Horse Breed: Bavarian Warmblood
Name of breed: Bavarian Warmblood, or Bayerisches Warmblut Country of origin: Germany Breed origin: The Bavarian Warmblood developed from an ancient Bavarian breed called the Rottaler. The best Rottalers were calm, substantial, all-purpose horses used for everything from carriage driving to plowing to riding. A registry for Rottalers was founded in 1907, but when the […]
Horse Breed: Falabella
Name of breed: Falabella Miniature Horse, or simply Falabella Country of origin: Argentina Breed origin: The ancestors of the Falabella are believed to have been brought to Latin America by the Spaniards, eventually forming large wild herds that roamed the vast pampas and in turn gave rise to various breeds including the Criollo. Shaped by natural […]
18 of the Best Horse Travel Books
2020 is shaping up to be the unofficial Year of the Armchair Traveller, so with that in mind, we asked our globetrotters for their recommendations on horse travel books to help tide us over until we can get back in the saddle on another horse riding holiday. The following true stories all come highly recommended, […]
Horse Breed: Knabstrupper
Name of breed: Knabstrupper, or Knabstrup Country of origin: Denmark Breed origin: The Knabstrupper is believed to trace back to the prehistoric spotted horses that were native to what is now Spain. Cave paintings of horses with spots akin to the leopard patterning seen in many Knabstruppers have been discovered in these regions. However, the […]
Horse Breed: Pottok
Name of breed: Pottok, or Pottoka. Also known as the Basque Pony. Country of origin: The Basque Country in France and Spain Breed origin: The Pottok is native to the Basque Country in France and Spain and is one of the most ancient horse breeds in Europe, although its origins are the subject of much speculation. […]
Horse Breed: Spanish Mustang
Name of breed: Spanish Mustang, officially known as the Colonial Spanish Horse. Country of origin: United States Breed origin: Contrary to what its name implies, the Spanish Mustang (or Colonial Spanish Horse) is not a wild horse breed, nor is it especially closely related to the Mustang. The Spanish Mustang is descended from various horse […]
Horse Breed: Garrano
Name of breed: Garrano Country of origin: Portugal Breed origin: This breed is so ancient that Northern Iberian Paleolithic cave paintings depict horses with a striking resemblance! During the most recent ice age, which ended about 10,000 years ago, many species of flora and fauna in northern Europe migrated south, where the climate was more […]
Horse Breed: Black Forest Horse
Name of breed: Black Forest Horse – in German, Schwarzwälder Kaltblut or Schwarzwälder Füchs Country of origin: Germany Breed origin: As the name suggests, the Black Forest Horse developed in the Black Forest (Schwarzwald) in Germany’s Baden-Württemberg region as far back as 600 years ago. Horse breeding in the area has been documented since the […]
A Very Bavarian Easter: the Saint George Ride
Processions on horseback are traditional in many rural regions of Bavaria, Germany. Perhaps one of the most well known processions is the ‘Georgiritt’ – the Saint George Ride – in the city of Traunstein every Easter Monday. The earliest known record of this festival dates back to 1762, although it probably evolved from a medieval […]
Horse Breed: Mérens
Name of breed: Mérens, also known as the Ariégeois pony. Country of origin: Southern France (the Pyrenees and Ariégeois mountains) and Northern Spain (near Andorra) Breed origin: The Mérens horse is thought to have emerged in prehistoric times, although the early history of the breed remains a mystery. It could have come from the Iberian […]
Horse Breed: Kazakh
Name of breed: Kazakh horse Country of origin: Kazakhstan Breed origin: The Kazakh horse dates back at least as far as the 5th century, when it already had a large population. Its ancestors were wild horses of the steppe, but the breed was later refined and selectively bred by the Kazakh people, who primarily live […]
Horse breed: Colorado Ranger
Name of breed: Colorado Ranger, or Rangerbred Country of origin: United States of America Breed origin: The Colorado Ranger is named for its homeland, the Colorado High Plains in the USA. The breed’s story begins in 1878, when General U.S. Grant visited Sultan Abdul Hamid of Turkey. As a token of their friendship, the Sultan […]
Horse Breed: Aegidienberger
Name of breed: Aegidienberger Country of origin: Germany Breed origin: The Aegidienberger was developed in Germany by crossing the elegant Peruvian Paso with the the hardy Icelandic Horse. The first Aegidienberger was bred in the 1980s by a man named Walter Feldmann and his son, Walter Junior. The aim was to breed ‘a natural tölting […]
Horse Breed: Marismeño
Name of breed: Marismeño Country of origin: Spain Breed origin: The Marismeño is an endangered breed, and one of the oldest in Europe. It is native to the marshlands of the Guadalquivir River in Andalusia, Spain. Current populations exist mostly within the Doñana National Park, a 543 km2 nature reserve of marshes, sand dunes and shallow […]
Mari Lwyd, the Scary Welsh Christmas Horse
Yep, it’s as weird as it sounds – no, weirder, actually. The Welsh Christmas-time tradition of Mari Lwyd involves a hobby horse made by mounting a horse’s skull on a stick, with a white sheet decorated with ribbons and bells concealing the man beneath, who animates the horse. The Mari Lwyd, the white mare, is […]
Horse Breed: Dole
Name of breed: Dole, but it’s also known as the Dølehest, Dole Trotter, Dole Gudbrandsdal, Ostlandhester and Norwegian Trotter. Country of origin: Norway Breed origin: The Dole is the largest of Norway’s four native horse breeds. It originated in the Gudbrandsdal valley in the east of Norway and while organised breeding only began in the […]
Horse breed: Criollo
Name of breed: Criollo, sometimes called the Argentine Criollo Country of origin: South America – Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay Breed origin: The Criollo is synonymous with the gaucho (the horseman and cowboy of the pampas) – the saying goes that a gaucho without a horse is the same as a man without legs. The Criollo’s […]
Horse Breed: Dales Pony
Name of breed: Dales Pony, or simply Dales Country of origin: United Kingdom Breed origin: A native mountain and moorland pony from the Yorkshire Dales of England, this breed was originally developed as a pack pony for the lead industry, which flourished in the region from Roman times until the mid-19th century. Teams of nine […]
Horse Breed: Cleveland Bay
Name of breed: Cleveland Bay Country of origin: England Breed origin: The Cleveland Bay is England’s oldest breed of horse, although the Cleveland Bay Horse Society and studbook was not formed until 1884. It is also the last remaining pure breed of warmblood! The origins of the Cleveland Bay predate any written records of its […]
Horse Breed – Belgian Draft Horse
Name of breed: Belgian Draft Horse, also called the Belgian Heavy Horse or simply the Belgian. Country of origin: Belgium Breed origin: The Belgian Draft Horse is a breed from the Brabant region of modern Belgium. Many believe it is descended from the destrier – the best-known Medieval war horse. Regardless, it is certainly true […]
Horse Breed: Welsh Pony & Cob
Name of breed: Welsh Pony and Cob Country of origin: Wales Breed origin: The Welsh Pony and Cob is technically four closely related breeds, all of which developed in Wales. There is evidence to suggest that a Welsh-type pony existed before 1600 BC, and these ponies were certainly well-established by the time the Romans reached […]