NOT surprisingly, given the quality and depth of the display, an enormous crowd gathered last Sunday afternoon to see the Donkey Display at the RDS which honoured all the equines in the devastating WWI in this its centenary year.

Up to 10 million equines were pulled into military service in some shape or form for the four years duration of the War with 1,000 per week alone leaving Ireland through Dublin Port, shipped to Britain and war-torn Europe.

The RDS grounds served as the only British Army Remount station in 1914, gathering suitable equines from all over the country, and processing them for duty. Meanwhile, of the 200,000 Irish men and women who served in the British Army, an estimated 60,000 never came home, losing their lives in the War.

Last Sunday on RDS turf, show jumping legend Capt. Con Power was the special celebrity guest on hand to present rosettes to all the exhibitors in the Donkey Display which had the highly apt theme of Animals at War: They Had No Choice.

At Aachen each July, the capacity crowds of some 40,000 people waive white handkerchiefs for 30 seconds in a salute to all those horses, ponies and donkeys caught up in World War I and reference was made to this by commentator James Wyse, with Power performing the same tribute.

Among the excellent exhibits Sunday’s crowd saw was a 14lb mortar gun carriage pulled by two black 12hh stallion donkeys (see Picture Desk A66-67), while the sight of the rare French breed 16hh Poitou stallion with his enormous ears evoked many comments - of all hues - around the ring. The display was largely the work of Wyse, along with the Reverend Canon Alastair Graham, chairman of the Irish Donkey Society and a Council member of the RDS, and Amanda Wallace, chief steward of the display.

UPCOMING SEMINAR

On Thursday, November 1st next, Dublin Port Authority is hosting a one-day seminar on the part played by the Port in what Irish history terms The Emergency. PRO of the Irish Donkey Society, James Wyse, will present the equine part of the seminar which will feature eight other presentations/talks.