WHITE HORSE - 1
Revered since the dawn of time, for both its beauty and religious symbolism,
the white horse has been at the centre of world events from biblical times,
to the 20th Century. Here we introduce you to the World of the White Horse,
with its mystery, mysticism, imagery and history.
THE
GODDESS EPONA AND HER WHITE MARE
Worshipped by both Celt
and Roman.
Our story
begins with the Celts.
Circa 500 BC, the Celts
started their Westward migration which took them from Eastern Europe - the Danube
Basin - through what is now Germany, Switzerland and France to England and Ireland.
The Celts were pre-literate and so didn't record their history and we owe it
mainly to the Greeks and Roman for information about them.The Celts which controlled
the area in Central Europe and France were called the Gauls and they spread
into Spain and into Italy, and even sacked Rome in 390BC. However, the Gauls
were pushed back by the Romans by 300BC as they built up their empire.
The Celts were superb horsemen; and have been credited even for inventing the chariot which made them forminable warriors. So it is no surprise to learn that they venerated the horse and worshipped a horse goddess. In Gaul and Britain this goddess was called Epona, in Ireland Macha and in Wales Rhiannon. This worship of the horse also made them vunerable. When the Gaul Versingetorix made his last stand against the Roman army he sent his horses to the rear, rather than risk their slaughter, and faced his enemies on foot.
The Roman cavalry adopted Epona as their own goddess.
Over time the Romans as a whole accepted Epona and shrines were created in stables throughout the Empire. Interestingly, Epona worship didn't spread outside the Empire.
Epona is generally depicted riding side saddle in a sideways seat or chair, wearing a long garment thet reaches to her feet and which is gathered under her breasts. A cloak may be billowing around her head.
The Uffington White
Horse.
Most archaelogists and historians believe the Celts migrated into Britain
about 200BC bringing with them their worship of Epona and her white horse. However,
horse worship seems to have been established in Britain well before the arrival
of the Celts - if this date is correct - as the downland figure in Berkshire
called the Uffington White
Horse has been dated by Oxford archaeologists to circa 600-1400 BC. It is
a stylised horse figure 365 feet long wih a large eye, cut into the chalk. It
is an amazing piece of Bronze Age art. However, it looks very different to the
images of Epona's white mare associated with her effigies recovered from Roman
stables and elsewhere. Some say this
running horse at Uffington is not a horse at all but a dragon. So speculation
on its origin and meaning continues apace.
The White Horse Project.
have looked after the white horse over the last 3000 years, this Project has
established the figure needs scouring every seven years, that is to say removing
grass and shrubs obscuring the chalk and edging the outline.The
white horse was the standard of the Anglo Saxons. Follow this link formore
information
G.K. Chesterton's Poem
about the White Horse.
"Before the gods that made the gods
Had seen their sunrise pass
The White Horse of the White
Horse Vale
Was cut out of grass"
THE WHITE HORSE AS A
CHRISTIAN SYMBOL
Adopted by the Crusaders
& Mediaeval Knights
First Thoughts.
In circa 275 BC the Celts expanded into Galicia now known as Anatolia in
Central Turkey taking with them, we believe, their worship of Epona ( or the
local varient) and veneration of the white horse. Did the early Christians co-opt
the imagery of the white horse from the Celts and make it their own symbol?
The White Horse of
Revelations and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
REV 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had
a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to
conquer.
REV 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
REV 19:14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean
When the Lamb (Jesus) opens the first four seals out of a total of seven from the scroll which he has taken from God, the four horsemen of the Apocalypse appear, the first being the white horse. The other three horses are black, red and a pale colour. The white horse signifies triumphant warfare because the four horsemen represent war and its attendant evils strife, famine and disease.(See REV 6:2 above). For interpretations of the meaning behind the four horsemen please follow the links.
