Friesian horse

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Friesian horse

The Friesian horse is a breed of horse from Friesland, a province of the Netherlands. Although originally bred as a draft horse, the breed is graceful and nimble for its size and later developed into a finer-boned nobleman's steed. During the Middle Ages, Friesian horses were in great demand as destriers throughout Europe since their size enabled them to carry a knight in full armor. After a few close calls with breed extinction, the Friesian horse is now growing in numbers and popularity, proving to excel in both dressage and driving.

Breed characteristics

The Friesian is probably best known for its black color and luxurious mane, tail, and 'feathers' (long, untrimmed hair on the lower legs). The official breed rarely has white markings of any kind, because registries allow only a small star on the forehead for purebred conformance. Though extremely rare, Friesians are sometimes chestnut, and these horses cannot be registered. The Friesian's average height is about 15.3 hands (1.60 m), although it may vary from 14.2 to 17 hands (between 1.5 m and 1.7 m) tall at the withers, and mares must be at least 15.2 hands (1.57 m) tall to qualify for a special 'star-designation' pedigree. [1] The breed has a spectacular trot, both fast and high-stepping. The Friesian is very willing, active, and energetic but also gentle and docile. A Friesian tends to have great presence and to carry itself very proudly.

The breed has powerful overall conformation and good bone structure. Friesians have long, elegant, arched necks and well-chiseled, short-eared, "Spanish type" heads. Their sloping shoulders are quite powerful. They have compact yet muscular bodies with strong sloping hindquarters and a low-set tail. Their limbs are comparatively short and strong.

History of the Friesian

The breed was developed in the province of Friesland in the northern Netherlands, where there is evidence of thousands of years of horse populations, and this breed is said to have descended from the primitive Forest Horse. It is also said that Romans obtained Friesian horses for riding and also took them to England, where the breed may have influenced the Shire horse, Clydesdale, Fell Pony and Dales Pony.

Friesians were used in medieval times to carry knights to battle. In the 12th and 13th centuries, some eastern horses of crusaders were mated with Friesian stock. Sometime after the Middle Ages came to an end, the Friesian breed was dying out. Soon there was only two left, fortunately male and female. They were carefuly captured and bred in an attempt to bring back the breed. During the 16th and 17th centuries, when there was less demand for heavy war horses as battle arms changed and especially when Spanish forces occupied The Netherlands during the Eighty Years' War, Andalusian blood was added to lighten the breed in order to lighten its weight and thereby render it more suitable (in terms of less food intake and waste output) for work as a more urban carriage horse. Friesians were also used by riding schools in France and Spain for high-school dressage, and they remain a student-favored breed to this day for their gentle temperaments and proud dark beauty.

The breed was especially popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, when they were not only in demand as harness horses and for agricultural work, but also for the trotting races then so popular. The Friesian was used as foundation stock for breeds such as the Orlov Trotter, the Norfolk Trotter (ancestor of the Hackney), and the Morgan. In the 1800s the Friesian was bred to be lighter and faster for trotting, however this led to what some owners and breeders regarded as inferior stock, so a movement to return to pureblood stock took place by the end of the century.

The Friesian stud registry book, Friesch Paarden Stamboek (FPS) was founded in 1879 by a group of Dutch farmers dedicated to preserving the breed. Friesians had become popular for crossbreeding due to their excellent trot, presence, and color, and as a result, Friesian "purity" was severely threatened. The "Royal Society Het Friesch Paarden-Stamboek" was founded to protect and promote the breed's bloodline.

In spite of the creation of the Society, Friesian horse populations continued to dwindle into the early 20th century partly due to displacement by petroleum-powered farm equipment and passenger vehicles. Due to fuel rationing during World War II the Freisian's farm and carriage use was revived, saving the breed long enough for both its population and popularity to rebound.

The Friesian also influenced the "Old Black Horse" of the U.S. farm belt (especially the Midwest, where unpredictable and unseasonal weather often paddocked less robust breeds), influenced the Dole Gudbrandsdal of Norway, and formed the stock base for Germany's Marbach stud, contributing to the development of both the Oldenburg and the Württemberger breeds.

Today, there are two distinct conformation types. The baroque type has the more robust build of the classical Friesian. The modern, sport horse type is finer-boned. Conformation type is judged less important than correct movement, and both types are common today.

The Friesian today

A Friesian stallion

From the latter part of the 20th century until the present, demand for purebreds, particularly the finer-boned, taller, more agile version of the Friesian increased, so breeders began to produce both purebreds and a lighter-weight crossbred horse with valued characteristics.

Friesian and Friesian-mixed horses excel in dressage competitions due the breed's strong intellect, show-form looks, power, and body control. Due to its heavy, muscular physique the purebred Friesian is not well-suited to aerobic sports like horse racing or endurance riding, but its status as a student and dressage horse is excellent.

The Friesian also remains popular as a carriage horse, as its high-stepping action makes it eye-catching and impressive. It is particularly popular in competitions that require the driving of a team, partly because of its movement and disposition, and partly because it is easy to match teams of black horses. Friesians are also good all-around horses, used for showing, driving, and general riding, and are also used as circus horses. Due to their striking appearance and mild temperament, the Friesian is a popular choice in the entertainment industry. In fact the breed owes much of it's current popularity in the United States to the appearance of a Friesian stallion in the 1985 film, Ladyhawke, which ignited a worldwide interest in the breed. Recent films such as The Mask of Zorro and Alexander have featured Friesian horses.

External links

• Friesch Paarden-Stamboek
• Friesian Horse Association of North America
• The North American Friesian Journal
• Friesian Crazy
• The Friesian