English Mastiff History, a detailed look at the origins of the
English Mastiff.
Home | English
Mastiff History
Published by John Clifford
English Mastiff History
Of the many different kinds of dogs now established as British,
not a few have had their origin in other lands, whence specimens
have been imported into this country, in course of time to be so
improved by selection that they have come to be commonly accepted
as native breeds. Some are protected from the claim that they are
indigenous by the fact that their origin is indicated in their names.
No one would pretend that the St. Bernard or the Newfoundland,
the Spaniel or the Dalmatian, are of native breed. They are alien
immigrants whom we have naturalised, as we are naturalising the
majestic Great Dane, the decorative Borzoi, the alert Schipperke,
and the frowning Chow Chow, which are of such recent introduction
that they must still be regarded as half-acclimatised foreigners.
But of the antiquity of the English Mastiff in history there can
be no doubt. He is the oldest of our British dogs, cultivated in
these islands for so many centuries that the only difficulty concerning
his history is that of tracing his descent, and discovering the
period when he was not familiarly known.
It is possible that the English Mastiff history owes it's origin
to some remote ancestor of alien strain. The Assyrian kings possessed
a large dog of decided Mastiff type, and used it in the hunting
of lions. It is supposed by many students that the breed was introduced
into early Britain by the adventurous Phoenician traders who, in
the sixth century B.C., voyaged to the Scilly Islands and Cornwall
to barter their own commodities in exchange for the useful metals.
Knowing the requirements of their barbarian customers, these early
merchants from Tyre and Sidon are believed to have brought some
of the larger _pugnaces_, which would be readily accepted by the
Britons to supplant, or improve, their courageous but undersized
fighting dogs.
English Mastiff History | Anglo-Saxon Times
In Anglo-Saxon times every two villeins were required to maintain
one of these dogs for the purpose of reducing the number of wolves
and other wild animals.
This would indicate that the Mastiff was recognised as a capable
hunting dog; but at a later period his hunting instincts were not
highly esteemed, and he was not regarded as a peril to preserved
game; for in the reign of Henry III. the Forest Laws, which prohibited
the keeping of all other breeds by unprivileged persons, permitted
the Mastiff to come within the precincts of a forest, imposing,
however, the condition that every such dog should have the claws
of the fore-feet removed close to the skin.
The name Mastiff was probably applied to any massively built dog.
It is not easy to trace the true breed amid the various names which
it owned. Molossus, Alan, Alaunt, Tie-dog, Bandog (or Band-dog),
were among the number. The names Tie-dog and Bandog intimate that
the Mastiff was commonly kept for guard, but many were specially
trained for baiting bears, imported lions, and bulls.
English Mastiff History | Early Breeding
There is constant record of English Mastiff history having been
kept and carefully bred for many generations in certain old English
families. One of the oldest strains of Mastiffs was that kept by
Mr. Legh, of Lyme Hall, in Cheshire.
They were large, powerful dogs, and longer in muzzle than those
which we are now accustomed to see. Another old and valuable strain
was kept by the Duke of Devonshire at Chatsworth. It is to these
two strains that the dogs of the present day trace back. Mr. Woolmore's
Crown Prince was one of the most celebrated of Mastiffs in English
Mastiff history. He was a fawn dog with a Dudley nose and light
eye, and was pale in muzzle, and whilst full credit must be given
to him for having sired many good Mastiffs, he must be held responsible
for the faults in many specimens of more recent years.
English Mastiff History continued...
Unfortunately, he was indiscriminately bred from, with the result
that in a very short time breeders found it impossible to find a
Mastiff unrelated to him. It is to be deplored that ever since his
era there has been a perceptible diminution in the number of good
examples of this fine old English breed, and that from being an
admired and fashionable dog the Mastiff has so declined in popularity
that few are to be seen either at exhibitions or in breeders' kennels.
English Mastiff history showings: At the Crystal Palace in 1871
there were as many as sixty-three Mastiffs on show, forming a line
of benches two hundred yards long, and not a bad one among them;
whereas at a dog show held twenty-five years later, where more than
twelve hundred dogs were entered, not a single Mastiff was benched.
The difficulty of obtaining dogs of unblemished pedigree and superlative
type may partly account for this decline, and another reason of
unpopularity may be that the Mastiff requires so much attention
to keep him in condition that without it he is apt to become indolent
and heavy. Nevertheless, the mischief of breeding too continuously
from one strain such as that of Crown Prince has to some extent
been eradicated, and we have had many splendid Mastiffs since his
time.
Special mention should be made of that grand bitch Cambrian Princess,
by Beau. She was purchased by Mrs. Willins, who, mating her with
Maximilian (a dog of her own breeding by The Emperor), obtained
Minting, who shared with Mr. Sidney Turner's Beaufort the reputation
of being unapproached for all round merit in any period.
Notes: This detailed English Mastiff History was originally written
and published by Robert Leighton an early dog historian and fancier.
End of English Mastiff history page.
If you're interested in America
Dog History you may also be interested in these Dog Breed History
articles:
English
Bulldog History , discover the roots of this charismatic breed
History
of the St. Bernard , a look at the origins of the large, lovable
resucer of the lost and cold.
|
