BREED PROFILE
BREED PROFILE
BREED NAME: Trakehner OTHER NAMES: The East Prussian Warmblood Horse of Trakehner Descent BREED PURPOSE: Sports horses SIZE: 15.2-17 hands COAT COLOUR: Any solid colour PLACE OF ORIGIN: Lithuania ANCESTORS: Arab, Thoroughbred, Schweiken, Turkomen
THE TRAKEHNER W
ith an intelligent, willing temperament and athletic build with great agility, the Trakehner is a popular sports horse with an impressive international record. Originally from East Prussia (modern-day Lithuania), the Trakehner shares bloodlines with Arabian, Thoroughbred and Turk breeds. These ancestors strengthened the Trakehner line, developing a horse with a robust constitution and hardy nature. HISTORY
In the 13th century, East Prussia was colonised by the Order of Teutonic Knights. They set up a horse-breeding industry using the local Schweinken ponies as a base. The Schweinken,
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which may have had Konik roots, was a tough, hardy pony used mostly in farm work. This area and these breeding programmes led to the creation of the Trakehner. In 1732, Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia founded the Royal Trakehner Stud Administration. This Administration became the principal source of stallions for Prussia, and the area soon became renowned for producing elegant coach horses that combined speed with stamina. Within 50 years, however, the emphasis switched from coach horses, to breeding high-quality mounts to serve as army chargers. During the 19th century Thoroughbreds and Arabs were introduced to upgrade the breed further. Over the years the
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