The Alaunt Gentil
It's said that the ALUNT GENTILE should be made like the shape of the greyhound but with more substantial bone structure, a heavier, shorter muzzled head and a squarer jaw. And it was "side that was better shaped and stronger for harm than any other beast."
A number of different terms were used by various nations to describe the type. In France it was the Alaunt Gentil, in Spain, the Lebrel; and in Britain, the Irish Wolfhound. Care must be taken to distinguish the Alaunt Gentil from the Lurcher, a breed and or breed type developed during the 1600's from a cross of the Irish Wolfhound, (Alaun Gentil), and any pastoral breed, such as the Collie, and or the Terrier breeds. A small to medium sized hunting dog of varying breeds, the Lurcher was a hunting dog used for the poaching of small game: Lurcher, from the Romany word Lur, meaning thief. The Lurcher having been the commoner's dog and the Alaunt Gentil, that of the noblemen. The Lurchers were often the choice dog for and therefore associated with Gypsies, vagabonds, wanderers and thieves. Today, the modern Lurcher has risen well above it's past, becoming a well formed and distinct breed prized for it's abilities.
A number of different terms were used by various nations to describe the type. In France it was the Alaunt Gentil, in Spain, the Lebrel; and in Britain, the Irish Wolfhound. Care must be taken to distinguish the Alaunt Gentil from the Lurcher, a breed and or breed type developed during the 1600's from a cross of the Irish Wolfhound, (Alaun Gentil), and any pastoral breed, such as the Collie, and or the Terrier breeds. A small to medium sized hunting dog of varying breeds, the Lurcher was a hunting dog used for the poaching of small game: Lurcher, from the Romany word Lur, meaning thief. The Lurcher having been the commoner's dog and the Alaunt Gentil, that of the noblemen. The Lurchers were often the choice dog for and therefore associated with Gypsies, vagabonds, wanderers and thieves. Today, the modern Lurcher has risen well above it's past, becoming a well formed and distinct breed prized for it's abilities.
Artwork of the Celts show dogs walking along with cattle drawn wagons. Are we to think the Celts did not make use of their dogs to guard and butcher cattle? Interesting, as the Celtic War Dogs were known to take horse by the nose and throw horse and rider to the ground. By 600 BC, the Celts had arrived in Spain, and joined the Iberians - they introduced cattle to the British Isles. In 55 BC, the Romans invaded the British Isles, where the Celtic Wolfhounds fought fiercely against the Romans..."The Romans found, not mastiff-like dogs in Britain, but course-haired, strong-headed, medium-sized 'fighting dogs'....such fighting dogs were much more of the Irish Wolfhound phenotype." The Mastiffs The Big Game Hunters, Hancock, MBE. ' "The Greek and Roman writers, Pliny, Silius Italicus, Arrianos, Ovid, and Strabo are loosely quoted by many authors, without a reference to page, or volume, or book, as speaking of these Irish hounds. They really do not even mention them. But Quintus Aurelius Symmachus, who was a Roman Consul in the year 391, does more than mention them in a letter to his brother Flavianus. He writes: “In order to win the favour of the Roman people for our Qumstor you have been a generous and diligent provider of novel contributions to our solemn shows and games, as is proved by your gift of seven Irish dogs. All Rome viewed them with wonder, and fancied they must have been brought hither in iron cages." These dogs must have been very powerful and fierce; they were employed by the Roman Consul to fight men, or wild beasts, or other dogs, or among themselves. For in two previous letters Symmachus speaks of bears, lions, and twenty-nine Saxons which were sent, or to be sent for the combats of the circus. He complains bitterly that the twenty-nine Saxons cut their own throats the night before the games, not wishing to butcher each other “to make a Roman holiday.” ' The History of the Irish Wolfdog, Edmund Ignatius Hogan - 1897.
