This particular breed of horse comes from Portugal. The first generation of the Alter-Real breed was developed in the mid-14th century at the Vila de Portel, a royal stud farm located in the village of Alter do Chao, in Spain's Alentejo province. The primary reason that the horses were bred was to provide stock for the royal stables in the capital city, Lisbon.
The Alter-Real's name is derived from a combination of two words, the first part being the village of Alter do Chao where the first generation stock was stabled while the second part mere being real the Portuguese word for royal. The breed received official recognition by the House of Braganza in 1748.
Part of the reason why the Alter Real gained its renowned reputation was based upon its longstanding relationship with the Marquis of Marialva, one of Portugal's Masters of Horse.
The Alter-Real was dealt two serious blows that endangered its continued existence. The first one was the dispersal of the stock by the French army in the Peninsular War in the early 19th century. The second blow was dealt by the Portuguese royalty 1834 when King Dom Miguel I de Bragana had the stud farm at Vila de Portel closed. This nearly spelled the end of the breed. Serious attempts were made to revive the Alter-Real through crossbreeding, by injected Hanoverian, Norman, English, and Arabian blood, but each failed to be compatible. It was then original Andalusian blood was finally reintroduced at the close of the 19th century, the stock started to flourish once more.
In early 20th century, the Alter-Real was at a crossroads and extinction of the breed was still a very real possibility. Yet, the horses had an advocate in Doctor Ruy d'Andrade, the leading Portuguese equestrian authority, who became actively involved in the preservation of the breed. D'Andrade used his experience to save a small portion of the breed and helped to maintain it until it was finally handed over to the Ministry of Agriculture in 1932.
Today, the Alter-Real retains its individuality and breed purity among the other types of horses and participates in many performances by the Portuguese School of Equestrian Art.
The colors for this breed range from: bay, brown, gray, and sometimes chestnut. A small piece of trivia, there is a Portuguese off road vehicle named after the horse, it's called the UMM Alter 4x4. This new model of the UMM first came about in 1985.
The Alter Real has a physique that represents strength; some say it bears a striking resemblance to its ancestors from the 18th century. These horses possess a sense of heightened agility and knee flexibility. They stand between 15 and 16 hands, and have a short but muscular body. They are often classified as Baroque horses.
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