THE HOLSTEINER

The Holsteiner horse is a type of German Warmblood so named because they were and still are, bred in the region of Holstein in Germany. They date back to as far as 450 AD when the Holsteiners were used as a type of German Marsh horse similar to a heavy draft. In the 1600 and 1700's Holsteiners were used around Europe as Cavalry mounts. By the 19th century heavy cavalry horses were no longer required for the battlefields and the first modification in type was made when Thoroughbred and other lighter types of stallions were used to influence the breed. The result was a most noble and sturdy of carriage horses that were most popular around Europe.

Into the 20th century and breeding of the Holsteiner was interrupted by the two World Wars. Numbers became depleted and disbursed through Europe. It wasn't until 1960 that a new governing body in Germany was formed and by 1976 the official mare band was back to 3000 and stallions 70. Since the sixties Thoroughbred and Anglo Norman blood has been added to the breed to produce a horse suitable as a sporthorse. The Holsteiner has acquired more elegant looks and has the most promising future as a jumper, event or dressage horse. The breed has combined the elegance of the Thoroughbred with the dependability, power, ability, heart and stamina of the Holsteiner to today produce one of the most successful and sought after modern sporthorses.

The result of careful breeding over many centuries are seen through the successes of such horses as Ratina Z -World Champion showjumping mare, Classic Touch - Olympic Showjumping Gold Medallist, Lucky Lord and Corlandus -both sensational dressage horses, Granat - World Champion and Gold Medal winning dressage horse and finally My Fair Lady who was a World Champion in Eventing. At the most recent Olympic games at Sydney there were 19 Holsteiners competing and these included two gold medal winning horses in Chacomo(Team Dressage) and Dobel's Cento (Team Showjumping). These successes have seen the other great breeds of Europe introduce Holsteiner blood into their studbooks to improve their breeds. To us this says it all.


HOLSTEINERS IN AUSTRALIA

The Holsteiner Horse Association of Australia was first formed in 1975 after the importation from Germany of several Holsteiner stallions which included Flaneur, Romedio, Wildfeuer and Talisman. In the early eighties Contact and Falkland arrived and together these stallions formed the Foundation Sires of our Association.

It is the aim of this Association to register and promote Holsteiner horses in Australia and to lay down breeding guidelines for breeders to follow. In the short space of time Holsteiners have been in this country their influence has been outstanding. We have seen Talkind and Colleen Brook represent us overseas in Showjumping and Close Encounters and Jadalco (Imp now exp) performed well on the World Cup circuit, as well as several talented young horses who are rapidly rising through the ranks including Jeff Bloomfields mount Williamsburg and David Dobson's Supanova and Kelly Anne Crowes Too Red as well as the Noblewood Park imports Collins, Cantara, Carlotta and Lidwina.

Barrabadeen Troubadour

Noblewood Park Cantara

In the dressage world an early Flaneur stallion Condor went to Prix St George, Isle of Hinton and Snowview Romboli are competing at Grand Prix and on a National level horses such as Barrabadeen Troubadour (Aust. Champ Prix St George) and HRH (starting at Inter I and II) are waving the Holsteiner flag. On the eventing scene we have seen the success of Darien Powers and Andrew Hoy at the Atlanta games and Rimini Park Fabien representing us at Badminton.

It is the aim of the Association to produce a horse who is well balanced, 16 to 17hh with round generous strides and natural elastic movement. We seek to produce a bold willing horse which is physically and mentally able to perform at a level of excellence in the modern sporthorse disciplines. We at the moment have over 1500 horses registered with us and many licensed stallions and with the importation of frozen semen becoming so popular we can see the fame and success of the Holsteiner horse really excelling in the years to come. There are many talented young horses out there so watch out for the Holsteiner bred horses in the years to come or, even better, why don't you experience one yourself!