History Page

 

This page has two sections:

Siamese History
and
Oriental History


Siamese History

Russia, Late 1700s
Late 1800s
Early to Mid 1900s
1960 to 1985
1986 to Present

(If you just want to read the legends, click here)





Introduction

Anyone in the market for a Siamese kitten may want a Siamese just like the lovely one they had as a child, or the one who just passed away at a ripe old age of 20 plus years. You go to see a breeder, look in magazines, attend cat shows, but what you find is a cat that looks quite different from the large robust cat you remember. The modern version of the Siamese will look different and you may ask yourself, "Is this really a Siamese?"

The short answer is 'yes', but this is certainly not the same type as you may remember. Chances are what you recall is a large cat with a round head, smaller ears, and lovely blue eyes, possibly with a squint (i.e. crossed eyes) and a kink in the end of its tail. What you remember is now called a 'Traditional Siamese, or 'applehead' Siamese, while the ones that dominate shows are known as the Modern Siamese.

If you wonder out loud about what happened, different breeders may give you very different explanations, but the story is readily available in the dozens of books written about this very unique cat.

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Russia, Late 1700s:

The first cat of record with Siamese markings appeared on an old engraving discovered by a Mr. Pallas during a journey into Southern Russia between 1793 and 1794. Another is in the 'Cat-Book Poems' where drawings of cats of various colours and patterns (including the Siamese) appeared.

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Late 1800s:

Other than the engraving and book of poems, there is no clear record of Siamese cats as a breed until the 1800s. Siamese cats were not seen in the West until the late nineteenth century when the first cats (Pho and Mia) were given to the British Counsul General, Mr Owen Gould in 1884 by the King of Siam.

The progeny of the two cats given to Consul-General Gould were exhibited by his sister, Mrs. Lilian (Gould) Velvey at the 17th Crystal Palace Show in October 1885. These cats were 'Duen Ngai', born March 1885 and 'Kalohom' and 'Khromata', born July 1885. Photographs of these cats show them to be round-headed, solid and muscular.

Duen Ngai, Kalohom and Khromata,
The first progeny in 1905
These cats were so extraordinary that they captured immediate attention. A well-known quote from that time describes them as an "unnatural nightmare of a cat". However, whatever the initial reaction or impression, the dog-like intelligence and loyalty, mischievous sense of humor and special charm of these cats, made them a favorite of British cat fanciers. And in 1902 England founded its first Siamese cat fancier's club.

Tian O'Shian IV, circa 1900.
Seal Point Male


The first champion, 'Champion Wankee,' was born in Hong Kong in 1895 and was owned and shown (to much acclaim) in 1898 by Mrs. Robinson. It was a large, robust 'appleheaded' cat. 'Champion Wankee' makes it clear that the traditional cat looked nothing like the modern version shown today.

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Early to Mid 1900s:

In 1902 England formed its first Siamese Cat Fancier's Club
The precise time of arrival in the United States is uncertain. However, in April 1909, The Siamese Cat Society of America was founded and the first standard for the Siamese Cat was approved. During the 1950s and 1960s the breed's popularity reached its peak and Siamese cats appeared in movies or animations such as 'Bell, Book and Candle', 'That Darn Cat', 'Incredible Journey', and 'Lady and the Tramp', making the Siamese breed ever more famous. At the same time in Siam (now Thailand) breeding had dwindled to only a few breeders. A letter written by Mrs. Stephen Dobrenchuk to a diplomat in Thailand in the 1950s reports that purebred Siamese cats were bred only by a few wealthy matrons, and the cats were known for their physical toughness and dog-like intelligence.


Mrs. Dobrenchuk purchased three kittens from a Laotian Princess married to a Thai diplomat. These cats were large round-headed robust animals of wonderful intelligence and disposition. She writes that the cats regularly cleared their back yard in Thailand of cobras, the only difficulty being that they often dragged their 'trophies' indoors and sometimes they were not quite dead.

Three kittens, 1950s


Upon returning to the states in the late 1950s, Mrs. Dobrenchuk bought 3 more kittens, this time registered with the Cat Fancier's Association (C.F.A) and described them as still being the same general body type as those being bred in Thailand.

