centers up to 150 Welsh Cobs whom they buy from the October Welsh Cob sales.

As should be the Welsh Cob has come back into his own after a long period of disregard. He has proven himself as the ideal trail horse (The famous Nebo Black Magic was brought back to be a senior sire after a period of long distance endurance riding.) and natural jumper; safe, sure-footed and responsive - and for private driving he is unrivalled. In harness, the Welsh Cob is spectacular and has recently proved in combined training events under F.E.I. rules that he can compete against all and beat, them. His complete suitability for dressage in the classical "Lippizaner" style is being demonstrated in Austria and the horse world is taking note. Perfect for the vaulting gymnast and gentle and tractable with a disabled rider the Welsh Cob is truly user friendly. He will get the job done and do it well.

At shows Welsh Cob classes always draw the crowds who love to see these magnificent creatures shown in-hand by professional handlers, displaying their huge presence and fantastic courageous action. In fact there is no ‘show’ anywhere quite like it or any other breed(s) of horse to compare with the Welsh Cob in performance. It is a ‘must see, feel and hear experience with the thundering of their hooves and the literal shaking of the ground…that is if you can hear above the applaud of the appreciative crowd.