2025

Top Ten Famous Horses

admin August 21, 2025

Black Beauty

Black Beauty is, of course, the titular equine character of the classic children’s novel ‘Black Beauty: His Grooms and Companions, the Autobiography of a Horse’, written by Anna Sewell and published in 1877. Narrated in the first person, the book chronicles the life of the horse, through goods times and bad, and pulls no punches when it comes to portraying the suffering caused by the human mistreatment of horses in Victorian England. Although nowadays considered a children’s book, ‘Black Beauty’ was enthusiastically adopted by animal welfare organisations and was instrumental in the abolition of some of the cruel practices of the day.

Bucephalus

One of the most famous horses in history, Bucephalus was the favourite horse and beloved companion of Alexander III of Macedon, better known as Alexander the Great. Supposedly untameable, Bucephalus was nonetheless tamed by Alexander, still in his pre-teenage years, and went on to become his loyal friend, as well as a key figure in his military conquests. Indeed, with Bucephalus at his side, Alexander was undefeated in battle and created one of the largest empires in history, conquering vast territories from Greece to Egypt. The city of Alexandria Bucephalus, or Bucephala, in Punjab, founded by Alexander, was named in honour of his horse.

Burmese

Named by the late Queen Elizabeth II as her favourite horse, Burmese was a half Thoroughbred, half Hanoverian mare gifted to Her Majesty by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in 1969. Burmese went on to carry the Queen in the ‘Trooping the Colour’ parade for 18 consecutive years, including 1981, the year in which Marcus Sarjeant fired six blank shots with a replica revolver as the Queen rode down the Mall. Burmese was retired in 1986 and, following her death four years later, was buried at Windsor Castle.

Comanche

Comanche was the horse ridden by Captain Myles Keogh of the Seventh Cavalry at the Battle of Little Big Horn in what was, at the time, Montana Territory, in 1876. He was originally thought to be the only United States survivor of what became known as ‘Custer’s Last Stand’, in which five companies under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer were killed. Other horses did survive, but Comanche was the only one found at the site of the battle, badly injured, two days later. He was slowly nursed back to health, but was retired two years later and would never be ridden again, by order of Colonel Samuel Sturgis.

Flicka

Flicka, whose name is Swedish for ‘Girl’, is the titular protagonist of the classic, coming-of-age novel ‘My Friend Flicka’, written by Mary O’Hara and published in 1941. A one-year-old, chestnut mustang filly, she becomes the charge Ken McLaughlin, the 10-year-old son of Wyoming ranchers Rob and Nell McLaughlin, fulfilling a dream for the youngster. Set against the background of the American Plains, the story explores themes of responsibility, courage, determination and trust.

Mister Ed

Mister Ed first appeared in the short story ‘The Talking Horse’, written by Walter R. Brooks and published in 1937, but is best known from the television series ‘Mister Ed’, which was screened on CBS in the sixties. Played by a palomino, half American Saddlebred., half Arabian gelding actually called Bamboo Harvester and voiced by former Western B-movie star Allan ‘Rocky’ Lane, Mister Ed talks to his owner, Wilbur Post, played by Alan Young, but to nobody else, with inevitably comedic results.

Misty

Better known as ‘Misty of Chincoteague’, from the title of the 1947 children’s novel written by Marguerite Henry, which she inspired, Misty was, in fact, a real-life Chincoteague pony, foaled on Chincoteague Island, Virginia on July 20, 1946. Later that year, Henry bought her and took her home to Wayne Island, Illinois where, after the fictional account of her lifestory became a bestseller,

Misty became a celebrity. After over a decade of public appearances, retired back to Chincoteague Island in 1957 and died there, of natural causes in 1972.

Pegasus

An icon of Greek mythology, and a prominent figure in art and literature ever since, Pegasus is the immortal, white, winged stallion, who springs from the blood of the Gorgon, Medusa, when she is slain by Perseus. Subsequently tamed by Bellerophon, whose quests include fighting, and slaying, the monstrous Chimera, Pegasus eventually completes a flight to Mount Olympus, the home of the gods, where Zeus, the chief Greek deity, uses him to carry his thunderbolts. After years of faithful service, Zeus honours Pegasus by transforming him into a constellation.

Silver

In the heyday of the ‘Lone Ranger’ – the television series was originally screend on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) network between 1949 and 1954 – the catchphrase “Hi-Ho, Silver, Away!” became a popular refrain in playgrounds. The ‘Silver’ in question was, of course, the iconic, white stallion ridden by the ‘Masked Man’ and so-named because Tonto, his Native American companion, once remarked that his coat resembled the precious metal. In the series, Silver was played by White Cloud, a half Morab, half Tennessee Walking Horse stallion, who stood an imposing 17 hands high, but was renowned for his calm, gentle nature.

Sleipnir

Sired by the mighty stallion Svaðilfari out of the trickster god Loki, who was shapeshifted into a mare, Sleipnir is the iconic, eight-legged horse ridden by Odin, the most important deity in the Norse Pantheon. Unsurprisingly, his eight legs means that he is faster than any other creature on land, but also on water or in the air. They likewise represent his ability, to carry Odin thereby carry Odin through all the levels of existence, including the underworld, Hel, with strength, speed, and agility.

and one for good luck! (so Eleven in total)

Trigger

Trigger was a golden palimo horse who appeared in no fewer than 88 films and 101 television episodes alongside the ‘King of the Cowboys’, Roy Rogers. They first appeared together in ‘Under Western Stars’ in 1938, when Rogers selected Trigger, originally named Golden Cloud, from a selection of likely candidates. He bought the horse in 1943, renaming him ‘Trigger’, and the pair went on to embody the spirit of the Wild West.

