Lipizzan Horses and GIVEAWAY!

In medieval times war horses were to knights much as our tanks and jeeps are to our soldiers today. They (the horses) were the lifeline of existence in the midst of a brutal and bloody battle. An undisciplined horse could easily get a warrior killed. Can you imagine if a knight was on his horse and when two swords clanged together the horse bolted? Those sweet docile creatures you pass while they graze in the field can become flight risks when they come upon a horse eating field mouse or a horse eating plastic bag. There fears are very real to them as horses have no defense but RUN! So in order for knights to have sound horses they needed equine military training. A war horse's training consisted of many things to develop the horses strength, balance, agility, attentiveness and willingness to work with its rider. So where am I going with all this? I'm getting to the Lipizzan horses.

By Conversano Isabella - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18175628

During the Renaissance period the Hapsburg family control Austria and Spain. There was a need for fast. light horses to use in the military and riding school. The Lipizzan breed was the genuine horse of royalty and was bred by the Hapsburg monarchy by using the Arab, Barb, and Iberian stock. The Lipizzan were used during peace times as well as war. Selective breeding over a span of four hundred years makes the Lipizzan horse one of Europe's oldest breed of horses. 

By Machoxx, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4530613

So what makes these Lipizzan horses worthy of a blog post? Seeing them in action. Today we don't need to train horses to take into battle, but what the Lipizzan horse can do is a form of art and is nothing short of beautiful. It's like watching a 1500 pound animal doing ballet. 

CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=127638

The Lipizzan is trained to preform Haute ecole dressage, airs above the ground. If you aren't familiar with horse dressage it is the highest form of horse training. The rider and the horse are expected to do certain moves all from memory. The two must be in sync for it to be the beautiful ballet of horse dances. The basic idea of dressage itself goes way back to a Greek historian and military leader by the name of Xenophon in 400 BC. 

By NJR ZA - Own work, GFDL, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3603360

War can be hard on not only people but breeds of horses. The Lipizzan horse was saved from extinction by moving them from harms way. The first war time relocation of the Lipizzan was in 1797 from Lipica. They were returned in 1807 only to be moved three more times just two years later. Then again in 1915 World War I the horses were moved. In 1942 World War II threatened these beautiful horses. Patton a horseman himself saw the animals preform and was quite impressed. He offered protection for the Lipizzan horses. Disney made a film about the Lipizzan horses and Patton in 1963 called Miracle of the White Stallions.

Some quick but interesting information about the Lipizzans, all their lineage can be traced back to eight stallions! Their skin is black, eyes are dark and are born black but as adults their hair becomes white while their skin remains black.

By Keith Roper - Mare & Foal 3Uploaded by sporti, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27193415

I'm giving away a copy of choice of one of Shattered Memories or my medieval, Sword of Forgiveness. Tell me if you've ever heard about the Lipizzan horses or if you've ever seen them or the movie? Or tell me about your horse. :o) Don't forget to leave your email address. Share on FB or Twitter for an extra entry.

After the death of her cruel father, Brithwin is determined never again to live under the harsh rule of any man. Independent and resourceful, she longs to be left alone to manage her father's estate. But she soon discovers a woman has few choices when the king decrees she is to marry Royce, the Lord of Rosencraig. As if the unwelcome marriage isn't enough, her new husband accuses her of murdering his family, and she is faced with a challenge of either proving her innocence or facing possible execution.
Royce Warwick returns home after setting down a rebellion to find his family brutally murdered. When all fingers point to his betrothed and attempts are made on his life, Royce must wade through murky waters to uncover the truth. Yet Brithwin's wise and kind nature begins to break down the walls of his heart, and he soon finds himself in a race to discover who is behind the evil plot before Brithwin is the next victim. Purchase here.

NOW AVAILABLE IN AUDIO HERE !

Debbie Lynne has enjoyed writing stories since she was eight years old. She raised her family and then embarked on her own career of writing the stories that had been begging to be told. She and her husband have four children and live in upstate South Carolina. She has worked in many capacities in her church and is currently the Children’s director. Debbie Lynne has shown and raised Shetland sheepdogs for eighteen years and still enjoys litters now and then. In their spare time, She and her husband enjoy camping and riding their Arabian and Tennessee Walking horses. Visit Debbie Lynne at www.debbielynnecostello.com, www.theswordandspirit.blogspot.com,  https://www.facebook.com/debbielynnecostello , https://plus.google.com/+DebbieLynneCostello/posts, and https://twitter.com/DebiLynCostello



Thank you Wiki for the great pictures!

The Dancing White Horses

By Vickie McDonough

A few years ago, I had the delight of seeing the beautiful Lippizaner horses perform. I have been enamored with them ever since I was a child and saw the Disney movie, The Miracle of the White Stallions.

