41 Famous Horses of the Past

Did you think only kings and queens lived in marble houses? Well, Caligula, a Roman Emperor, kept his horse, Incitatus, in a marble stable. The horse’s stall was made of ivory. The horse wore a golden collar inlaid with jewels. His purple blankets was a sign of royalty. It was rumored that Caligula had even made his horse consul. A consul was a ruler with much power.

Horses have helped to shape history. Long ago, winning or losing a battle often depended on how fast a horse could run. Horses were crucial in war. General Robert E. Lee never parted with his horse, Traveller. During the American Civil War, General Lee led the Confederate Army. Traveller marched many battles with Lee and was never hurt.

The most famous warhorse of all time was made of wood! It actually helped defeat an entire army. About 3,500 years ago, a fierce battle was going on between the Trojans and the ancient Greeks in a place called Asia Minor. The Greeks tried to think of a way to outsmart their enemies. Finally they built a huge wooden horse, taller than two houses, and left it outside the gates of the city of Troy. Since they didn’t know where it came from, the Trojans thought the horse had magical powers. Carefully, they pulled it through the gates. That night, a surprising thing happened. The sides of the wooden horse opened and a band of Greek soldiers climbed out. They opened the gates of Troy and let in the Greek army. The Greeks soon captured the city of Troy.

41 往昔名马

你以为只有国王和王后才住在大理石房子里吗？罗马皇帝卡利古拉就把他的马英西塔土斯养在大理石马厩里。这匹马的马厩是用象牙做的，它戴着镶嵌珠宝的金项圈，紫色的毯子是王权的象征。传言卡利古拉甚至让他的马担任了执政官，执政官是拥有很大权力的统治者。

马在塑造历史方面起到了帮助作用。很久以前，战役的胜负往往取决于马的奔跑速度。马在战争中至关重要。罗伯特·E·李将军从未与他的马“旅行者”分开过。在美国内战期间，李将军率领邦联军队，“旅行者”与李将军一起参加了许多战役，从未受伤。

有史以来最著名的战马是木制的！它实际上帮助击败了一整支军队。大约3500年前，特洛伊人和古希腊人在小亚细亚的一个地方展开了一场激烈的战斗。希腊人试图想出一个智取敌人的办法。最后，他们造了一匹比两座房子还高的巨大木马，把它留在特洛伊城的城门外。由于不知道它从何而来，特洛伊人认为这匹马有魔力。他们小心翼翼地把它拖进城门。那天晚上，一件令人惊讶的事情发生了。木马的侧面打开了，一群希腊士兵爬了出来。他们打开了特洛伊的城门，让希腊军队进入。希腊人很快就占领了特洛伊城。