 However, there were exceptions; in the 7th century a Merovingian kingdom still retained at least one active Roman horse breeding centre.The Spanish also retained many quality horses, in part due to the historic reputation of the region as a horse-breeding land, and partially due to the cultural influences related to the Islamic conquest of the Iberian peninsula between the 8th and 15th centuries.The origins of the medieval war horse are obscure, although it is believed they had some Barb and Arabian blood through the Spanish Jennet, a forerunner to the modern Friesian and Andalusian horse.