The Lippizans boast a rich heritage. The forerunner of the Lipizzan was bred in Carthage, more than 2,000 years ago. The Carthaginian stock was bred to the Vilano, a Pyrenees horse, and with Arab and Barbary strains. The result became the fabled Andalusian horse of ancient Spain. If you’ve seen The Mark of Zorro, with Antonio Banderas, you may remember that his beautiful black horse was an Andalusian.

Around 1562, Archduke Maximilian, later Emperor of Austria, began breeding Spanish horses. A powerful but agile horse was desired both for the military and for use in the fashionable riding schools for the nobility of central Europe. Eighteen years later, Archduke Karl, ruler of four Austrian provinces, established a royal stud farm in Lipizza, located in the hills of Karst, near Trieste.

Fresh Spanish stock and Oriental stallions were added to the bloodline to maintain the strength of the breed. In the 17th and 18th centuries, horses from the northern Italian stud farm at Polesnia and the highly regarded Neapolitan strain were brought to Lipizza to mingle with the resident stock and the descendants of the original Spanish line out of Denmark and Germany.

 Today’s famous dancing stallions are trained in the haute école or "high school" movements of classical dressage, including the highly controlled, stylized jumps and other movements known as the "airs above the ground" at the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, which has existed for hundreds of years. The breed was nearly lost in WW2 when the Lipizzaner mares were separated from the stud farm of Piber and moved into Czechoslovakia, and then faced with possible destruction at the hands of the Russians.

Spanish Riding School of Vienna, where the Lipizzaners are trained.

Alois Podhajsky, the director of the school, made a bold request of the Americans, especially General Patton who himself had ridden in the 1912 Olympics, to save the horses. Patton appreciated the tradition of the Spanish Riding School and arranged the rescue of the breeding mares along with the allied prisoners of war who’d been caring for them, effectively saving the Lipizzaner breed. Had it not been for General Patton, there would be no Lipizzans today.

From the time of their birth, the Lipizzans are raised with people around. Their caregivers and handlers interact with them so much that they are like part of the herd. It’s because of this close bond with their handlers and years and years of training that they are able to perform their beautiful dressage movements and magnificent feats. Originally, their “equestrian arts” were intended to be used in warfare, but today, they delight audiences worldwide.

The most popular dressage movements:

Levade - The horse must maintain a hunched position at a 45-degree angle to the ground, requiring muscle control and perfection of balance that is quite difficult.

Mezair - A series of successive Levades in which the horse lowers its forefeet to the ground before rising again on hindquarters, achieving forward motion.

Capriole - The stallion leaps into the air, drawing his forelegs under his chest at the height of elevation, and kicks out violently with his hind legs. The capriole can take many years of training.

Courbette - The horse balances on the hind legs and then jumps, keeping the hind legs together and the forelegs off the ground.

Here is a link to the official Lipizzaner website which shows a video of each of these beautiful movements: http://www.lipizzaner.com/home.asp Click on the “Airs Above the Ground” link.  

Lipizzan mares with their dark foals

Though Lippizaners are found in many nations throughout Europe and North America, the breed is relatively rare, with only about 3,000 horses registered worldwide. The number of foals born each year is small, and breeders take extreme care to preserve the purity of the breed. Contrary to popular belief, Lipizzans are not actually true white horses. Most Lipizzans are gray, and like all gray horses, they have black skin, dark eyes, and as adult horses, a white coat of hair. Lipizzans are born dark—usually bay or black—and become lighter each year as the graying process takes place, with the process being complete at between 6 and 10 years of age. Only the most exceptional horses with stamina, beauty, and a good personality are trained to become performers.

More than 40,000,000 people in North America have had the pleasure of seeing the Lipizzaners perform. I hope that you also get to see them one day.

Just released! South Carolina Brides. Visit historic South Carolina where secrets disrupt the lives of three women. A cousin’s quest takes a drastic turn when she falls for the man she thought she despised. A young woman’s sheltered world crumbles after she finds a badly beaten stranger on a nearby plantation. And a sister’s heart is torn when the neighbor who killed her brother in a duel returns home a changed man. Between betrayal and lies, is there room for love?

Vickie McDonough grew up wanting to marry a rancher, but instead, she married a computer geek who is scared of horses. She now lives out her dreams in her fictional stories about ranchers, cowboys, lawmen and others living in the western 1800s. Vickie is the award-winning author of 29 published books and novellas. Her books include the fun and feisty Texas Boardinghouse Brides series, and End of the Trail, which was the OWFI 2013 Best Fiction Novel winner. Whispers on the Prairie, which released last July, was chosen by Romantic Times as one of their Recommended Inspirational Books for July.

Vickie is a wife of thirty-eight years, mother of four grown sons, one daughter-in-law, and grandma to a feisty seven-year-old girl. When she’s not writing, Vickie enjoys reading, antiquing, watching movies, and traveling. To learn more about Vickie’s books or to sign up for her newsletter, visit her website: www.vickiemcdonough.com