Turkey

    In 1620 the Malmesbury stud contained a Turkish mare.  One school of thought contends it was therefore an Oriental type, probably with much Persian and Arab blood, and one of "the best saddle horses in the world."
    General opinion would have it an Arab mare, arguing that although the Turks have always been horse-minded, their horses were largely packhorse types; the so-called "Turks" imported to England were Arabians that arrived via the large area then called Turkey.  Turkish Pashas collected large numbers of Arab horses by force or fraud--and bought them, as "Turks," from the famous Arabian-producing Chrestowka stud.  Small doubt but that the Byerley Turk, a progenitor of the English Thoroughbred, was an Arabian.  The Duke of Berwick imported the "Lister Turk" during the reign of James II of England.  The "White Turk" and the "Yellow Turk," both to sire stock that had much influence on horses famous in British racing, were imported between 1690 and 1700.  (I would still like to look into "Turkish" horses in English history a little more.  How do we know that the imported horses were Arabs, and not true Turks?)
    Turkey remains a land of horses, with more than a million used principally for farming, army remounts and for riding and draft.  The native Kurdistan or Turkish ponies have short bodies and thick necks topped by common-looking heads.  A popular Arab cross produces larger, faster, more refined ponies, that are both economical and useful.
    The author of one source told about visiting the Royal Stud at Farahabad in Iran and being shown a handsome gray, Oriental-type of riding horse.  It was a Jaf, a Kurdistan breed common to both Iran and Turkey.  Possibly this was the "best saddle horse in the world."
    Karacabey horses are bred at the stud of that name.  They are the most important breed, of good conformation, and average 16 hands.  They are used for cavalry and light draft work.
    The Turkish Republic encourages horse breeding, and there are a number of State studs, some using Hungarian Nonius stallions to produce larger horses, some breeding pure Arabs as well as the local types. 
    According to The Empire of Equus, Turkey has been home to such breeds as the Anatolian horse, the Arabian, the Capadoz horse, the Mesopotamian horse, the Kurdish horse, the Rumelish horse, the Tschukur-Owa horse, the Usunjaila horse, the Turkish pony, and the Karacabey horse.
    The Turk is or was one of the three principal foundation breeds or races of Oriental horses.  Today, of these three breeds only the Arab horse still exists in pure form.  Today's so-called Persian and Turkish horses are all of mixed blood.  The asserted "Turk" horses which contributed to the foundation stock of the English Thoroughbred were no longer in evidence after the year 1700.  Some say that the most typically indigenous horses in Turkey are the Kurdistan ponies bred near Sivas.  However, these ponies are a cross between the "native" (?) mares and Arabian stallions, which has resulted in a breed almost the size of the Arab (56-58 inches) and mostly of bay or grey coloration.  Evidently the early Turkish horse was quite similar to the contemporary Barb horse of North Africa.

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