Rome then introduced the Alans and their Albanian procured Alaunts to the British Isles, where they were interbred with the Celtic Wolfhounds. By the Middle Ages, the Celtic Wolfhounds had been so interbred with Alaunts that a specialized type of this combination was so named the Alaunt Gentil or in Spain as the Lebrel. "The 'friendly Alaunt' described in the same place, with great hunting ability, is more likely the ancestor of the Irish Wolfhound and Deerhound." Fighting Dog Breeds, Dr. Dieter Fleig. "In 1775 William Bowles, a very competent writer who was born in a village near Cork, about the year 1714, published in Spain an Introduction to the Natural History of Spain. In 1752 he was employed by the Spanish Government to establish and direct a Museum of Natural History. In his chapter on Biscay he wrote: “In the woods may be met with by chance a wild boar. The ordinary wolves (lobos comunes) are rare. . . . Should one be seen he is at once hunted and killed, for which work are excellent the greyhound dogs (perros lebreles) which they have brought hither from Ireland.” According to the Spanish Dictionaries of Stephens in 1724, of Pineda in 1740, of Delpino in 1763, lebrel is “an Irish greyhound, though some will use it for a common greyhound, which is not proper, these being called galgos;” and the Dictionary of the Royal Academy of Spain, in I832, defines lebrel as “a dog whose body is thin and lean, with long head and legs, and large eyes, very light of foot, used in hunting the larger game, such as venison and wild boars, etc.” In the Portuguese Dictionary of Michaelis, edited in I893, lebrél is defined“ a large Irish greyhound.” The History of the Irish Wolfdog, Edmund Ignatius Hogan 1897. These many definitions and descriptions of the lebrel clearly match descriptions of the Alaunt Gentil as a heavy greyhound or a light made mastiff. As well, the many descriptions of the Irish Wolfhound show them to be a mild tempered and relaxed dog with people; a gentil alaunt. “There were in Ireland two kinds of wolfdogs—the greyhound and the mastiff. Till within these two years I was possessed of both kinds, perfectly distinct and easily known from each other. The heads were not sharp in the latter as in the former, but there seems a great similarity of temper and disposition, both being harmless and indolent." Earl of Altamont 1797. Here we have direct evidence, one of many, to the gentle nature of the Irish Wolfhound, thus the Alaunt Gentil.
The Celtic Wolfhounds were the original "Prey" type or "Chase" type War Dogs which were interbred with Alaunts and other imports that gave rise to the Bandogs of England and to the Presa, Fila, and Cuban Bloodhound used in the 15th century during the Spanish Conquests of the Americas. "The Irish greyhound is a dog of great size and strength, and led to the chase in leather slips or thongs." Pennant, 1776-1781 ...."These dogs seemed to be immortal and supernatural in their ability to distinguish between hostile and friendly groups and to track and rip apart the former. Rodrigo Rangel, traveling with De Soto in Florida, recounts that, sent in pursuit of an 'Indian fleeing from Christians the next day, a noble greyhound from Ireland plunged after him into the multitude of Indians that were on a densely wooded hill." A History of Dogs in the Early Americas, Schwartz,
1997. "Well before the 16th century Europeans had developed several breeds of large dogs that were used to herd animals, to hunt, and to do battle with and terrorize men. These were the mastiff (mastin), a short-haired, heavily muscled dog that could withstand long marches and hold its own against wolves, and was favored in herding sheep and pigs. The swift, lean greyhound (lebrel), was used to hunt and attack large animals such as deer and wild boars, and it could also be trained as a war dog. A third type of dog, the alano, was a large attack dog, evidently of several breeds, including large mastiffs and Irish Wolfhounds. Such dogs were used against the Moors in the Reconquest , against the Guanches in the conquest of the Canary Islands, and quite naturally they were taken to the New World to be used against the Indians. The most vicious of these war dogs had to be chained and managed by handlers. But these fierce dogs knew the difference between Spaniard and Indian, and some of them could be sent to chase down a particular Indian." Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun, Charles Hudson.
Below from left to right are period renditions of the French Alaunt Gentil, the Irish Wolfhound and the Spanish Lebrel, all of which fit the earliest descriptions of the Alaunt Gentil.