The symbolism of the four horsemen has always engaged and fascinated people from artists such as Albrecht Durer to the sculptor who fashioned the four golden horses which originally were commissioned to sit atop a triumphal arch in Rome only to be moved to Byzantium later. When Byzantium became Constantinople, the four horsemen were looted by the Venetians on their way to the Fourth Crusade and finally taken to Venice where they graced St Mark's until Napoleon took a fancy to them and removed them to Paris. When Napoleon was suffering reverses and decided to curry favour with the Venetians he returned the four horses to the top of St Mark's. The ceremony, boycotted by the locals, was a total flop and the band played to an invisible audience. But, the four golden horses remain atop St Mark's to this day. Although there is no absolute proof this sculpture is of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse, that is the generally held belief, and visitors to Venice in their thousands continue to enjoy their symbolism and beauty.
St George's reported
appearance at Antioch in 1098 during the First Crusade
"There came out from the mountains, also, countless armies with white
horses, whose standards were all white. And so, when our leaders saw this army,
they were entirely ignorant as to what it was, and who they were, until they
recognized the aid of Christ, whose leaders were St. George, Mercurius, and
Demetrius".- Gesta Francorum
St George is always depicted riding on a white horse and is the Patron Saint of England. For the various legends surrounding St George including St George and the Dragon please follow the link.
WHITE HORSE - 3
Leaders often chose a white horse because it would stand out on the field of
battle. This picture shows William the Conqueror defeating King Harold at the
battle of Hastings, riding his white stallion, wielding a mace.
Here are some other interesting snippets.
FAMOUS
PEOPLE AND THEIR WHITE HORSES
In the Crusades, Middle
Ages and More Recent Times
William the Conqueror
at the Battle of Hastings 1066
"He...sat on a white horse, so that all might recognize him. In his
hand he held a mace."
For more about the Battle of Hastings click here.
Eleanor of Aquitaine
circa 1147
Queen Eleanor
appeared at Vézelay dressed like an Amazon galloping through the crowds on a
white horse, urging them to join the crusades. Aged 19, she knelt in the cathedral
of Vézelay before the celebrated Abbé Bernard of Clairvaux offering him thousands
of her vassals for the Second Crusade. For more about Eleanor and her adventures
click here.
Joan of Arc ( 1412-1431)
and her White War Horse
"Armour
shining in the sun, a lone soul sat upon a white war-horse tall and proud. Helmet
at her side, her loose hair whipped in the wind, a youthful soft loving face
peeped beneath. Her lighted eyes show wisdom that surpasses this earthly realm".For
more about Joan follow this link.
www.stjoan-center.com/topics/Nicole.html
El Cid in 11th Century
Spain
The Carthusians, an order of monks, were reknowned for their Andalusian
horses in 11th Century Spain .Pedro El Grande, a monk, was the grandfather of
a boy called Rodrigo Diaz de Bivar. When he came of age Pedro offered the boy
the pick of a herd of beautiful horses. Rodrigo chose a white foal which he
named Babieca, "my stupid one" which grew into a forminable charger.
This white stallion carried Pedro into battle for some 30 years, every time
to victory. The Saracen enemies called him El Cid Campeador or My Lord the champion
of Warriors. After the death of El Cid in the battle for Valencia, one of the
last Moorish strongholds in Spain, Babieca never carried a mount again and died
two years later at the ripe old age of 40.
Andalusian horses were a blend of mainly Arabian and Berber stock with some admixture of English blood.They were used with great success as war horses by the Carthaginians in their campaigns against the Romans who in turn captured and bred then for their own purposes.Its not known what percentage of this original breed were white. The Andalusians of today are however about 80% white
Napoleon at the Battle
of Waterloo 1815
Napoleon was seen on a white stallion at Waterloo believed to be his famous
mount Marengo. After the battle, Marengo was taken to England and put on display
at the Waterloo Rooms on Pall Mall where the crowds pressed in to see this "White
Barb Charger..favourite horse of the late Emperor". For a longer account
follow this link.
Lt General U.S. Grant
and Methuselah in the Civil war
In 1861 General Grant rode Methuselah,his favourite horse, a white stallion,
into Springfield, Illinois.
WHITE HORSE - 4
White horses are immensely popular today not just among the general public but
with organisations such as the Queen's Household Cavalry and the US Marine Corps
Color Guard where they feature on ceremonial occasions.
The illustration here shows heavy white horses working in West Sussex.
