"He had three horses of his own, but not one that would carry a woman. Two of them were hunters; the third, a useful road-horse: this third he resolved to exchange for one that his cousin might ride; he knew where such a one was to be met with; and having once made up his mind, the whole business was soon completed. The new mare proved a treasure; with a very little trouble she became exactly calculated for the purpose, and Fanny was then put in almost full possession of her."
[Chapter 4, Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen]
Horses were indispensable for land-based transport at this time. Until public railways appeared in 1825, horses were the main means of travelling any distance, while also providing options for exercise, socialising, entertainment and sport.
Horses were the "engine" for all forms of carriage transport, in teams of two, four or six. They also pulled the plough on a farm, and drays or carts to deliver goods and parcels.
You might think that the droppings from all those horses would create an awful smell, and you'd be right. But the smell was so common, in the town as well as the country, that even the most gently-bred young ladies wouldn't have noticed or been offended by it.
Note: For readers who live in rural areas, or own a horse, I appreciate some of the following information may seem very basic. This chapter is intended primarily for the modern town or city-dweller with little experience of horses.
Horse terms and descriptions
"CAPITAL CHESTNUT GELDING, got by Diomede, 15 hands and a half high, five years old, he is complete master of 20 stone."
[The Times, 2nd February 1811]
Writers used many ways to describe a horse, some of which we may not all be familiar with today. These descriptions included its physical height, the weight it could carry when being ridden, its colour, age, or the work the horse was capable of. A horse might also be described by its pedigree.
In certain areas, such as horse racing or the breeding of hunters, a horse's family tree was very important, and was described in terms of the father, or Sire, and the mother, known as the Dam. This example comes from the first and second place results from the Oaks Stakes:
"FRIDAY-- The Oaks Stakes of 50gs. each, h. ft. for three-years-old fillies; 8st.; the last mile and half; thirty-one Subscribers.--The owner of the second received 100gs out of the Stakes.
Lord Derby's brown, Hermione, by Sir Peter Teazle; dam, Paulina, by Florizel, out of Captive, by Match em...... I
Mr Wilson's bay, Eliza, by Highflyer; dam, Augusta, by Eclipse, out of Hardwicke's dam by Herod ...... 2"
[The Sporting Magazine, vol 42, pub. 1813]
Here, the first placed horse was Hermione; her sire was Sir Peter Teazle, (named after a character in a play written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan) and her dam was Paulina. Paulina was herself bred from the mating of Florizel (her sire) and Captive. (her dam)
Highflyer, the sire of Mr Wilson's bay mentioned above, was a celebrated racehorse both during his life and after. He won all fourteen of the races he took part in and spent fifteen years at stud. Richard Tattersall, the noted horse auctioneer, bought him in 1779 for £2,500 and earned £15,000 a year from him in stud fees and the sale of his progeny. Highflyer was sire to 469 winning racehorses.
Thoroughbreds were horses that had the blood of Arabian, Spanish or Turkish horses in their ancestry. These Thoroughbred horses had been imported from the continent since Tudor times, at considerable expense. Through careful breeding and selection, their bloodlines flowed through most hunters and racehorses during this time.
Any horse descended from one of those hunters or racehorses could be called a Blood Horse. It might also be referred to more specifically as a blood gelding or a blood mare. Some thoroughbred offspring that were not suitable for racing or hunting could still be used as a carriage horse or as a saddle horse, particularly by the wealthier gentleman who could afford to pay the higher prices they commanded.
"Soon after six his Royal Highness took leave, the happy pair set off immediately after in a beautiful chariot and four spirited blood horses for Oakley, in Bedfordshire; where they intend to reside nearly two months."
[Monthly Pantheon, Vol 1, pub 1808]
Horses are measured in Hands. A Hand was the measurement across the human palm from above the thumb to just beneath the little finger. It was standardised to four inches = one hand in the 16th century.