Rome then introduced the Alans and their Albanian procured Alaunts to the British Isles, where they were interbred with the Celtic Wolfhounds. By the Middle Ages, the Celtic Wolfhounds had been so interbred with Alaunts that a specialized type of this combination was so named the Alaunt Gentil or in Spain as the Lebrel. "The 'friendly Alaunt' described in the same place, with great hunting ability, is more likely the ancestor of the Irish Wolfhound and Deerhound." Fighting Dog Breeds, Dr. Dieter Fleig. "In 1775 William Bowles, a very competent writer who was born in a village near Cork, about the year 1714, published in Spain an Introduction to the Natural History of Spain. In 1752 he was employed by the Spanish Government to establish and direct a Museum of Natural History. In his chapter on Biscay he wrote: “In the woods may be met with by chance a wild boar. The ordinary wolves (lobos comunes) are rare. . . . Should one be seen he is at once hunted and killed, for which work are excellent the greyhound dogs (perros lebreles) which they have brought hither from Ireland.” According to the Spanish Dictionaries of Stephens in 1724, of Pineda in 1740, of Delpino in 1763, lebrel is “an Irish greyhound, though some will use it for a common greyhound, which is not proper, these being called galgos;” and the Dictionary of the Royal Academy of Spain, in I832, defines lebrel as “a dog whose body is thin and lean, with long head and legs, and large eyes, very light of foot, used in hunting the larger game, such as venison and wild boars, etc.” In the Portuguese Dictionary of Michaelis, edited in I893, lebrél is defined“ a large Irish greyhound.” The History of the Irish Wolfdog, Edmund Ignatius Hogan 1897. These many definitions and descriptions of the lebrel clearly match descriptions of the Alaunt Gentil as a heavy greyhound or a light made mastiff. As well, the many descriptions of the Irish Wolfhound show them to be a mild tempered and relaxed dog with people; a gentil alaunt. “There were in Ireland two kinds of wolfdogs—the greyhound and the mastiff. Till within these two years I was possessed of both kinds, perfectly distinct and easily known from each other. The heads were not sharp in the latter as in the former, but there seems a great similarity of temper and disposition, both being harmless and indolent." Earl of Altamont 1797. Here we have direct evidence, one of many, to the gentle nature of the Irish Wolfhound, thus the Alaunt Gentil.
The Celtic Wolfhounds were the original "Prey" type or "Chase" type War Dogs which were interbred with Alaunts and other imports that gave rise to the Bandogs of England and to the Presa, Fila, and Cuban Bloodhound used in the 15th century during the Spanish Conquests of the Americas. "The Irish greyhound is a dog of great size and strength, and led to the chase in leather slips or thongs." Pennant, 1776-1781 ...."These dogs seemed to be immortal and supernatural in their ability to distinguish between hostile and friendly groups and to track and rip apart the former. Rodrigo Rangel, traveling with De Soto in Florida, recounts that, sent in pursuit of an 'Indian fleeing from Christians the next day, a noble greyhound from Ireland plunged after him into the multitude of Indians that were on a densely wooded hill." A History of Dogs in the Early Americas, Schwartz,
1997. "Well before the 16th century Europeans had developed several breeds of large dogs that were used to herd animals, to hunt, and to do battle with and terrorize men. These were the mastiff (mastin), a short-haired, heavily muscled dog that could withstand long marches and hold its own against wolves, and was favored in herding sheep and pigs. The swift, lean greyhound (lebrel), was used to hunt and attack large animals such as deer and wild boars, and it could also be trained as a war dog. A third type of dog, the alano, was a large attack dog, evidently of several breeds, including large mastiffs and Irish Wolfhounds. Such dogs were used against the Moors in the Reconquest , against the Guanches in the conquest of the Canary Islands, and quite naturally they were taken to the New World to be used against the Indians. The most vicious of these war dogs had to be chained and managed by handlers. But these fierce dogs knew the difference between Spaniard and Indian, and some of them could be sent to chase down a particular Indian." Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun, Charles Hudson.
