The word is first attested in Middle English around 1330, as destrer. It was borrowed into Middle English from Anglo-Norman destrer, whose Old French counterpart was destrier (from which the Modern English spelling derives). … See more

Many well-known scholars have speculated about the nature of destriers and about the size they attained. They apparently were not enormous draft types. Recent research … See more

A good destrier was very costly: at the times of the Crusades, a fine destrier was valued at seven or eight times the cost of an ordinary horse. … See more

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The word destrier does not refer to a breed of horse, but to a type of horse; the finest and strongest warhorses. These horses were usually stallions, bred and raised from foalhood specifically for the needs of war. The destrier was specifically for use in battle See more

The modern Percheron draft breed may in part descend from destriers, though it is probably taller and heavier than the average destrier. Other draft breeds such as the Shire claim destrier ancestry, though proof is less certain.
Modern attempts to … See more