During Elizabeth's reign horse-racing was in vogue, but it was only of a private nature. Matches against time and trials of speed between two horses represented the racing of this period. It was left for James I to introduce into England the sport he had previously established in Scotland. He inaugurated races at Gatterley, in Yorkshire; at Croydon, and at Theobalds at Enfield Chase. He encouraged every kind of horsemanship, the importation of foreign horses, especially of a racing type, and was the first to land upon our shores a pure-bred Arabian, which he bought of a merchant named Markham for £500. This animal turned out a failure, and well it might, if the description given of him by the Duke of Newcastle in his treatise on horsemanship was correct, " a little boney, bay horse of ordinary shape and almost worthless"; but James, nothing daunted, purchased of Pace, afterwards stud-master to Cromwell, a horse brought from the north coast of Africa, and known as the White Turk. The example set by James was followed by his friends. The first Duke of Buckingham imported the Helmsley Turk, and Lord Fairfax the Morocco Barb. From this date improvement in our breed of light horses commenced. But although Eastern horses were in demand to effect this object, their qualifications had only been partially recognized, for we find Gervase Markham stating " the true English-bred horse to be superior to those of any other country. I do daily find in my experience that the virtue, goodness, boldness, swiftness, and endurance of our true-bred English horses is equal to any race of horses whatsoever. For swiftness, what nation has brought forth the horse which has exceeded the English? When the best Barbaries that ever were were in their prime, I saw them overcome by a black hobby at Salisbury, and yet that black hobby was overcome by a horse called Valentine, which Valentine neither in hunting or running was ever equalled, yet was a plain-bred English horse both by dam and syre." From this quotation it can be seen that among native stock good specimens existed, upon which the imported Oriental blood was about to give its impression of further excellence. These were the days when the love of racing created the demand for swift horses, and the turf an incentive to their importation and propagation. At this epoch the most successful performers on the turf, both horses and mares, were distinguished from common stock by being classified as professional race-horses, and public race-meetings were formally gazetted as at this day.

In the time of Charles I the importation and breeding of swift horses continued, for supplying both the turf and the hunting-field with good performers. The order of the day was for fast gallopers, who were rapidly supplanting the tournament horse, and to so great an extent as to have caused the presentation of a memorial to the king complaining of the great diminution of stout and powerful horses " fit for the defence of the country", and urging that measures should be adopted in order to encourage the propagation " of this useful and important type of horse ". To promote the object sought, a law was enacted but never was put into execution, and consequently became a dead letter. It was impossible, therefore, to keep up a large supply, as the demand for this class of horse had considerably diminished. The turf had usurped the occupation of the tilting-yard, and the great horse had been supplanted by the racer. At the same time a necessity still remained for the production of weight-carriers to draw vehicles laden with heavy goods, and to carry men in armour - for even at this date armour formed no inconsiderable portion of the trooper's uniform, - and consequently a demand for " stout and powerful horses " still existed, but not to so great an extent as during the Tudor era. During the civil wars racing was neglected, but the importance of cavalry horses exercised a powerful influence in causing the production of horses possessing both strength and activity, and to the development of this type Cromwell gave his attention. He raised a cavalry regiment, the best in existence at that date, composed of powerful yeomen and stout horses. He on two occasions (February 24, 1654, and April 8, 1658) prohibited horse-racing, declaring all persons of what " estate, quality, or degree soever, who should appoint or assist at race-meetings, breakers of the public peace, and further requiring all civil and military authorities to seize all the race-horses and spectators "; but he generally encouraged the breeding of stout, active horses, with a view to procuring animals with speed and endurance, which he recognized were more useful on the march and on the battle-field than those chargers which possessed ""mere bone and bulk". It can, therefore, be seen that during the Commonwealth the demand for cavalry horses was the incentive which led to the production of animals possessing bulk combined with activity, and this result was obtained from crosses between the weight-carrier and racer of this era. Thus a new type of horse was created, namely the active cavalry horse, whose descendants at a later date drew the heavy springless vehicles of our forefathers over rotten and almost impassable roads.

Although during the stormy days of civil war, horse-racing had been neglected, after the third Stuart was crowned king this sport became a national institution. The Merry Monarch was the greatest supporter of the turf England has ever known. He not only encouraged and patronized the race-courses already in existence, but he also added to those established by his father at Hyde Park, Newmarket, and at other places, that at Datchet Mead, near Windsor, being the most celebrated. Newmarket became his favourite resort. There he built a palace and large stables, which he filled with Eastern horses obtained by his Master of the Horse for breeding purposes. These animals were Arabians and Barbs, both stallions and mares, which latter and also some of their produce were called royal mares. During this reign Oriental horses were numerously imported, and racing began to assume an improved character. Treatises on horses were issued from the press, and one on horsemanship, published by the Duke of Newcastle, gives descriptions of various foreign horses, and advice relative to breeding them for specific purposes - for war, the menage, and the turf, - and he selects the Barb as his ideal of what a horse should be. He writes: "The Barbary horses I freely confess are my favourites; I allow preference as to shape, strength, natural air, and docility. Mountain Barbs are horses of the best courage; many of them bear marks of wounds they have received from lions." The same author also suggests how an improvement can be effected upon native stock by careful selection of parents. " The best stallion is a well-chosen Barb or beautiful Spanish horse. Some people believe that a Barb or Jennet produces too small a breed. There is no fear of having a horse too small in England, since the moisture of the climate and fatness of the land rather produces horses too large. In choice of breeding mares I would advise you to take either a well-shaped Spanish or Neapolitan; when these are not easily obtained, then a beautiful English mare of good colour and well marked." Previously to this reign we may assume that winning mares and stallions were mated in order to secure and perpetuate a race of flyers; but when the imported Arabs and Barbs were discovered to be faster on the turf than the native stock, they were introduced to the harem with a view of procuring in the offspring that turn of speed which was common to the foreign horses. This combination resulted in success, which was primarily effected by such horses as Dodsworth Pace's White Turk, and numerous other Barbs and Arabians, whose stock in later reigns laid the foundation from which the superiority of the English horse arose. During the short reign of James II there is little about horses worth mentioning. Oriental horses were still imported. The Lister Turk was brought to England by the Duke of Berwick, being taken at the siege of Buda. This horse was the sire of many celebrated horses: Snake, Brisk, Conyskins, etc. The king was devoted to hunting, and kept a large stud of hunters. He is said to have been a fine horseman, and for this reason the Irish gave him the name " Shamus-na-cappul" (James of the horses).