Basset Hounds are of French lineage, descendant of the St. Hubert's Hound, a dog similar to the present-day Bloodhound. Friars of St. Hubert's Abbey in medieval France desired a shorter-legged dog capable of following a scent under brush in thick forests.
Wikipedia contributors, 'Basset Hound,' Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Basset_Hound&oldid=182382876 (accessed January 8, 2008).