A horse's height would be measured from the ground up to the withers, or the ridge between the shoulder blades at the base of the neck. If you can visualise a horse standing in a field eating grass, the withers are the tallest part of the horse when its head is bent to the ground. Therefore, where a horse is described as "15 hands and a half", that means the horse is sixty two inches from the ground to the top of the shoulder. (15 x 4 inches + 2 inches)
When a horse is described as being "master of twenty stone", that means he could carry twenty stone on his back. That would be the weight of the rider combined with the weight of the saddle.
During the Regency period, a stone weight meant something different in various parts of the country, but in horse riding, a stone always equalled fourteen pounds, so twenty stone was 280lb. (127kg)
As a guideline, the maximum weight a horse could carry without affecting its health was 20% or one-fifth of its own bodyweight.
A rider would mount a horse on the left side, which was called the near-side. The other side was known as the off-side:
"The right side or the left side is never so termed, when speaking of a horse. It is the invariable custom to say that horse is lame of the "near-leg before;" the other is evidently defective in the "off-leg behind"."
[The Sporting Dictionary and Rural Repository of General Information Upon Every Subject Appertaining to the Sports of the Field, Volume 2, by William Taplin, pub. 1803]
Horses by use
"...in every part of London, are livery stables, places kept by persons whose business it is to have horses and carriages ready for hire, by the day, week, or mile. ... A saddle horse for the day is charged from ten shillings and sixpence to eighteen shillings."
[London; Being a Complete Guide to the British Capital, by Thomas Pennant, pub. 1814]
Because they were used for widely different tasks, various types of horses were bred, trained, or naturally suited to different work. Some horses were trained for multiple uses, so you might have a road horse that could also pull a carriage in harness.
The less money you had the more important it was to have a horse that could be used for more than one purpose. Keeping a horse for one use was a luxury that even some of the gentry could not afford. This is why Mr Bennet in Pride and Prejudice had a pair of horses that were used both in the fields for pulling the plough and with the family's carriage. Keeping one pair for the farm and another pair for the road was beyond his budget.
Carriage Horse
Carriage horses, or coach horses, were trained to wear a harness, and either pull a carriage alone or as part of a pair or a team. Based on the kind of carriage they were most used to pulling they could also be described as curricle horses, chaise horses, gig horses or barouche horses, but they could be used for any type of carriage, or even as a road horse.
"A pair of bay geldings, fifteen hands one inch high, five and six years old; they have been driven in a light coach, in a chariot and in a curricle; they both go well in single harness, and are very fast; they are dark bays, with no white about them, and are good horses to ride; warranted sound; price Eighty-six Guineas."
[Morning Post, 22nd June 1803]
The Cleveland Bay, known in Yorkshire as the Yorkshire Bay, was often used as a coach horse. A common variant, bred from the Cleveland Bay, was known as the Yorkshire Coach Horse, which became very popular with the upper classes in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Smaller horse breeds like the Galloway or the various Pony breeds were often used to pull the lower slung carriages, like the Low Phaeton:
"Pray forgive me if I have been very presuming, or at least do not punish me so far as to exclude me from P. I shall never be quite happy till I have been all round the park. A low phaeton, with a nice little pair of ponies, would be the very thing."
[Chapter 52, Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen]
Charger
"A Charger. - to be sold, the property of a Gentleman, a very handsome GREY GELDING, 15 hands 1 inch high, master of fourteen stone, fast in all his paces, with most excellent action, is a complete, well-broke charger, remarkably temperate, and has carried a lady; six years old and warranted sound. Price 65 guineas. To be seen at Powis's Stables, Lower Brook Street."
[Morning Chronicle, 21st June 1811]
A Charger was any horse ridden by an officer, either into battle or on parade. They were also used by Cavalrymen. You might assume that a stallion would make the best charger, but mares and geldings were preferred because they were easier to control.
