 He oversaw personally the "Great Stable" ("grande écurie").The authority of the Grand Écuyer also extended across the realm, as he oversaw horse breeding and provincial military academies created to educate young nobles.Distinct from this officer and independent of him, was the first equerry ("Premier Écuyer de France"), who had charge of the horses which the sovereign used personally (the "Little Stable" or "petite écurie"), and who attended on him when he rode out.