Dressage and the Lipizzaner

Tags: Lipizzaner, Competition, Dressage, Training

 

The Lipizzaner is probably best known for its extraordinary ability in dressage, but this pairing is by no means an accident, as the breed has been trained in the ancient art of dressage for centuries. Thanks to the breed's connection to the oldest riding school of its kind in the world, the Spanish Riding School, the Lipizzaner can still be seen today being trained in the traditional, Haute Ecole methods of dressage that date back to the 18th century.

The Lipizzaner can trace its history in Austria back to the middle of the 16th century, when the Hapsburg Emperor Maximillian II, who ruled over Spain and Austria, brought Spanish horses to Austria and established a stud. They wouldn't earn the name Lipizzaner until Maximillian's brother, Archduke Charles II, established a stud at Lippiza in modern day Slovenia. Around the same time, a white wooden training arena was built, but it wouldn't be until 1729 that the present day white training arena, designed by architect Fischer von Erlach, was built. The name of the training academy, the Spanish Riding School (literally the Spanish Court Riding-School in German), is in reference to the breed's origins.

There are three stages of dressage training for the Lipizzaner at the Spanish Riding School. The first stage is called Forward Riding or Straight Riding, and begins when a stallion is brought to the riding school at four years old. This beginning stage is mostly comprised of strengthening the horse in preparation for a rider, which won't happen for at least two or three months after the training has begun. The horse is taught to be saddled as well as bridled, to follow instruction and improve obedience, and also to transition between gaits. Once a horse has cultivated his free-forward movement, he is ready to move on to the second stage.

The second stage of training is called Campaign or Elementary Dressage. Stallions usually reach this stage after one year of training in the first stage, though it should be noted that each horse is taken on an individual basis. In this second stage, the stallion is paired with an experienced rider, who can both further the horse's education and correct any bad habits. In this stage, the horse learns collection, or the practice of keeping most of his weight on his hind legs, which not only protects the horse but helps it prepare for more advanced moves such as jumping and airs above the ground. The horse also improves his impulsion, his body carriage, flexibility, while simultaneously working on his gaits. This stage takes the longest of the three stages.

The last stage of the traditional dressage is the Haut Ecole, or High School. Many of the exercises taught in the Campaign phase are used in this last phase as a means of perfecting the horse's straightness, impulsion, collection, and gaits. It is during this time that the horse will learn the most difficult of exercises, such as the piaffe, counter canter, half-pass, pirouette, flying change and passage. At this time, the stallion is assessed to see if he has what it takes to learn the most demanding and difficult exercises of all the airs above the ground. Once the horses are chosen for this special honor, the horse is taught the airs most suitable for him, first on the ground and then under the saddle.

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