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1960 to 1985:

It is after this, in the early 60s, that the heavy traditional Siamese began to lose favour as various breeders and judges began to look for a longer, thinner body conformation and began to encourage the breed away from the original Siamese, to its smaller modern body type common today. Eventually the breed standard was rewritten to reflect changing tastes.

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1986 to Present:

By 1986 there were no traditional or 'applehead' Siamese being shown and the modern Siamese is now so entrenched that many owners and novice breeders are unaware of the breed's history.We have been told that in Thailand today some Siamese cats have been preserved in their wild state and are three times as large as the Siamese cats we know in the Western world. They come in four colours and will breed only with other Siamese and, in fact, will kill any other cat they encounter, including the spotted jungle cat.

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Siamese Legends

While the Siamese 'Kinked Tail" and "Squint or Crossed Eyes" have become serious show 'faults' we should remember that in the early shows it was mandatory for a Siamese to have a kink in its tail to be considered a true Siamese. Over time this trait fell from favour and was bred out of the breed as much as possible. However it is so imbedded in the genetics that it still appears occasionally in some lines more than others. Since it does not affect the cat's health in any way, many breeders have become tolerant of this trait and sell the kittens as 'pet quality'. Whether desirable or not, the kinked tail is part of the history of the Siamese.


* It is said that there was once a Siamese Princess who was frightened of losing her rings while she bathed in a stream. Looking around for somewhere convenient to place her jewellery, she noticed that her favourite cat had crooked his tail for her benefit. Ever since that time all Siamese cats have been born with a tiny kink at the end of their tails to hold the Princess' rings.

*A young cat took his wife into the jungle to search for a royal goblet that was missing from one of the Siamese temples. Upon finding the treasure, they decided that the female should remain in the jungle to guard it while the male went back to the city to inform the priest of their discovery. So the little cat took up her position among the leaves and tangled foliage, her tail twisted around the stem of the goblet to make quite sure that no one would try to take it away. Four nights later her husband returned to find he was the father of five sweet little kittens. But, in spite of her new responsibility, the loyal mother cat had not forgotten her earlier trust. Indeed, so conscientious had she been in her protection of the goblet that a permanent kink had developed in the end of her tail. What was more, all five kittens had a similar kink in their tails !

*A Buddhist monk lived in one of the sacred temples where a golden goblet, once used by the Great Buddha, was kept. The monk took to imbibing of the sacred spirits and sometimes would disappear for many days, leaving just his pair of Siamese cats to guard the temple and the goblet. Once he was gone for such a long time that the two Siamese finally decided that their old friend would not return and that another monk must be found for the temple. The male Siamese started out on a long journey in search of a new master. He was gone for a very long time, but the female cat, left alone to guard the sacred goblet, never left her watch. She stared and squinted at the goblet for so many days and nights that her eyes became crossed and remained so for the rest of her life. She became so tired from her long vigil that she fell into a deep sleep from sheer exhaustion. However, before she fell asleep, she wound her tail around the goblet, knowing that if anything touched her sensitive tail it would awaken her. Finally, the male Siamese returned with a new monk for the temple. He found the female lying beside the goblet with a litter of kittens, all of which had kinked tails and crossed eyes.

*Another tale tells of a forgetful Buddhist monk who once tied a knot in his cat's tail as a reminder, and it is said the Siamese have had a kinked tail ever since.

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Oriental History
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Foreign White

Havana (Oriental Self)












Foreign White
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The Foreign White is the only Oriental breed which cannot be mated to other Orientals, its registration policy only permits Siamese and Foreign Whites in the pedigree. Strict breeding and rigorous selection have produced a white cat with deep blue eyes and no problems with deafness. The reason is that the blue eyes of the Foreign White are produced by the Siamese gene, not by the dominant white gene found it other white cats.

