The fiacre was, in France, a small four-wheeled carriage or hackney-coach, so called from the Hotel St Fiacre, where Sauvage, the inventor of these carriages, established in 1640 an office for the hire of them. Research Fiacre
A cabriolet (cab) was a vehicle similar to a hackney-carriage with two or four wheels, originally drawn by a single horse but later by a motor. The original cabriolets were for a single passenger beside the driver and were a kind of hooded chaise. In the beginning of the 19th century an effort was made to introduce cabriolets into Britain, to supersede hackney carriages. It was not until 1823, however, that licences were obtained for cabriolets. At first their number was limited to twelve. These were of an improved pattern, with a folding hood, and seated two passengers, the driver being separated from them by a partition. In 1832 all restrictions were removed, and cabriolets came into popular favour. In 1836 a cabriolet on four wheels, the precursor of the brougham, was introduced, and from this the clarence evolved. In 1834 a patent was taken out for an improved, two-wheeled safety cab by Hansom, the architect of Birmingham town hall. The safety consisted in an arrangement of the framework which prevented the cab tilting backwards
or forwards in case of accident. These cabriolets had a small body, hung between wheels of over seven feet diameter. Two years later a fresh patent was obtained for an improved Hansom. Motor cabs were first introduced in 1897, but failed to pay and were phased out, only to start to reappear in London around 1905. Research Cabriolet
The term coach is now generally applied to a chartered or long distance, usually single-decker bus. However, traditionally coach was a general name for all covered carriages drawn by horses and intended for the rapid conveyance of passengers.
The earliest carriages appear to have been all open, if we may judge from the figures of Assyrian and Babylonian chariots found on the monuments discovered amidst the ruins of Nineveh and Babylon, At Rome both covered and uncovered carriages were in use. After the fall of the Roman Empire they went out of use again, and during the feudal ages the custom was to ride on horseback, the use of carriages being considered effeminate. They do not appear to have become common until the 10th century, and even then were regarded exclusively as vehicles for women and invalids. Later on they became, especially in Germany, part of the appendages of royalty.
Coaches seem to have been introduced into England about the middle of the 16th century, but were for long confined to the aristocracy and the wealthy classes. Hackney-coaches were first used in London in 1625. They were then only twenty in number, and were kept at the hotels, where they had to be applied for when wanted. In 1634 coaches waiting to be hired at a particular stand were introduced, and had increased to 200 in 1652, to 800 in 1710, and to 1000 in 1771.
Stagecoaches were introduced into England about the same time as hackney-coaches. The first stage-coach in London appears to have ran early in the 17th century, and before the end of the century they were started on three of the principal roads in England. Their speed was at first very moderate, about 3 or 4 miles an hour. They could only run in the summer, and even then their progress was often greatly hindered by floods and by the wretched state of the roads generally. In 1700 it took a week to travel from York to London; in 1754 a body of Manchester merchants started a conveyance, the Flying Coach, of an improved kind, which did the journey to London in the unusually short period of four days and a half, and thirty years later a Mr. Palmer of Bath, after a considerable amount of opposition, succeeded in inducing the government to put in practice certain suggestions which he made, by which he showed that great saving both of time and money in the conveyance of passengers and letters would be effected. The result was the establishment of the system of mail-coaches, which continued to be the means of travelling in England until their place was taken by the railways. The first mail-coach started between London and Bristol on the 8th of August, 1784. The manufacture of elegant carriages was a proof of much wealth and mechanical skill in a place, many different workmen being employed in their construction, and both the materials and the workmanship requiring to be of the best. British-built carriages, especially those made in London, held the first place for a combination of strength and elegance. Research Coach
The fiacre was a French, small four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage, usually with a folding roof invented by Sauvage in 1640 and named after the Hotel de St Fiacre, Paris, where these hackney-carriages were first hired out. Research Fiacre
Fly was a name formerly given to a double-seated carriage or public conveyance; afterwards the term was applied to the horse-drawn hackney-carriages or cabs. Research Fly
Hackney Coach is the old name for a Hackney Carriage. They originated in London in 1625 when there were twenty of them available for hire. During the 19th century Hackney Coaches gave way to Hackney Cabs, which in turn have evolved into Hackney Carriages, now commonly called taxis. Research Hackney Coach
The Hansom-cab was a two-wheeled horse-drawn hackney-carriage or cabriolet used in the cities and large towns of Britain, and named after the inventor. It held two persons besides the driver, who sat on an elevated seat behind the body of the carriage, the reins being brought over the top. Research Hansom-Cab
Taxi is the term applied to a hackney-carriage provided with a taximeter. In London, regulations for motor taxicabs were first issued in January 1907. Research Taxi
The American Shetland is an American bread of trottingpony which developed from 75 Shetland ponies imported to the USA in 1885. The Original Shetland ponies were cross-bred with Hackney ponies and later with small Arabians and small Thoroughbreds to develop a distinct breed of pony with a muscular arched neck, a long and narrow back, broad muscular hindquarters and unusually high withers, standing to about 11 hands high and of a generally good temperament. Research American Shetland
The Australian Pony is an Australian breed of pony which evolved from imported IndonesianTimor ponies cross-bred with imported Welsh Mountain ponies, Hackney Ponies and other breeds. The Australian Pony is a placid and well-behaved pony standing about 12 to 14 hands high, usually grey in colour. Research Australian Pony
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Fiacre