Sleipnir

admin August 21, 2025

Sleipnir, whose name translates into English as “The Sliding One”, is the iconic, eight-legged horse ridden by Odin, one of the principal gods in Norse mythology. His eight legs have been said to represent all the directions of the world, including inside and outside or, alternatively, the legs of pallbearers carrying the dead to the grave. Either way, they serve to emphasis his ability to to transcend normal physical boundaries and thereby carry Odin through all the realms of existence, including the underworld, Hel.

The birth of Sleipnir is the result of a ruse by the trickster god Loki, intended to prevent a giant, who remains unnamed in the myth, from completing the walls around Asgard, the dwelling place of the gods, in a single winter and thereby winning the hand of Freyja, the goddess of love, beauty, youth, and fertility, in marriage. The giant has agreed to be aided only by his stallion, Svaðilfari, so Loki shapeshifts into a mare to distract him from his work. The plan works, only too well, and the product of their coupling is Sleipnir, who, unsurprisingly, is blessed with mythical abilities.

Grey in color, Sleipnir is said to be capable of outrunning any creature on land, on water or in the air and, akin to Shadowfax in ‘The Lord of the Rings’ by J.R.R. Tolkien, is considered “the best among horses”. He serves as a symbol of strength, speed, and agility and, beyond that, of invincibility in battle. His story is detailed in the ‘Prose Edda’, written by Icelandic historian Snorri Sturlusson in the first half of the thirteenth century, and his name is mentioned again in the slightly later ‘Poetic Edda’, an anonymous collection of Old Norse poems, which contains material derived from earlier oral tradition and is sometimes known as the ‘Elder Edda’.

Misty

admin August 20, 2025

Misty was a Chincoteague pony, a small, but sturdy, feral breed native to Assteague Island, off the Delmarva Peninsula on the East Coast of the United States, who provided the inspiration for the 1947 children’s novel ‘Misty of Chincoteague’, written by Marguerite Henry. ‘Misty of Chincoteague’ tells the fictional story of two of orphans, Paul and Maureen Beebe, who live with their grandparents on Chincoteague Island and dream of owning the Chincoteague pony mare, Phantom, and her foal, Misty. They eventually acquire both, but eventually return Phantom to the wild herd from whence she came, while retaining Misty, thereby highlighting the central themes of the novel, namely belonging, family and community bonds and freedom.

The real-life Misty was a palomino pinto, who stood just 12 hands high, as is customary of the breed, but was bred by Clarence and Ida Beebe at the Beebe Ranch on nearby Chincoteague Island, rather than being born in the wild on Assateague Island, as told as in ‘Misty of Chincoteague’. Nevertheless, during a visit to the Beebe Ranch, Henry became so smitten with Misty that she purchased her, as a foal, for $150 and had her shipped to her home in Wayne, Illinois in 1946.

Misty remained with Henry until 1957, greeting many visitors at home and making numerous public appearances by way of promoting ‘Misty of Chincoteague’. The story clearly resonated with horse-loving children and the novel became a best-seller, such that Misty, instantly recognisable by her distinctive markings and, of course, her diminutive stature, became on equine celebrity. In fact, at one point, she was named an honorary member of the American Library Association. After 11 years, she was retired to broodmare duties back at the Beebe Ranch, where she died peacefully, of natural causes, 15 years later, at the age of 26.

Pegasus

admin August 20, 2025

Usually depicted as a magnificent white stallion, Pegasus is, in Greek mythology, a winged horse capable of flying freely, with great speed and agility. He was sired by Poseidon, god of the sea, earthquakes and horses, and emerged from the blood of Medusa – the most famous, and only mortal, Gordon – when she was beheaded by the Greek hero Perseus, alongside his brother, Chrysaor.

Pegasus is captured and tamed by another Greek hero, Bellerophon, with the aid of a charmed golden bridle supplied by Athena, the goddess of goddess of reason, wisdom, and war. The pair subsequently embark on various adventures, not least the slaying of the fire-breathing female monster known as the Chimera. Considering himself the equal of the gods, Bellerophon attempts to ride Pegasus to Mount Olympus but, enraged by his arrogance, Zeus sends a fly to bite the winged horse, who rears, sending the hero hurtling back to earth.

Pegasus is credited with creating Hippocrene, the fountain, or spring, on Mount Helicon, the water from which was supposed to precipitate poetic inspiration when consumed. He later became a servant of Zeus, the chief Greek deity, who instructed him to bring lightning and thunder from Mount Olympus, the home of the gods, and subsequently a constellation, one of the largest in the sky, of which the so-called ‘Great Square’ is the most recognisable feature.

Pegasus, is a prominent figure in literature, ancient and modern works, where is often associated with heroism, poetic inspiration, and divine power. Symbolically, he represents creativity and, allegorically, the immortality of the soul and his influence has been referenced by countless artists, poets and writers down the years. Pegasus has also been the subject of lavish iconography, not least in the pottery of ancient Greece and the paintings of the great Renaissance artists, including Girolamo Romanino, Joos de Momper and Peter Paul Reubens, to name but three.