Any horses taken to war remained the property of his owner, and if it was lost during its time spent abroad the army would pay compensation, although not necessarily what the horse had been worth:
"16th Aug. 1809, To Captain D. MacPherson, of the 2nd Battalion 78th Foot, for the loss of a Charger, shot for the Glanders*. Paid £32 11s.
16th Aug. 1809, To Captain Dalbide, of the 4th Dragoons, for the loss of a second Charger, drowned on disembarking from a transport in December 1808. Paid £32 11s."
[Accounts of the Extraordinary Expenses of the Army, Journals of the House of Commons, Volume 65, pub 1810]
During the Napoleonic Wars, 30-40% of all war horses were lost in battle, and many more were lost through disease. Some replacements were bought in England for transport to the battlefields of Europe. When a cavalry officer returned home from the war, he would often bring his horse home with him.
*Glanders, mentioned in the above report, was a bacterial disease picked up through infected food or water and always fatal. This was only one of a number of entries that mentioned the disease. It could also be transmitted from horse to human.
Dray Horse
"Nothing can be more monotonous than the life of a hackneyed fine lady; - I question whether a dray-horse, or - a horse in a mill, would willingly exchange places with one, if they could know as much of the matter as I do."
[Chapter 4, Belinda by Maria Edgeworth]
Also called a draught horse, cart horse or workhorse. This is a very large horse bred for strength, and suitable for pulling heavy carts or ploughs in the fields. In London, some dray horses could pull three tons over a short flat road and were capable of pulling one and a half tons over a longer distance. A beer waggon, loaded with 800 gallons of ale, at a weight (including the waggon) of six tons, would be pulled by four dray horses.
A farmer would often buy these horses at two years old and work them for two or three years pulling the plough in the fields before selling them in towns and cities to be used with carts or waggons.
Breeds of horse particularly suited to this work included the Suffolk Punch, Cleveland Bay, Clydesdales and Shire horses.
Hack (personal)
"The poor hack upon which Mannering was mounted was probably of opinion that it suited him as ill as the female respondent; for he began to flag very much, answered each application of the spur with a groan, and stumbled at every stone (and they were not few) which lay in his road."
[Chapter 1, Guy Mannering by Sir Walter Scott]
A Hack was a horse for everyday riding. You would use it for local visiting, exercise or riding out with friends. The word originally came from the French Haquenée, which meant a common horse used for the purposes of riding.
At this time, the word "hack" also meant to ride a horse for exercise or pleasure. So you could go for a hack (ride) on your hack. (horse)
"To be sold, a handsome Bay Cob Gelding, 6 years old, 141/2 hands high, sound and quiet, very good action, particularly pleasant horse to ride, looks very handsome in harness and very fast paces. Price 45 guineas."
[The Times, 20th July 1809]
Breeds of horse commonly used as riding horses at this time included the Welsh Cob, the Norfolk Trotter and the Norfolk Roadster. (A cross between the Trotter and an Arabian) Children and smaller adults could also ride the smaller breeds of horse, like the Galloway or the various kinds of pony.
"I'm very much obliged to you! Though why the silly gudgeon didn't bring his cover hack to London, instead of making a dashed martyr of himself, or even hire a horse-"
[Chapter 15, Frederica by Georgette Heyer]
A Cover Hack was a thoroughbred horse used for general riding or road travel, but it could also be used for hunting if necessary. It was particularly useful for those who could not afford to keep a dedicated horse just for hunting. Unfortunately, the earliest source I've found for the phrase "cover hack" dates from 1836. Horses advertised as good for riding and hunting were not given a specific name during the Regency era.
Hack (rented)
"Oh, we can have job horses, that will cost us little or nothing," said Mrs. Dolly.
"Say £150. a-year," replied Maurice; "for I heard my master's coachman telling that the livery-keeper in London declared as how he made nothing by letting him have job horses for £150. a-year."