When the names of all the other Oriental Selfs were changed from "Foreign" to Oriental, the Foreign White retained its original name. This underlined the fact that the breed is recognized by the GCCF as a blue-eyed Siamese with a white coat, unlike Foreign Whites (named White Siamese in every country except the UK) recognized elsewhere, where green eyes and odd eyes are permitted.
It was around 1960 when English breeders had the idea to breed uni-colour white cats, with the same type as the classic Siamese. Because the combination of blue eyes in a white cat caused deafness, a solution had to be found to prevent deafness in the kittens. Cat geneticist Pat Turner bred the first litter of foreign whites by mating a Seal Point Siamese to a European Shorthair White.
Some lines were started from white cats with orange eyes and one line from white cats with blue eyes. In Ireland Red Point Siamese were mated with white British Shorthairs. This Red Point based line was discontinued as soon as it was discovered that the combination of the gene "W" (for dominant white) and the gene "O" (for red) attracted the "Waardenburg- syndrome" (inherited deafness and pigment anomalies).
In The Netherlands two separate Foreign White breeding lines were started in the 1970s, by which time most of the problems with deafness had been overcome in the United Kingdom. Both in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands orange-eyed white cats were mated to Siamese. Klaas van der Wijk (cattery Benvenida) started the first Dutch line of Foreign Whites.

Because inherited deafness is known in dominant white cats and is unknown in Siamese, it was thought that if the dominant white of the British Shorthair could be combined with the blue eyes of the Siamese, the problem of the deafness could be eliminated. The deafness develops as a result of a disruption in the development of the neural system in the embryo, influenced by the gene "W" which makes the cat appear white.
Breeding Siamese blue eyes with dominant white cats was an attempt to push aside the deafness.
In the United Kingdom the Seal Point Siamese were primarily used in breeding Foreign Whites, as it was felt that its genotype was the best guarantee for deep blue eyes. However, Blue Point is seen as the second best choice and Chocolate Point matings have produced very high quality Foreign Whites. It is now acceptable to mate a Foreign White with any colour Siamese. The most important factor for determining whether a particular Siamese is suitable for breeding with a Foreign White is that it should have deep blue eye colour.
Siamese to Foreign White mating has been the rule, but . Foreign White to Foreign White matings are now allowed when both cats and, preferably, their Foreign White parent and Foreign White grandparents, were proven to have Siamese blue eyes (tested by a veterinarian with an ophthalmoscope to determine if they have tapetum lucidum; true Siamese blue eyes).

I do not recommend Foreign White matings to Red, Tortie, Cream, Apricot or Tabby (Lynx) Point because they can attract the "Waardenburg-syndrome" and may cause the white coat to have a cream or yellow caste to it.
The Foreign White breeding program in England began when an orange-eyed white British Shorthair was mated to a Seal Point Siamese. From this mating an orange-eyed white kitten (F1) was kept. The F1 white orange-eyed kitten was mated to a Seal Point Siamese and another orange-eyed white kitten (F2) was kept. This F2 white kitten was mated to a Seal Point Siamese and a white kitten with orange or green eyes was selected to keep (F3). This was repeated with kitten (F3) and (F4), selecting only white kittens with orange or green eyes. F4 kitten was mated to a Seal Point Siamese and a white kitten with blue eyes (F5) selected. F5 kitten was mated to a Seal Point Siamese and produced only Siamese and Foreign White kittens

The Foreign White was recognized by the GCCF when it became clear that a Foreign White to Siamese mating was the only possible way to avoid deaf cats.

In 1972 the first English Foreign Whites (Flayre White Christmas, Florentine Fugue and Nasyla Snowdrift) were exported to the Netherlands.
It is a good idea to have the eyes of all the Foreign White's used for breeding, examined by a vet with an ophthalmoscope to determine whether they have tapetum lucidum (i.e. true Siamese blue eyes) before they are used as breeding stock.
There are many myths about Foreign White's. Some people ask for Foreign White kittens because they believe they can be used in breeding Siamese with paler coats, especially Seal Points. This is not true. The white coat does not influence the colour of the Siamese at all. The coat colour of a Siamese is influenced by polygenes for light and dark and polygenes for warm or cold colour.

Foreign White's have been bred with enormous patience and devotion. In spite of repeated setbacks in the initial breeding programs, by breeding so many good Siamese into them they are now real Siamese in type and character, talkative, sweet, charming, mysterious and elegant.



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Havana (Oriental Self)
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The Havana is a man-made or man-designed cat with its origins in the mysterious land of Siam. Solid brown cats were described and depicted in the Cat-Book Poems, a manuscript written in the city of Ayudha, Siam, some time between it founding in 1350 and its destruction in 1767 when the city was burned by invaders. These brown cats appear in the manuscript alongside royal Siamese, black and white Bi-colors, and silver-blue Korats. The people of Siam considered the burnished brown cats very beautiful and believed they protected their human companions from evil.

