Trait Poitevin

The French draft horse

Leonardo the Swedish stallion

Information

 Born and bred in the marshes of Western France, the Poitevin is the least known of nine French heavy breeds, and the most endangered. Its reputation was made by the magnificent mules bred by the mares for centuries, the biggest and strongest mules in the world! But as a horse it was sneered at as "a heavy horse that has more conformational faults than most, is singularly unattractive in appearance and has little potential as a working horse" according to Elwyn Hartley Edwards. Yet, as a descendant of the Flemish horses brought to Poitou in the 17th century to drain the marshes, it is related to the Shire - and hence to the Clydesdale - whose ancestors came from Holland to reclaim the Fens.

Whilst most heavy horses were bred for specific purposes - including meat production - the only work required of the Poitevin was that it sired enough mares to provide for the booming mule trade. It has therefore retained all the characteristics of the "primitive" horse, including the rare dun color. It is lighter than most draught horses and its gait is sprightly; when black, it is a heavy Friesian, with abundant feathers and flowing mane and tail.

When four wheel drives replaced mules, the Poitevin declined and was saved only thanks to the dedication of a few breeders who kept mares because their grandfathers had made their fortunes with them. But numbers plummeted, with only c. 220 females and 40 males left in 1992. Numbers are slowly recovering, now reaching c. 400 animals.

Västra Åå

S-640 20 Björkvik

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