- Although the Lipizzaner is not built to be a fast horse, its powerful hindquarters do enable it to perform complex show movements. The “dancing Lipizzaners” of the famous Knie Circus are known and admired throughout the world. The precise, perfect movements of these horses are possible only after years of rigorous training. For the first few months, young stallions are trained on a lunging rein. In this early time, the young horses learn to obey commands and to trust their trainers. Next, the young stallions are ridden. At first, they simply learn to go forward. But mainly they are learning to understand and follow the riders’ directions. Then they can learn the walk, trot, and canter. Over time, the lessons become more and more complex. After a great deal of training, the horses become more flexible, and they are better able to balance themselves. The end result is graceful movement and absolute control of their muscles to make a stunning and seemingly effortless performance.
- The Lipizzaner is one of the most athletic and intelligent of all the horse breeds. It has short, powerful limbs with flat joints and strong bones. Lipizzaners stand 59-62 inches (150-157 centimeters or about 15 hands) tall. They weigh an imposing 1,000 – 1,300 pounds (450-585 kilograms). They have hard hooves as a result of the rocky, limestone country surrounding Lipica. Lipizzaners have a calm, placid temperament, making them very disciplined students.
- Lipizzaners are probably the rarest, most aristocratic breed of horse in the world. They are descended from six lines of stallions named Pluto, Conversano, Neapolitano, Favory, Meastoso, and Siglavy, and eighteen families of mares.
- Besides the classically trained Lipizzaners, there are other types, as well. Some Lipizzaners are bred mainly as workhorses. These horses are ideally suited for agricultural work because they are heavier and smaller than the school horses. A bigger, free-moving Lipizzaner, perfect for pulling carriages, is bred in Hungary. The Lipizzaner is also appreciated as an outstanding recreational riding horse. The powerful haunches, strong backs, intelligence, and grace of all the Lipizzaners have made this a popular horse the world over.
- The days of the Lipizzaner as the parade horse of the royal courts were over long ago. Today, these horses are ideal for leisure riding. Good-natured and intelligent, they are a versatile recreational and sport horse. They are particularly successful in driving competitions. In Hungary, Lipizzaners are crossed with trotter to improve their chances of winning international horse races.
- The magnificent Lipizzaner stallions were originally bred for use in battle. Soldiers on the backs of the Lipizzaners maneuvered their stallions to perform incredible leaps and plunges that frightened the enemy foot soldiers into retreating. During modern times, Lipizzaner stallions still perform there spectacular leaps. But this time, the result is applause and admiration from horse lovers around the world.
- The breed originated in 1580 in the small town of Lipica (also know as Lipizza) near the city of Trieste, in Italy (once part of the Austrian Empire). In that year, 9 stallions and 24 mares were imported from the Iberian Peninsula at the order of Archduke Charles II of Austria. These horses were the initial stock for breeding parade-horses for the imperial court in Vienna. The royal family of Austria, the Hapsburgs, were the owners of the horses. No common person was allowed to own a Lipizzaner. However, nobels serving with the Hapsburg armies were giving Lipizzaners to ride. The Spanish Adalusians were crossed with the strong, stocky, native Italian horses, whose endurance and strength had been praised since Roman times. Another ancestor of the Lipizzaner was the Neapolitan, a cross between Andalusian and Arabian horses that was popular during the Baroque era because of its slow, high-stepping gait (the Spanish gait).
- The horses at Lipica often had to be evacuated to protect them from attack during times of war. In 1797, the herd was rescued from the approaching French army and set out on a forty-day march to Hungary. After six months, the horses were returned to Lipica. In 1805, they had to leave their home once again. Through ice and snow, the horses were moved to Slovenia, where they stayed for two years before their return in 1807. In 1809, they had to be evacuated again, this time to Hungary, where they remained until 1815. World War II almost put an end to the Lipizzaners. Many of the horses were rounded up and held by the German army. It was only thanks to the combined efforts of the director of the Spanish Riding School, their breeding manager, and United States Army General George Patton that the herd of about three hundred survived the threat of the approaching Russian front. The story of this incident is told in the Walt Disney movie, Miracle of the White Stallions.
- Every horse lover who has seen them is captivated by the Lipizzaners of the Spanish Riding School. Watching the Lipizzaner stallions perform with their riders dressed in brown tails is an unforgettable experience. The Lipizzaners are one of the worlds olders breeds of horses in the world. They have been bred specifically for the Spanish Riding School for over four hundred years. The school was founded in 1572 to instruct noblemen in classical horseback riding.
- Outside of Vienne, Lipizzaners are also bred in many of the countries that used to be part of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. Although the Lipizzaners originated from the Andalusian line, other ancestors include Arabian, Neapolitan and Kladruber horses.
- During the Baroque era (the seventeenth and first half of the eighteenth centuries), Spanish horses were considered to be the best thoroughbred riding and carriage horses. Ownership of these horses was a status symbol in all the royal courts of Europe. The Spanish horses, also known as Andalusians, were a cross between the heavy, native horses of Spain and the horses belonging to the Berbers of Arabia. The Berbers came to Spain in the eight century, when Spain was conquered by the Moors. When it eventually became too expensive to import horses for the royal stables directly from Spain, many European courts began to establish their own breeding areas.