Polish Arabian Horses
Polish Arabian Horses:
Some history!
The Polish kingdoms of the Middle Ages traded extensively not only with Russians to the east and other Europeans to the west, but also with Turks and Arabs. Most trade passed through Constantinople (now Istanbul) and the Black Sea ports of the Ottoman Empire. Although the Poles traded in textiles, wheat and other goods, horses, too, were a prized commodity. Beginning in the late 16th century, Polish nobility and cavalrymen—the two groups largely overlapped—began to outfit themselves with Arabian steeds.
The superior military value of the Arabian horse had been apparent to Polish rulers as early as the 13th century, when the horse-borne Mongols wrested away control of several of Poland's semi-independent duchies. Later, border wars on the plains between the rivers Dniester and Dnieper brought many a light cavalry formation into the fray where the Tatar and Ottoman invaders, mounted on Arabians, demonstrated their advantage in both stamina and speed.
Source:
http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/199802/history.s.hooves.htm