Solid brown (self) cats were among the first felines to come to England from Siam (now Thailand) in the late 1800s. Early records describe these cats as "Siamese, with coats of burnished chestnut, and greeny-blue eyes." It is believed that these imports were not all of the same genetic types, but rather represent what today would be called Burmese, chocolate point Siamese, Tonkinese (Burmese/Siamese hybrids), and Havanas.
The Havana has mixed breeds in its lineage and bloodlines and has acquired a variety of personality traits along the way.
The Havana cat was developed in the 1950s by crossing a British Seal Point Siamese with another black shorthaired cat of Siamese descent. These cats were formerly known as Chestnut Brown Foreigns. Once American breeders started developing and raising these cats the British and United States varieties began to take on different but similar characteristics.

In 1952 Mrs. Isobel Munro-Smith was attempting to produce a black pointed Siamese by breeding Seal Point Siamese with black shorthaired cats. She wrote the following to the Siamese Cat Club regarding a litter: "The father of these Seal-Points is Tombee who has had some nice litters, amongst them some chocolate points. Tombee and Susannah (the black shorthair) have produced the greatest thrill for all of us because, along with three blacks, they had a beautiful little brown kitten. It is male, Siamese in shape, with a long tail and nicely shaped ears."

This kitten was born on 14 May 1952 and registered as Elmtower Bronze Idol and is the first acknowledged Havana cat.

Elmtower Bronze Idol was mated at least 22 times during 1954 and 1955. In 1955 a mating took place with Roofspringer Marsala, a black shorthair queen who belonged to Edit von Ullmann, who was planning a breeding program to produce self-brown 'Siamese' type cats (i.e. Havanas). The progeny from Elmtower Bronze Idol x Roofspringer Marsala was a male Havana (29) born 27 July 1955 named Roofspringer Muscatel. The next year Roofspringer Muscatel was mated to Roofspringer Periwinkle (29), who was also a grandchild of Elmtower Bronze Idol. The result of this mating was a brown female kitten Roofspringer Mahogany, born on 1 July 1956. Roofspringer Mahogany was later exported to America to Mrs. Elsie Quinn (Quinn Cattery) and mated to another imported self brown, Laurentide Brown Pilgrim born 12 April 1956 who was bred in England by Mrs. Elsie Hargreaves. (Elmtower Bronze Idol was Brown Pilgrim's grandsire on the dam's side).

The kitten produced from the mating between Laurentide Brown Pilgrim and Roofspringer Mahogany was Quinn's Brown Satin of Sidlo, the first Havana Brown to achieve Grand Champion status in America. All North American Havana Browns can trace their heritage to this cat.

Mrs. Armitage Hargreaves (Laurentide) wanted to breed a cat with more stamina which was less highly strung disposition than the Siamese. Working together with Edit von Ullmann, although breeding from different strains, the two began to produce a self-coloured brown cat in 1951.

Edit von Ullmann mated a SH black female, Maximilia Unterkatze born in 1947 to a Chocolate Point Siamese, Shushard born 1 August 1950 (bred by Brian Stirling-Web). The progeny from the mating were SH blacks (a male and a female). Knowing that the recessive chocolate dilution would be present in both the black cats, together with the Siamese restriction factor, van Ullmann used a sibling mating and eventually produced first a self-chocolate male and later a female.

Mrs. Isobel Monro Smith (Elmtower) from Reading had bred a self-coloured brown male cat (Elmtower Bronze Idol - the first recorded Havana). A Seal-Point female, Tsui Chow, born 17 October 1945, owned by Mrs. Monro Smith had an unplanned mating with a LH unregistered black (recorded as 'Pickles'). Tsui Chow was thought to have carried the 'chocolate' factor and passed on to the progeny. A black female 'Susannah' from the litter was later mated to her Seal-Point half-brother, Tombee, born 29 March 1948, (same queen, different sire) who also carried the 'chocolate' factor. The possibility of obtaining a self-brown kitten was very slim but in the third or fourth litter a brown kitten appeared and was kept. This kitten was Elmtower Bronze Idol.

