How British selection established the hen-feathered Campine

The Rare Poultry Society describes a Belgian population in which most males before 1900 had ordinary cock feathering, with hen-feathered males appearing occasionally. British enthusiasts wanted the hen-feathered form partly to simplify the breeding of the patterned plumage. Edward Brown's writing in 1897 helped prompt imports, and a British club formed around 1900.

According to the society, a Silver male hatched from imported Belgian eggs became a successful exhibition bird in 1904. His sons circulated among club members; crosses with Golden females helped establish hen-feathered Golden males by 1911. The modern British standard consequently describes males without the usual sickles or pointed neck and saddle hackles. This history explains why a breed's present standard need not reproduce every form once found in its home region. Campine identity involves both regional ancestry and later deliberate selection.