The Trakehner is known for thin lines, grace, and endurance, all holdovers from its origin as a cavalry mount. Mares, of course, are female horses over the age of three. Because of their beauty and durability, Trakehners continue to be highly valued horses
The Trakehner is known for thin lines, grace, and endurance, all holdovers from its origin as a cavalry mount. Mares, of course, are female horses over the age of three. Because of their beauty and durability, Trakehners continue to be highly valued horses.
History
Trakehners are a hundreds-year-old breed, owing their beginnings to King Wilhelm of Germany in the 1700s, when the insightful monarch realized that knights riding heavy mounts would never again dominate battlefields. He desired a strong, light, speedy horse to carry mounted infantry, and the Trakehner was the result. Despite its beauty and strength, the breed faced tremendous challenges due to the powder-keg nature of its environs. In 1938, the breed numbered half a million in east Prussia, and it had established its place as a champion in both speed and dressage events. But World War II brought German armies and blitzkriegs through its homeland, followed a few years later, by Russian armies pushing back, sending those in east Prussia, along with their horses, fleeing for their lives. A devoted group of Trakehner breeders led a small group of horses west, fleeing war and ruin as winter bore down and the war dragged to a close. They survived, barely, with only 21 original stud mares. A valiant effort in the post-war years led to the breeds survival and resurgence in the decades that followed.
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