A female carrying the chocolate dilution was mated with Elmtower Bronze Idol resulting in two of the early Roofspringer Havanas. One male, Roofspringer Muscatel and one female, Roofspringer Shandy both born 27 July 1953. Muscatel became the sire (the queen was Roofspringer Periwinkle, born 30 April 1955 out of Roofspringer Mahogany, Female, who later became one of the first Havanas to be exported to the United States).

Armitage Hargreaves crossed Laurentide Ludo, born 16 February 1948, a Seal Point female, probably carrying the chocolate factor, with a Russian Blue, Champion Silverschoen Blue Peter, born 19 November 1946. The cats used in the Havana breeding then were very much self-Siamese. The mating produced a large litter of SH black kittens carrying the blue dilution. One of the black females, Laurentide Ephone Jet, born 7 August 1948 was mated to a Chocolate Point Siamese, Briarry Sacharrin, born 12 May 1950. Their litter born 25 July 1952 included a self blue female of Foreign type, Laurentide Aretoo Pearl, registered as 16a - carrying the chocolate dilution. Laurentide Aretoo Pearl was mated once in 1953 with her sire Briarry Sacharrin and later during 1954 with Elmtower Bronze Idol. The Havanas produced from these matings were later mated to each other. One of the progeny, Laurentide Brown Pilgrim (male) born 12 April 1956, was sent with Roofspringer Mahogany to the United States.

The breeders and prefixes which were prominent during this time were:
Edit von Ullmann (Roofspringer)
Mrs. Armitage Hargreaves (Laurentide)
Mrs. Elsie Fisher (Praha)
Mrs. Isabel Monro Smith (Elmtower)
Mrs. Joan Judd (Crossways)
Dr Nora Archer (Somerville)
Miss Jury (Purring)
Mrs. Dorothy Clavier (Revel)
Mrs. Dora Clarke (Craigiehilloch)
Miss G.H.P. McFarlane (Mahogany)
Misses Davies & Walker (Lightfoot)
Mrs. Sybil Warren (Senlac)
Miss E.R.Swyer (Elvyne)
Mrs. Allen Smith (Hergas)
Mr. T. Scott (Bluetower)
Miss Beckett (Sunland)

[Praha descended from Laurentide (later some Elmtower); Roofspringer descended from Laurentide (Elmtower); Crossways descended from Laurentide/Praha; Craigiehilloch descended from Elmtower; Purring descended from Roofspringer (Elmtower/Laurentide); Revel descended from Elmtower/Roofspringer (Laurentide); Lightfoot descended from Crossways (Praha/Laurentide); Senlac descended from Crossways; Bluetower descended from Elmtower/Praha (Laurentide); Elvyne descended from Crossways/Bluetower (Elmtower)]

Mrs. Elsie Fisher (Praha) took a SH black female kitten from the Laurentide Ephone Jet to Briarry Sacharrin mating, named Laurentide Arduo Prism, born on 25 July 1952. It was mated with a Chocolate Point, Praha Mezzo Forte, born 17 April 1952 and from this mating came Praha Gypka born 2 June 1953 a self-brown male Havana, who was descended from the Laurentide line. Up until this point most of the Havanas were from the Elmtower line.

Mrs. Joan Judd (Crossways) was not happy with the type being produced from the Elmtower line. She mated her Seal Point female, Gentle Mist, born 3 May 1952 with Praha Gypka and produced her first Havana, a female named Crossways Velvet Toy born 7 March 1955. The Crossways Havanas include the first Champion, a female, Crossways Honeysuckle Rose, born 27 September 1958. A male International Champion Crossways Heritor born 18 February 1961 went to Mrs. M.C. de Haas-Zenln in Holland and appears behind many Dutch Havana pedigrees.

During 1954, the four breeders (Edit von Ullmann, Armitage Hargeaves, Isobel Monro Smith and Elsie Fisher) worked together with Mrs. Joan Judd make future plans, exchange views and keep strict records for all breeding lines and, eventually, to apply to the G.C.C.F. for breed recognition of the name Havana.

The Havana was granted recognition by the GCCF, in September 1958 under breed number 29. However, the name assigned was Chestnut Brown Foreign. The Havana Group was not happy with the name Chestnut Brown Foreign but the Executive Committee of GCFF would not relent and the name remained until 1972 when permission was granted to revert to the original name "Havana".

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