FORMER Taoiseach Charles Haughey’s (FF) enthusiasm for a gift to the State of seven pedigree Arabian horses waned when some of the animals were described as being “of a very poor standard”, reported The Irish Times this week.

The seven thoroughbred Asil Arabian horses, with “impeccable pedigrees” were gifted to the State by the late Vincent Melzac, a wealthy businessman and horse breeder from West Virginia in the United States.

Mr Haughey met Mr Melzac in Washington in March 1989 during a visit to the US capital. The 75-year-old businessman was terminally ill and wanted to gift the horses to Ireland, in honour of his wife’s Irish background new records released by the State to the National Archive show. The horses were imported into Ireland in September 1989 at a cost of over £25,000 to the State.

On November 21st, the Taoiseach also indicated he would attend an acceptance ceremony on December 12th at the Irish National Stud in Co Kildare, where the horses had been brought for their initial period of resettlement. However, a senior vet and the stud manager were less than impressed by the standard of the Desert Arab thoroughbreds.

In a memo dated only a week after the Taoiseach accepted the invitation, it was indicated that he would not after all attend the ceremony. A senior official wrote: “The Taoiseach spoke to me on 28 November saying that he had received information to the effect that the horses were of very poor standard and in the circumstances it could be embarrassing if he were to visit the Stud to inspect them.”

The seven horses consisted of two stallions, four mares and a two-year-old colt.

In early 1990, the independent assessment ordered by Mr Haughey was carried out by the Guinness heirs, brothers Finn and Kieran Guinness. Finn was the then president of the British Arab Horse Society and an experienced judge of the Arabian breed.

Mr Guinness’s assessment was that three of the mares were “quite nice mares and could be tried out for breeding”.

Of the stallions, he said: “They do not seem to be good enough to contribute usefully to our breeding here in Ireland ... They are both quite nice ordinary animals but not up to the standard required in a breeding stallion.”

The four mares were sent to the Teagasc Agricultural College in Piltown, Co Kilkenny where they were retained for pure breeding. The colt was left at the Irish National Stud for another year, while the stallions were leased out to non-thoroughbred breeders.

Mr Melzac and his wife, Sheila Downey Melzac, had intended to come over for the acceptance ceremony in late 1989. However, Mr Melzac died in October of that year and his wife was subsequently unable to travel.