Below from left to right are period renditions of the French Alaunt Gentil, the Irish Wolfhound and the Spanish Lebrel, all of which fit the earliest descriptions of the Alaunt Gentil.
There is confusion concerning what the Spanish Lebrel was and whether the name comes from the Spanish "liebre" (Hare) or if this is a modern translation based on the use of the modern Spanish Galgos, a greyhound used for hunting the rabbit. Period texts from Spain, Portugal, France and England from various eras all define the Lebrel as being an Irish Wolfhound. If the term Lebrel derives from the Spanish 'Liebre', why then was the Lebrel described as a wolfhound and not the literal translation as a hare or rabbit hound? Why would a rabbit hound be an option of the Conquistadores when the large ferocious Irish Wolfhound was easily attainable and much more suitable? There are several references of the Chroniclers who write of the Irish dogs accompanying the Conquistadores. The Lebrel is said to be extinct, however, according to history, the term, as literally translated as a rabbit hound was not the dog of the Conquests and not the dogs mentioned by so many writers so many times in the past, including the Spanish Chroniclers. It would seems as though the modern day dog now used in Spain for rabbit hunting, now called Galgos, according to translation, should more realistically be called the Lebrel rather than the Galgos...dog of Gaul. "The Irish Wolf-dog in Spain. In some interesting notes communicated to the Royal Irish Society in January last (Proc. R. I. Acad. 3rd ser. i. pp. 333—339), Prof. J. P. O'Reilly gives some extracts from Bowles' 'Introduccion a la Historia Natural y a Geografia fisica de Espana,' 1775, showing that the so-called wolf-hound was at that date distinguished from the greyhound, and that the former was introduced into Spain from Ireland. The Spaniards call the greyhound galgo, as having obtained it first from Gaul; the wolf-hound they call perro lebrel." Zoologist: A Monthly Journal of Natural History. 3rd Series Vol. XIV - 1890. "An Irish Greyhound, though some will use it for a common greyhound, which is not proper, these being called Galgos." Spanish Dictionary of Stephens 1724.
Despite common misconception, the Alaunt Gentil/Lebrel was not a Greyhound, rather, it was "made like the shape of the greyhound but with more substantial bone structure, a heavier, shorter muzzled head and a squarer jaw." The Welsh Laws of Hywel Dda, (Hywel the Good, c. 880 – 950), make a clear distinction between mil-gi ("swift-hounds") and gel-gi ("great-hounds"); sight-hounds for coursing and a light made mastiff type bred for bringing down large animals such as were the, Irish Wolfhounds, Spanish Lebrels, or French Alaunt Gentil.
© Ray Lane & Heather Wilkins
Despite common misconception, the Alaunt Gentil/Lebrel was not a Greyhound, rather, it was "made like the shape of the greyhound but with more substantial bone structure, a heavier, shorter muzzled head and a squarer jaw." The Welsh Laws of Hywel Dda, (Hywel the Good, c. 880 – 950), make a clear distinction between mil-gi ("swift-hounds") and gel-gi ("great-hounds"); sight-hounds for coursing and a light made mastiff type bred for bringing down large animals such as were the, Irish Wolfhounds, Spanish Lebrels, or French Alaunt Gentil.
© Ray Lane & Heather Wilkins
While the terminology 'Alaunt Gentil' or 'Lebrel' is no longer commonly in use, the type is most certainly a common one that is still found around the world, as is the function of the Alaunt Gentil as a remarkably gentle yet savage and effective hunting and guard dog.
Below are photographs of the modern Alaunt Gentil that showcase the living history of the famed old Alaunt Gentil in every aspect. They are called ... Alaunt Gentil.
Below are photographs of the modern Alaunt Gentil that showcase the living history of the famed old Alaunt Gentil in every aspect. They are called ... Alaunt Gentil.