MORE
ABOUT THE WHITE HORSE IN RECENT TIMES
Lipizzans, Andalusians &
Camargue
The Camargue
The Camargue is the wide, marshy delta of the River Rhone. The white horse
of the Camargue is a distictive breed and has its origins in prehistory, pehaps
even in the extinct Soutre Horse. There is some speculation it may have been
introduced to Spain and mixed with Andalusian stock as the result of armed conquest.
The Camargue is very strong and is capable of running through belly-deep water
and mud.
Lipizzans
Originated as abreed in 1580 when Archduke Charles 11 started a stud farm
at Lipizza on the Adriatic coast. He used imported Andalusians, Barbs and Berbers
and bred them to the local white Karst horses. Today Lipizzans are mainkly white
or grey and are very popular for dressage and for Royal and ceremonial occasions.
For more information on white Lipizzans follow this link.
Andalusians
Named after Andalusia a province of Spain the Andalusian has developed from
the early Iberian horse which had its roots in prehistory.Famed as the premier
war horse from BC until the early Middle Ages, an Iberian White was used, for
example, by William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings. Exactly what perventage
of this early stock were white horses isn't known but the modern Andalusians
are 80% white. Andalusians are very popular for dressage and like the Lipizzans
are used by Royalty. More about white
Andalusians, just follow this link.
Editor's
Note
In equine circles white horses are referred to as Greys.
For more information on horse breeds follow
this link.
The saying
'White Horses' seems to have originated in the Singapore Armed Forces but
has found resonance in America. White Horses are the sons of influential Singaporeans
including ministers, members of parliament, ex members, doctors, and senior
civil servants. If you know the origin of this phrase and are familiar with
the usage, especially in the context of the White House & George Bush (see
below) , please drop a message in the Guestbook.
Thank you.
The dictionary definition is this "white
horse - a wave that is blown by the wind so its crest is broken and appears
white" In addition there are several slang uses of the term.
"White House officials are considering buffing up George W. Bush's image as a 'White Horse' during his Vietnam years, and the slogan "From White Horse to White House" has been chosen to highlight his years of service in the US military."
"Bush Administration officials released a statement praising Singapore's White Horse system, where sons of prominent members of society are carefully nurtured during their NS days" - Talking Cock.Com
For a discussion about the White Horse System we suggest you read this article on the Workers Party Website http://www.wp.org.sg/news/news_articles/20031117_whitehorse.htm
WHITE HORSE - 5
Here we give a snapshot of the art, imagery and symbolism of the white horse
over the centuries.
Artists, such as Gauguin, Constable and Munnings have immortalised the white
horse in their canvases and others in their pub signs, the latter still in use
outside hostelries throughout Britain; and some in America where the imagery
was taken by the early settlers.
THE WHITE
HORSE IN ART
Pub Signs
King Richard II passed a law in 1393 whereby all hostelries
had to hang a sign outside their premises to facilitate the official inspection
of the ale they were selling. Here are some examples, the one on the bottom
right taken from the logo of White
Horse Inn, a nationally syndicated radio talk show in America comprising
a round-table discussion on Christian Theology and Apologetics.The story behind
the naming of the show is fascinating and a full account has been written up
by Shane
Rosenthal. In brief, the White Horse Inn was on the campus of King's College,
Cambridge, England where in circa 1520 a group of English scholars met regularly
to discuss Martin Luther's writings. These meetings over ale went on to become
the spark which kindled the 'fire' of the Reformation, leading ultimately to
the martyrdom of most of those who attended. In the words of one writer these
men "would offer their lives to procure the truths of faith that they rallied
for over pints of ale in that Cambridge pub", the White Horse Inn.
Whitbread
white hosre sign from the Brian Timms Collection
Links to
Pub Signs
Brian
Timms Collection The
Inn Sign Society NormanWalsh
International Signs
Links
to White Horse Art & Other Equestian Art
Artprints On Demand
White Horse Studios
Lesley Ann Hartman
White Horse Forge
Apocalypse by Joanne Bird
We hope you have found this compendium helpful. Should you find any major ommission or error please contact the editor: info@freevetadvice.co.uk or leave a comment in the Guestbook which you'll find here . We still want to have information on White Horse Symbolism in America - perhaps you can help?
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