218 HORSEMANSHIP. 



commonalty, and next to those of the highest quality 

 and fortune in the state. In short, were proof 

 wanting that horsemanship, as an accomplishment, 

 was held in the greatest esteem in the early ages 

 of the world, it would be found in the fact of the 

 accomplished Cicero telling his son Marcus, with 

 the vanity that now and then breaks forth in the 

 splendid effusions of that great man''s pen, that the 

 eyes of the world were upon him, on account of his 

 father's fame ; and that he had received the praise 

 of the whole army for his excellence in riding. But 

 the exercise and art of horsemanship occupied much 

 of the study and attention of the Roman youth ; 

 and we find Horace inviting them to the practice 

 of it, in the eighth ode of the first book. 



Descending from the heroic ages, in which the 

 earliest history we possess informs us the art of 

 horsemanship was in full force and vigour, to com- 

 paratively modern times, the first notice we find in 

 our own history of the art of riding horses, is in 

 the tilts and tournaments ; the earliest mention of 

 which we find in the French historian Nithard, 

 who reports, that, at an interview which took place 

 at Strasburo: between Charles the Bald and his 

 brother Lewis of Germany, the followers of both 

 these princes fought on horseback ; and, by way of 

 marking the period, it may be observed, that Charles 

 the Bald succeeded to the throne of France a. d. 

 840. Ducange affirms, that these combats were for 

 some time peculiar to France, and expressly called 

 French combats, conflictus Gallici. Scarcely any 

 thing distinct, however, is known about them till 