[Chapter 1, The Lottery, Tales & Novels vol. 2 by Maria Edgeworth]
To confuse matters further, a hired road horse was also sometimes known as a Hack; a shortened form of Hackney, which in this case meant "anything let out for hire". They were also known as Job or Jobb horses. These horses were owned by a Hackney man or Horse Jobber, who rented horses by the day, week or month.
Some gentlemen visiting the city found it cheaper to hire a horse as and when needed, rather than bringing one of their own horses and pay for it to be accommodated and fed.
In 1802, you could hire a horse from one of the many Livery Stables in London, for between seven shillings sixpence to half a guinea (10s 6d) per day. By 1814 the cost was ten shillings sixpence to eighteen shillings. The difference in price was sometimes reflected in the quality of the horse, although the cost of hiring a horse increased during the season, when the demand for horses was at its highest.
To set up in business the Hackney man needed an annual licence of five shillings. Anyone renting a horse without a licence was subject to a fine of ten pounds.
Hunter
"The right hunter ought to have strength without weight, courage without fire, speed without labour, a free breath, a strong walk, a nimble, light, but a large gallop, and a sweet trot, to give change and ease to the more speedy muscles."
[The Sportsman's Dictionary, by Henry James Pye, pub. 1807]
Horses suitable to be hunting horses were not necessarily the fastest or strongest. A horse suitable for travelling long distances by road would not make a good hunting horse, as a hunter also has to react quickly to sudden changes in direction as well as being able to leap walls and hedges in pursuit of the hounds.
Hunters came from thoroughbred bloodstock. A gentleman's hunting horses were treated very well, with delicate care, comfortable stabling and a very specific diet, depending on whether it was hunting season or not. This careful handling is not surprising as the best examples of hunting horses were very expensive. An average hunter might cost £350, with the lower end starting around £75-£100 and the upper end as much as £1,000 for one horse. Most were sold privately or at auction, where the price was only limited by the depth of the buyer's pockets, as this report shows:
"DIAMOND was knocked down, at the late Col. Hyde's sale, for six hundred and sixty pounds; Superior brought three hundred and fifty pounds; and the Turnip filley, two hundred and twenty pounds. The purchaser of Diamond, it is said, refused one thousand guineas for him immediately after the auction. At no former period were the prices of horses so high as they are now. Two hunters, the property of a gentleman in Leicestershire, were lately sold, the one for seven hundred and fifty pounds, the other for six hundred and fifty pounds. Mr Dupré, of Portland Place, purchased the former, and Lord Foley the latter."
[Sporting Intelligence, The Sporting Magazine, vol. 19, pub. March 1802]
No horse would be used for hunting before it reached five years old, and during the hunting season, an animal would be rested a day between hunts if possible. Therefore, those who could afford it would often own more than one animal, so they were each maintained in peak condition. It would not be unusual for a dedicated sportsman to have seven or eight hunters in his stable.
"Sales by Auction. By Messrs. Tattersall, this day, unless previously disposed of by Private Contract: Two capital HUNTERS, the property of a gentleman.
1. Monk Lewis, a brown horse, by Schedoni, out of Hoppicker, by Dungannon, &c., master of high weight, very fast, and a superior fencer.
2.Hippogriffe, a brown gelding, by Grouse, dam by Protector, remarkably fast through dirt, and a perfect fencer. To be viewed."
[Morning Post, 18th May 1815]
A Fencer was a horse that was very good at jumping obstacles, like fences, walls or hedges. It could apply to any horse, but it seems most often used to describe hunters.
Machine Horse
"Mr Foster's black horse Oroonoko, a restive animal, but well fed, and in good condition. This horse shews by his rearing, snorting, and flinging, how highly he is pampered. He has a d_____d trick of stopping suddenly, as well as of stumbling, which renders him unfit for sport, and unsafe to ride, but he would make a capital machine horse."
