© The Horse Trust

As the world's oldest equine charity, The Horse Trust was launched in the 19th century by a caring benefactor inspired by the novel, Black Beauty. Today, 135 years later, the charity has helped thousands of horses to enjoy a better life. When wealthy animal lover Ann Lindo read the classic 1877 novel about the intelligent and loyal horse, she knew she wanted to do something to improve equine welfare. Her generosity in setting up The Horse Trust at a farm has changed the lives of many working horses, ponies, donkeys and mules. Her legacy is still going strong and now offers a wide range of services. As well as providing retirement and respite for working equines, including retired military and police horses, the charity also looks after rescue cases that have been subject to abuse and neglect. As the UK's largest provider of grants for welfare, the Trust also runs an ongoing programme of education, so future generations will understand the importance of caring for our equine friends.   Where did it all start? English author Anna Sewell's novel, Black Beauty, was published in 1877, to great public and critical acclaim. Narrated by the horse himself, the novel starts with his carefree life as a foal on a farm. Sadly, his happy life with his mother didn't last long and he was soon working on the harsh streets of London, pulling cabs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wrw657a7wWw He experienced cruelty and hardship throughout his life, with each chapter describing a particular incident. It was designed to contain a moral or lesson relating to the kind, sympathetic and understanding treatment horses deserved. Sewell was an animal lover herself and her personal observations of horse behaviour gave the book a great deal of realism. Her description of life for London's horse-drawn cab drivers included the financial hardship they suffered due to legally fixed low fares and high licence fees. Initially, it was intended to be a piece of informative literature for adults to alert them to horse cruelty and how to prevent abuse. However, it is now considered a classic children's book and has sold more than 50 million copies. Lindo was profoundly affected after reading Black Beauty. She realised the life of a working horse was incredibly tough - and often not very long. Working horses had no rest, as their owner depended on them to work seven days a week to earn money to feed their family and pay the rent. They pulled delivery wagons and taxi cabs literally until they dropped.   Convalescence and care Lindo decided to provide a safe place where exhausted and sick horses could rest and recover, receiving the best care possible. The charity was called The Home of Rest for Horses when first launched on 10th May 1886 at a Sudbury farm, near Harrow. Its first resident was an exhausted London cab horse. Sadly, Lindo passed away only five years later, aged 52, so she didn't live to see her charity flourish and grow. HRH Prince Albert became one of the Trust's earliest supporters, boosting its public profile. The home remained at Sudbury between 1886 and 1889, when it moved to new premises in Acton, London, where it stayed until 1908. As its work grew, so did its headquarters. In 1908, the Trust took over the 20-acre Westcroft Farm in Cricklewood, where the vast open pastures, only four miles from Marble Arch, were ideal for the horses. During World War I, the Trust provided shelter for war horses who were shipped back from France during and after the conflict. Horses had a permanent home there, including a deceased German soldier's horse caught running loose and saved by British troops. The Trust moved again to Borehamwood, in Hertfordshire, in 1933. The outbreak of WW2 in 1939 saw the Home of Rest becoming the government's official horse hospital for any equines injured in the fighting. It was also used to provide temporary shelter for horses whose owners' property had been destroyed by bombs, until they could find somewhere else to live. By the 1970s, another move was required, so they sold the land at Borehamwood, enabling the trustees to build the current stables complex at Speen Farm in Princes Risborough.   Services expand While its initial purpose was providing sanctuary for tradesmen's horses and cab horses in London, in the mid-1960s, the Trust extended its activities to running educational programmes as well. It also began funding scientific research to improve horse welfare in general. In 2006, the patron of the charity, The Princess Royal, made the announcement that the Home of Rest for Horses was being renamed The Horse Trust, reflecting its wider remit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TT9Tt4Sbu4 The equine residents today are from a wider background than the working horses of yesteryear. Working horses from all backgrounds are accepted, including retired military horses from the Royal Mews and retired police horses. As well as giving them permanent homes to live out their days in safety, the charity also rehomes horses, when possible, to give them a fresh start. The Horse Trust was shortlisted as a finalist in the 2014 annual Charity Times Awards, which was won eventually by The Big Give.   How to help Being a charity, the Horse Trust is entirely dependent on public generosity. People can make a donation, organise fundraising events, sponsor a horse, leave a gift in your will, volunteer your services, donate tack, offer a new home to a horse, or simply visit the sanctuary and purchase an item from the fundraising shop. To celebrate the Trust's 135th anniversary, a very special horse sponsorship pack has been made available: Black Beauty Sponsorship, recognising the book that led to the charity's launch. If you subscribe to the special sponsorship pack, you will receive updates on not one, but THREE horses! The real-life Black Beauties are Jedburgh, formerly serving the Metropolitan Police Mounted Section; Duke, who survived the horrific Spindles Farm animal cruelty case in 2008; and Viscount, who served an amazing 22 years with the Household Cavalry. It is vital that charities like The Horse Trust continue to survive, which it could not do without public support.