Editing Percheron (section)

{{Short description|Breed of draft horse from France}}
{{About||the novel trilogy|Percheron (series)|the rocket|Percheron (rocket)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2016}}
{{Infobox horse
| name            = Percheron
| image           = File:Cheval-percheron-gris SDA2014 (cropped).jpg
| image2          = File:Haras in Saint-Lô , Normandië, France.jpg
| features        = Draft horse breed. Mostly gray or black. Clean-limbed, powerful and docile.
| altname=
| nickname=
| country         = France
| group1          = Haras nationaux (France)
<!--Note: The Haras Nationaux has been broken up and separated by each stud. I think the Percherons are at [[Haras national du Pin]].-->
| std1            = https://web.archive.org/web/20181010011433/http://www.haras-nationaux.fr/fileadmin/bibliotheque/Reglementation/Stud-books/Chevaux_de_trait/Reglement_Percheron-01-04-2011.pdf
| group2          = Percheron Horse Association of America
| std2            = https://www.percheronhorse.org/percheron-disposition-and-characteristics/
| group3          = British Percheron Horse Society
| std3            = https://percheron.org.uk/427/Characteristics-of-the-British-Percheron-Horse
| group4          = Percheron Horse Breeders Association of Australia
| std4            = https://www.percheron.com.au/breedstandard.htm
}}
The '''Percheron''' is a [[horse breed|breed]] of [[draft horse]] that originated in the [[Huisne]] river valley in western France, part of the former [[Perche]] province, from which the breed takes its name. Usually [[gray (horse)|gray]] or [[black (horse)|black]] in color, Percherons are well-muscled, and known for their intelligence and willingness to work. Although their exact origins are unknown, the ancestors of the breed were present in the valley by the 17th century. They are believed to descend from [[war horse|war horses]]. Over time, they began to be used for pulling [[stagecoach]]es; and later, for agriculture and hauling heavy goods. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, [[Arabian horse|Arabian]] blood was added to the breed. Exports of Percherons from France rose exponentially in the late 19th century, and the first purely Percheron [[stud book]] was created in France in 1893.

Before [[World War I]], thousands of Percherons were shipped from France to the United States, but after the war began, an [[embargo]] stopped shipping. The breed was used extensively in Europe during the war, with some horses being shipped from the United States back to France to help in the war effort. Beginning in 1918, Percherons began to be bred in the United Kingdom; in 1918, the British Percheron Horse Society (BPHS) was formed. After a series of name and studbook ownership changes, the current United States Percheron [[Breed registry|registry]] was created in 1934. In the 1930s, Percherons accounted for 70% of the draft horse population in the United States, but their numbers declined substantially after {{nowrap|World War II}}. However, the population began to recover; and, as of 2009, around 2,500 Percheron horses were registered annually in the United States alone. 

The breed is still used extensively for draft work; in France, they are also bred for [[horse meat]]. They have been crossed with several light horse breeds to produce both [[stock horse]]s and [[sport horse]]s. [[Purebred]] Percherons are used for forestry work and pulling [[horse carriage|carriages]], as well as work under saddle, including competition in various [[English riding]] disciplines, including [[show jumping]].