Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Transport of the horse:Land
#1
Dear Roman (or Greek) Army Talk:

The transport of ancient Roman and Greek cavalry by sea is a well covered topic. Unexplored is the transport of the horse by land. Did the Roman cavalry offer any sort of an ambulance for injured cavalry horses were they left to fend for themselves or die on the field? Were there in fact other modes of transport for a favored mount who was not injured or ill?

The late Jean Blancou, formerly of the OIE, published in Italiana Veterinaria Vol 44 2008 Historical perspectives on long distance transport of animals. In it, he alluded to the transport from Spain to Rome by van horses for the Roman circus. The footnote implied that M. Blancou's source was Pline L'Ancien: Histoire Naturelle, Livre VIII. I have a copy and there is no mention of this in VIII or the other volumes. Does anyone have any further information on this? Yours for the horses, Sharon Cregier
Reply
#2
I would imagine that in friendly territory an injured horse would have been left at the nearest imperial establishment able to cater for horses - a garrison or a state postal station. In hostile territory, as throughout cavalry history, a lamed horse unable to keep up would have had its throat cut to prevent it from falling into enemy hands.

Very valuable stud horses might have been transported by caged wagon, perhaps to keep them from being troublesome when moving between stud farms. Otherwise, I suspect Incitatus, who was both a horse and Roman senator, was probably the only Roman equine so transported.
Martin

Fac me cocleario vomere!
Reply


Forum Jump: