Horse
Pronunciation:
Lip-its-AH-na
Breed Description:
The Lipizzaner (or Lipizzan) breed of horse is in a class of its own. These are the amazing performing white horses that you will see if you visit the Spanish Riding School in Vienna to watch the stallions perform classical dressage. There are also Lipizzaners from the same line that are bred and perform regularly in South Africa. These are the only Lipizzaners performing outside of Vienna that are recognized by the Spanish Riding School and their breeding program.
Lipizzaner horses have been carefully bred from six principal foundation stallions that were born in the 18th and 19th century in Austria. They are trained in the classical way as ceremonial show and parade horses, using movements that only the top Olympic dressage horses might be able to master. Some people might say that these are movements that you would see in the circus – but only in a top quality, highly rated circus meant for royalty! These horses really are remarkable and they have an amazing aptitude when it comes to learning the haute école (which involves the more difficult feats of horsemanship).
The haute école differentiates between exercises on and above the ground. For example, movements on the ground include gallop changes like the pirouette, piaffe and passage. Movements on the ground include the pesade, levade, mezair, courbette, ballotade, croupade and capriole. All are drawn from natural movements and are incredible to watch.
One of the most fascinating aspects of the Lipizzaner is its color. While any other “white” horse is usually referred to as grey, the Lipizzaner breed of horse it usually WHITE, even though foals are born brown or grey. As they get older, they get whiter and whiter, and by the time they are ten, there’s not a dark hair left. It’s quite something to see little dark foals running alongside their snow white mothers.
Another notable fact (rather than feature) of the Lipizzaner is that it has been threatened by extinction many times, particularly during the World Wars. The reason there are Lipizzaners in South Africa is that they were rescued from the Nazis and exported to safety.
The first Lipizzaners in the USA were imported by the Austrian-born singer Madame Maria Jeritza who lived in California. She and her husband used the horses in a movie they produced in 1938. It is understood that some the horses ended up in circuses.
Temperament:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse is intelligent and incredibly good natured. Even the performing stallions are easy to handle.
Height:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse is on average between 14 and 15 hands or a maximum of 60 inches at the withers. Some horses are bigger.
Weight:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse is quite small and they are average in terms of weight.
Health Problems:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse is a sturdy breed that has beaten odds over the years. It doesn’t have any particular health problems.
Living Conditions:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse is normally stabled at night.
Exercise:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse needs regular exercise and schooling, particular if the horse is going to be performing.
Life Expectancy:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse only really comes into its own when it is 10 or 11 years old. The horses that perform go on until they are 22 or 23 years old – and they live a lot longer than this once they are retired.
Grooming:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse needs regular grooming, particulary the white stallions that perform.
Origin:
The Lipizzaner breed of horse originated at a stud at Lipizza in the Austrian Empire in 1580 when Archduke Charles II needed to produce good horses for the imperial stables in Vienna. This was known as the Royal and Imperial Court Stud of Lipizza on the Karst.
There were originally just nine stallions and 24 mares, and these are the ancestors of today’s incredible Lipizzaners. In those days the Spanish horse played a similar role to that played by the Thoroughbred in the 20th century. Originally produced during the Moorish rule by crossing Arab and Berber stallions with the indigenous Iberian (Spanish) breeds, the early Lipizzaner had all the advantages that were valued by nobility. These included enormous physical strength that was combined with light, graceful action and an amazing aptitude for classical dressage.
When it comes to bloodlines, there are six principal foundation stallions that matter. The funny thing is that they weren’t all white. They were Pluto, a white horse of pure Spanish descent; Conversano, a black Neapolitan; Favory, a dun; Neapolitano, a bay horse; Siglavy an Arab; and Maestoso another white horse.
