Germany's Rarest Warmblood Olympian -- the Holsteiner Horse

The Holsteiner Warmblood Horse is the product of carefully organized breeding for over 750 years in the northernmost province of Germany. The horse was originally bred to provide valuable characteristics such as strength, steadiness and reliability for farmers and courage and agility for the military, but the Holsteiner has since developed into one of the great German sporting horses that is particularly well suited for jumping, dressage, driving and eventing of Olympic caliber.

The Holsteiner horse originated in the Schleswig-Holsteiner region and was bred primarily in the areas surrounding the city of Elmshorn. Early breeding was done in the monasteries with emphasis on creating an elegant riding and carriage horse that could also work the fields in the harsh climate of the region. After the Reformation, breeding was done by the state and individual farmers. Great pride was taken in selecting the best quality mares and stallions and in keeping accurate breeding records. Numbers known as stamms, or stems, were assigned to each new mare line and these numbers were passed down through the generations from mother to daughter; this practice is still in existence today.

In the 16th and 17th century, both Spanish and Neapolitan stallions were crossed in to the breed. This dominated the appearance of the Holsteiner with features such as a “Roman Nose” and an impressive size until the 19th century when during the Prussian time of Holstein, the state stud at Traventhal was founded in1867. In 1891 the breeders on the marshes united and in 1896 the Geest region breeders also founded a society, the German Holsteiner Verband. Of great importance was the founding of the riding and driving school at Elmshorn in 1894. The state stud Traventhal finally closed in 1960 and each stallion was transferred to the breeder's association.

The elegant carriage horses of the 1800's were produced by the inclusion of the Yorkshire Coach Horse and the Cleveland Bay from imported stallions. When the shift toward breeding horses specially suited to the Olympic disciplines of dressage, eventing and show jumping, the Holsteiner Verband brought in the English Thoroughbred, Anglo Arab/Norman and Selle Francais stallions to change the Holsteiner type.

The Holsteiner Warmblood stallions influenced many local breeds or were even used as foundations. When the state stud at Celle was founded in 1735, 13 Holsteiner stallions were in the foundation of the Hanoverian breed. Further, Holsteiner Warmbloods were used in Westphalia to improve the small local breeds and in 1780 some Holsteiner were sold to Oldenburg.

The Holsteiner Warmblood horse was praised so highly as a riding horse that the French bought thousands of them for cavalry horses. Just before World War II, there was a great demand for the Holsteiner Warmblood horse in South America and other countries, while in Germany it was mostly used as an artillery horse. Eventually the Holsteiner was in great demand all over Europe as a carriage and riding horse particularly noted for its high knee action.

Today's Holsteiner Warmblood horse is similar to the English or Irish Hunter which is a powerful horse that is suited for show jumping as well as driving .But it was the introduction of Thoroughbred blood from a steeplechase stallion in the 19th century that at last dominated the appearance of the Holsteiner riding horse.

The Holsteiner Warmblood's conformation is different from that of other German warmblood horses such as the Trakehner. It is similar to the Hanoverian Warmblood, only a bit heavier. The Holsteiner is heavily built with a compact rounded body and a long, crested neck topped by a small head with large intelligent eyes. . The barrel is large and the croup is heavy with a broad back and a well set tail. The legs are comparatively short and strong boned with powerful hindquarters that make them great at show jumping. They have an excellent movement (needed for dressage), and sloping shoulders that make them great gallopers.

This conformation adapts easily to "self-carriage" which is an expressive, elegant quality of movement that is essential in modern equestrian disciplines. When the Holsteiner takes his first strides, his reputation as one of the world's finest sport horses is evident. He moves forward with elevation and suspension, giving an impression of strength, balance and elasticity. This fluid movement makes him the ideal Sporthorse. Dependable, relaxed, and coupled with renowned intelligence, the Holsteiner is known for its kind temperament and willingness to work.

But only solid bay, black, brown, chestnut, and gray-colored horses are eligible to receive the Holsteiner brand. Even though a dark buckskin Thoroughbred stallion named Marlon xx produced a number of buckskin and palomino Holsteiner offspring, these colors are not allowed in the studbook. Additionally, white spots larger than a dinner plate or evidence of pinto or leopard patterns are considered to be disqualifications.

In North America, the American Holsteiner Horse Association (AHHA) functions as an independent registry organization while maintaining an informal working relationship with the German Holsteiner Verband (GHV) and carrying out the breeding practices of the GHV. The AHHA conducts annual breeding stock inspections and only those horses which are of sufficient quality are eligible to produce registered offspring.

When naming that offspring, certain conventions must be followed as required by the German Holsteiner Verband. Each year a filly's name must begin with the letter designated for that year, so for the year 2008 a female offspring’s name must begin with the letter = "A". Male offspring must be named such that the first letter of the colt's name is the same as the first letter of his sire’s name, although use of the sire’s name as part of the foal’s registered name is discouraged.

The Holsteiner studbook is one of the smallest equine studbooks in Europe. Approximately 6% of the total horse population. But in spite of its small size, it has consistently produced some of the world's most successful international horses in all equine disciplines. For example, the Holsteiner dominated the proceedings in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal in Dressage, 3-Day Evening and Show Jumping.

That high performance quality is still being carried on into the 21st century. Holsteiner stallions continue to produce some of America's top dressage horses, with several earning United States Dressage Federation "Horse of the Year" awards at various levels.


About Crystal Eikanger

Crystal Eikanger is a freelance writer, web designer, video editor and voice talent working as Ei-Kan Productions on www.rentacoder.com as well as other freelance sites. www.HorseClicks.com is a popular website filled with classifieds of horses for sale, horse trailers, tack, and horse related properties.