History

 Jules du Moulin, a famous Groenendael

 JULES DU MOULIN (LOB 3797)
Born on 16 June 1906

Jules was an amazing dog obedient to every movement and gesture.  Without hesitating he found his muzzle in the bale of straw.  He jumped 2.70m high and 4.20m far. Conscientiously he tore the shirt of the apache, he attacked him without worrying about the strokes of the cane.  Jules, belonging to Mr Charles Tedesco of Auderghem, was classified first with 285 points at the age of two and a half.  This happened on 15 and 16 August 1908 at the World Championship for defence dogs in Paris. The location, just like a theatre, was the lawn of the winter cycle-racing track. The competitors: eight dogs and two bitches, wit a majority of Groenendaels.   

In second place was Porthos, also a Groenendael of two and half years old, belonging to Mr Semal with 280 points.  His tracking was perfect, just like his attack and defence.  In third place we find Fédor, a very young Belgian shepherd, barely fifteen months, belonging to Mr Leclercq.  He obtained only 235 points, although in the second part of the competition, he showed the most accomplishments.  Then followed two bitches come belonging to Mr Siméons:  Folette, a four year old bitch with 232 points and Mordienne, a fourteen month old bitch.   

With 306 point out of a total of 360, Jules showed himself very superior and very accomplished, won the competition for the second time (1909). The contest had been organised for three consecutive years with the best dogs from France and Belgium.

These are the results of the first eight participants:

Jules will also win the International Competition of Paris on 27 April 1913 before Joliette, Carl de la Mare, Pataud and the Beauceron Rouget II du Gourdon.  

Thirty-three competitors defended their chances during the 1914 International Competition of Paris on the cycle-racing track of the Parc des Princes in Auteuil.  The program to be carried out was that of Kennel Club Belgian of 1913. 

The tests began Friday 1 May at 14 o’clock to finish on Sunday 3 May at about 18 o’clock.  The first prize was a Sèvres vase donated by the President of the Republic. And again it was Jules who won this competition for the fifth time, preceeding the Beauceron Rouget du Gourdon and the Malinois Tom des Crosnes (LOB 3792, born on 22 July 1909). Top de la Joliette, in the hands of his new owner, Mr Carbonel, President of the Belgian Sheepdog French Amateurs Club, was twelfth.  In fifteenth place we mark the presence of Djeck du Thiriau, a Malinois belonging to Mr Octave Durant of Deurne.  The latter was also the owner of Sam du Thiriau LOB 10280 (alias Samox LOSH 20601) and I hope to be able to tell you more about this man who is rather well known in the world of the Belgian ring.   

Not only did Jules win the Paris International Championship five consecutive times (1908, 1909, 1912, 1913 and 1914), but he also, and not many people know this, won the first two editions of the Belgian Ring Championships.  Those were organised by Belgian Kennel Club in 1913 and 1914 at the Palais du Cinquantenaire in Brussels.  Numerous exercises were done without muzzles. 

If Jules had shown himself a superior and accomplished dog, who where his descendants?  Born on 16 June 1906, Jules would be carrying the number LOB 3797. The breeder is Mr Laureys of Hoeylaert. His father is the Tervueren Dick and Miss was his mother. Apparently he had very few descendants since the only information found is about the bitch Charmante de l’Agriculture (LOB 3995), born on 8 April 1910 by Jules du Moulin (5), out of Neva du Moulin with Mr Tedesco of Auderghem. 

Jules had large white spot on his chest and on the tip of his toes. In those days, a lot of our Groenendaels had these marks on the forehead, the chest and the toes. The white lily-like mark on the forehead has completely disappeared over time. White paws have become a rarity.  The white star on the chest is less common, but continues to appear obstinately in certain families, if only in the form of some white hairs lost in the black.  Their recessiveness appears therefore, if not completely eliminated, at least extremely decreased. 

Jean-Marie Vanbutsele
(translated by Pascale)