Some History of the Lipizzaners
The aristocratic Lipizzaners are descended from the Iberian Horse, which is the oldest breed in the world. Iberians were used as war horses from 4000 years before Mohammed, when camels were used as mounts in warfare and their Lipizzaner descendants today are trained to perform movements which were originally taught to military mounts so that they were more effective in battle.
The breed was first established in 1590, by the Archduke of Austria, Charles II. He began the first stud farm in Lipizza, then a part of Italy, and began breeding the Iberian with the native breeds of Italy. Until well into the late 1700s, these horses were crossbred with the finest of horses from Spain, Italy and Arabia. They were used, during that time, as family and carriage horses for the Royal Court in Vienna.
In 1735, Charles VI of Austria established the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. It is the oldest riding school in the world (so named for the Spanish horses who were a large foundation of the breed), and for more than 400 years has trained riders and horses to perform the classical dressage movements which have made the Lipizzaner...