NORTH CYPRUS HORSES

One of the most enduring relationships on the planet is that between man and horse. It therefore comes as no surprise that horses played a key role throughout many of the milestones in Cypriot history.

Even if their stage has altered they still to this day make a positive impact on the lives of people of all ages from all walks of life.

Horses are first thought to have come to Cyprus in the Early or Middle Bronze Age (2,700 - 1600 BC). They may well have been exchanged for copper which had already been located as perhaps the island's most valuable resource. Clearly they bred successfully and adapted to the climate and vegetation for by Mycenaean times (8th Century B.C.) they were being buried alongside Royalty as a mark of respect to the deceased in tombs at Salamis.

As further evidence of their importance in society, one of the most important surviving examples of Cypriot sculptures from the 5th Century B.C. the Amateurs Sarcophagus features richly embellished horses, chariots and poles.

Although the donkey had also made its presence felt by this time, it was the size strength and speed of the horse that made it the favoured mode of transport for the governing classes. Into the Byzantine era and the ruins of stables survive on the lower level of St. Hilarion Castle.

On to the Third Crusade, and the surrender of the usurper and tyrant Isaac Comnenus to King Richard the Lionhearted in 1191 owed much to the latter's surprise deployment of knights on horseback. At least fifty of them engaged in skirmishes chasing away a group of Greeks on the eve of his wedding to Princess Berengia.

Four centuries later and horses were important in the Turkish invasion of 1570 and subsequent siege of Famagusta (so well described by Richard Hackly in Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation).

Under Lala Mustafa Pasha the victorious Turks had 2,500 cavalry but the Venetians could only muster 500 because the feudal nobles who were responsible for maintaining horses had been replacing them by locally bred mules!

The Ottomans brought camels onto the island and some were still around when Samuel Baker wrote his graphic account of 'Cyprus as I saw it in 1879'. British rule in Cyprus had just begun but with no sign of the Iron Horse; those railways which had by now transformed the pace of life and possibilities in Europe and beyond. Journeys made by merchants on horseback over the mountain passes between Kyrenia and Nicosia could still take a whole day.

Although a railway was opened between Guzelyurt and Famagusta in 1904 it was the arrival of the car in the same year followed by buses and lorries that were to displace the role of the horse. In time the police and their auxiliaries became motor-iced and by the 1950s those kept by the Royal Army Veterinary Corps were used for ceremonial purposes only. Although competitive horse racing was now fashionable, the general picture across Cyprus was of stables falling into disrepair and blacksmiths becoming a rare sight.

Even the Royal Horse Guards posted to Cyprus in 1956 to combat EOKA activities were supplied with Ferret Armored Cars. Yet they found on their patrols of Greek villages that a dog was less likely to bark at soldiers in stirrups so for a short while at least four legs were still deemed better than four wheels.

By the time the TRNC came into being working horses were a thing of the past and there were no racecourses either. But this did not mean equine survival was seriously jeopardized. Riding for pleasure has grown more fashionable and riding schools have flourished. Not far from Girne American University in Karaoglanoglu, the Tunags School has been in the same family for four generations and offers summertime picnic excursions in the mountains.

Down the road at a Northern Turkish Cypriot enterprise the Dortnal School, the boss Davut still repairs customers' livery by hand. Riding lessons are also available but by appointment only.

Probably the most impressive and certainly the most modern riding school is the Catalkoy Riding Club. This only opened last year and is the brainchild of Di Silbery. Formerly a restaurateur in England, Di's association with horses goes back to her childhood.

Her involvement with them resumed in North Cyprus when her husband's business partner at Girne's Colony Hotel asked her to take care of a horse. When both men were scratching their heads together for an eye catcher for the tourists

Di suggested Carriage Horses. It proved an overnight success. Six times a week two Polish warm bloods are available in front of the hotel for anyone to hire anywhere in the town centre for a mere 20YTL.

It was now time to consider a much bigger project, the building of a new riding school. The (Catalkoy Riding Club currently owns 11 horses that include Arabs, Welsh mountain crossbreeds and Shetland Ponies. All are given their own names, diets, feeding rotes and housed in stables that resemble anywhere in England.

Outside in the enclosures, care is taken to imitate as much of their natural habitat as possible. In view of the fact a wild horse spends three quarters of its waking life eating, food is constantly provided and in the height of summer when temperatures soar above 40C they are only let out at night.

The Manager Bev Jones is a former police riding instructor whose duties included work at Aintree's Grand National and Liverpool F.C's Infield football ground.

She had just arrived with her husband in North Cyprus for a less hectic life when either luck or fate intervened putting her back on the saddle.

Both Bev and Di take special care to meet every newcomer's individual needs from the choice of horse for supervised beginners to assessing the skills and suitability of experienced riders to go out on the road alone.

Half hour classes in groups cost 25YTL and 40YTL for individuals. Three hour long mountain treks that take you through remote woodlands are also available for around 85YTL

The Catalkoy Riding Club prides itself as being involved with the local and expatriate communities. It recently provided the horses for the wedding of Rauf Denktat's granddaughter, hosted a Christmas BBQ that was attended by over 70 people and also puts on pony parties for children. These can be such fun that on some occasions even the grandparents are known to return for riding lessons.

The future of the horse in North Cyprus thus seems secure. Whether one is making a serious commitment to riding or merely wanting to lighten up one's day, all the training and horsemanship skills are available at reasonable rates.

Horses and their riders are generally admired and well respected in this country but there are one or two things we can all do to reduce the risk of tragic accidents and make everyone's lives that little bit safer and easier.

The first is for motorists to slow down when they see horses and give them a wide berth when overtaking (in case a horse is suddenly frightened by something on the roadside).

Secondly members of the public should refrain from feeding horses in case the horse is on a special diet and doesn't see the fingers holding a carrot. Thirdly NEVER approach a horse from behind. A startled horse can kick and kick hard.

Happy riding!