Giants of a small region
Together with frietjes, chocolate and the Atomium, they are this country’s biggest icon: the Belgian draft horse. You don’t see them often anymore, but when you do, it’s hard to ignore their statuesque, almost prehistoric shape: the muscular round flanks, the broad arch of the neck, the slow, stomping gait.
A bleak future may brighten for the once world-famous Belgian draft horse
But their numbers are dwindling fast, and our children’s children may only ever see them flickered on a computer screen in a primary school history lesson.
Bred for their gentle character, speed, size and strength, draft horses were once Flanders’ most important export product. As far back as 1760, breeders have been perfecting the full-blood Belgian draft horse, breeding specific strains in East Flanders, Antwerp and Henegouwen, such as den dikken bruinen van de Dender, the big brown horse from the region of the Dender River.
In Flemish Brabant, they began to interbreed the three strains to create what has become the traditional Belgian-Brabant draft horse. In 1886, the Society of the Belgian Draft Horses was inaugurated.
Amid the rolling hills of Pajottenland, west of Brussels, lies Vollezele, a small, quiet town that was once the bustling centre of the draft horse industry. There were three breeding farms in town, and hundreds of horse breeders – from as far afield as Denmark, Argentina and Russia – used to travel here to buy the famous horses.
The years between the First and Second World Wars marked the heyday of the Belgian draft horse, which was regarded by many as the best breed in the world. During this period, the country counted more than 240,000 of them. Every year, 15,000 were born and 30,000 exported. Vollezele’s market swarmed with traders inspecting the hundreds of horses up for sale on any given day.
Today, the town square lies silent. The draft horse has been replaced by tractors. The only proof of the town’s glory days is a statue of Brillant, one of Vollezele’s world-famous champion horses. Brillant faces the old town hall, today a museum of the Belgian draft horse – open by appointment only.
Louis Van de Vijver, 67, used to breed draft horses, “but we finally quit last year,” he says. “The demand has just dwindled over the years. Today, a foal fetches only about €500, which barely covers the costs of insemination and registration.”
Van de Vijver still owns 10 mares. They pull the carts he uses to take tourists on traditional huifkartochten, or tours of the region, in a 19th-century covered wagon.
Life-long passions die hard, though. “I miss having the little ones around,” Van de Vijver admits. “We’re not breeding anymore, but we do have one pregnant mare this year, just to have a foal again.”
Flemish subsidies for foals
But there may be hope yet for Flanders’ gentle giants. Minister-president Kris Peeters, also minister of agriculture, recently announced that breeders of the Belgian draft horse in Flanders will receive a subsidy for each foal born – fewer than 500 are expected this year. Said Peeters at the recent 125th anniversary of the Belgian draft horse in Brussels: “The sharp decrease in the number of foals born is a threat to the future of the breed.”
Subsidies have helped the breed survive before. In 1980, there were only an estimated 3,500 draft horses left in Belgium. In 1990, the Flemish government gave breeders a foal subsidy, which swiftly helped increase their numbers to an estimated 6,000 in 2004.
Jan De Boitselier of the Royal Society of the Belgian Draft horse confirms: “Today there are still about 600 active breeders of draft horses in Belgium, of which 75% are located in Flanders. But most of them breed horses as a hobby, and they often have only one or two mares. Very few breeders have more than five foals born per year. Breeding isn’t cheap.”
De Boitselier owns four draft horses himself. “The harmonious combination of power, nobility and elegance makes it a truly unique breed,” he adds. “The stallions can weigh up to 1,000 kilos, and they radiate power, while the mares are so graceful. A countryside without the unexpected sight of a stocky young foal bounding after its mother? No, I don’t want to imagine it!”
Van de Vijver is optimistic. “I’ve heard that the government will give us a subsidy for each foal,” he says, his voice rising an octave. “I’ve loved these horses since I was a little boy, just after the war.”
Brilliant
Belgium’s most famous draft horse, Brillant, was born in 1868. When the horse was nine, he was purchased by legendary breeder Remy Van der Schueren of Vollezele, and proved a true show horse, winning countless international titles, among them the first prize at the world exhibition in Paris. The French press wrote: “An extraordinary stallion, Brillant was awarded the first prize as the most beautiful and strongest of all draft horses.”