[Stud Extraordinary, from The Spirit of the Public Journals, vol 9, pub. 1806]
A machine horse was any horse that was harnessed to a machine. Horses that pulled ploughs, or were attached to threshing machines or horse wheels were most often called machine horses, but even those that pulled a carriage or cart could be described as a machine horse. They were generally not suitable to be used as riding horses.
In 1818, thirty former stagecoach horses from Cheltenham were advertised for sale as "Machine horses", suitable for use as carriage horses.
Pack Horse
In the 18th century, pack horses carried goods around the country. By the Regency period the transport of goods would be mostly by cart or by canal, although in remote hilly parts of the country, itinerant traders still used pack horses.
Pack horses were not ridden. They carried the bundles or packs strapped to their backs and they were tethered to a man on horseback who led them to their destination. Each pack would often weigh four hundred and twenty pounds.
Post Horse
"Mowbray, like other young gentlemen of his class, was finically rigid in his stable discipline, and even Lord Etherington's horses had not been admitted into that sanctum sanctorum, into which he now saw himself obliged to induct two wretched post-hacks."
[Chapter 17, St. Ronan's Well by Sir Walter Scott]
A Post Horse or Post Hack was a horse, hired from a posting house for use either as a road horse or a carriage horse. Someone travelling a long way could leave their own tired horse at the end of a stage and exchange it for a fresh mount so they could continue their journey. Post chaises used the same system to change their teams.
These horses were also used by riders carrying urgent messages for the government, military and post office.
Racehorse
"There was to be a famous match between Colonel Hauton's High-Blood and Squire Burton's Wildfire; and the preparations of the horses and of their riders occupied the intervening days."
[Chapter 3, Patronage by Maria Edgeworth]
During the Regency era, horse racing was a very popular but expensive sport amongst the nobility and gentry.
Horses began racing around three years old, in races that were limited to colts and fillies of the same age. A racehorse was looked after very well, with much care taken of its diet and exercise. They were also exercised regularly throughout the year to help build and maintain their stamina.
The horses themselves were worth a lot of money. Those being bought or sold could change hands for hundreds of guineas, with the very best valued much higher. A first-class example of a Mountain Arab horse was worth anything up to £3,000 in 1810, but could earn £25,000 in prizes during its racing career. A successful racehorse could continue earning money in the form of stud fees, once it had ended its racing career.
A racehorse that had never won a race was called a Maiden Horse. Their first race was described as their Maiden Race.
Another term used to describe a racehorse was Courser, which meant a fast running horse.
Road horse
"Does he want a horse? Here is a friend of mine, Sam Fletcher, has got one to sell that would suit anybody. A famous clever animal for the road-only forty guineas."
[Chapter 10, Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen]
Also known as Saddle Horses, Travelling Horses or Roadsters, road horses were trained to wear a saddle. Road horses were the motorbike of the Regency era, carrying one rider, plus a small saddlebag for spare clothes or other essentials. A solitary gentleman might find it quicker to ride home than use a coach, particularly if he is travelling over familiar countryside.
The rider, bags and saddle would frequently weigh eighteen stones or more, so road horses tended to be more solidly built than the racehorse or hunter. On average, they could travel thirty miles a day in five or six hours, which worked out at five or six miles an hour. Some horses could travel in short bursts of ten miles an hour, but would not be able to continue that pace for the whole journey. A traveller might ride twelve miles before breakfast (we would call it lunch) and eighteen miles before stopping for dinner, but shorter distances with more frequent stops were better for the animal's health.
If you were travelling a long way, and didn't have time to keep stopping to rest your horse, you could use your road horse for the first stage and then leave him at a post house and continue your journey using fresh post horses. Your own horse would be kept for you until you return, although you would then have to pay for his food and care while you were away.
If you had limited funds, and could only afford to buy and keep one horse, this is the type of horse that would be most useful.
Edited to add additional information about prices of hunters at auction
[Image: "Broodmare with Foal, and a Terrier" painted 1822, by Benjamin Marshall. Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons]