Content
One of the most numerous sporting half-breeds in Europe - the Hanoverian horse - was conceived as a versatile breed suitable for agricultural work and service in the cavalry. Today it is hard to believe that in the 18th century the purpose of the horses bred in the state stud farm in Celle was to work in a harness in peacetime and to transfer artillery to war. Especially high-quality specimens went even under the officer's saddle and in the royal carriages.
Story
The plant in Celle was founded in 1735 by the King of England and also the Elector of Hanover, George II. The local mares of today's Lower Saxony were improved with stallions of Germanic, English and Iberian origin. Quite quickly, the Hanoverian horse breed acquired its own special type, which is clearly visible even in today's Hanoverians. Despite the fact that the breed was changed for "today's" requests.
The horse in the painting, painted in 1898, shows almost the same exterior that today's Hanoverian horses have.
In 1844, a law was passed allowing the use of the stud's stallions on private mares for breeding purposes. In 1867, the breeders founded the first society for the production and training of horses for the needs of the army. The same society published the first Hanoverian stud book, published in 1888. Soon Hanover became one of the most popular breeds in Europe, used in sports and the army.
After the First World War, the demand for the Hanover as a war horse fell significantly and the number began to decline. At that moment, horses began to be required, suitable for work on the farm, that is, relatively heavy and powerful. The Hanoverians began to change for the current needs, crossing with heavy draft breeds.
To a certain extent, this is so. But farm work was only an episode in Hanover's history. Even at this time, the Hanoverian horse breed retained the characteristics of a military and sports horse. The Hanoverian horse held the Second World War as a draft force for light artillery.
After the Second World War, the demand for sporting horse breeds increased again and the Hanoverian horse was again "re-profiled", "facilitating" the Hanover with Purebred riding stallions. Anglo-Arabs and Traken were also added. The key to success was the desire of breeders to adapt to the changing market, a large number of livestock and careful selection of breeding horses. The resulting modern sport horse is not much different in type from the original. In the photo of a modern Hanoverian horse, it can be seen that, compared to the picture, it has a longer body and neck, but the general type is quite recognizable.
Nuances of breeding
Today, the breeding of horses of the Hanoverian breed is under the jurisdiction of the Hanoverian Breeding Union when it comes to Europe. In Russia, the registration of purebred foals and the issuance of breeding documents is in charge of the VNIIK. The breeding approaches of these organizations are at opposite poles.
The VNIIK principle: from two purebred Hanoverian horses, a purebred foal is born, which can be issued with breeding documents. Even if the foal turned out to be very unfortunate, he will receive his documents. Later, owners often breed what a skilled livestock technician would call a breeding marriage and withdraw from breeding. Therefore, it is often possible to buy a thoroughbred horse in Russia that is not suitable for any field of activity.And this applies not only to the Hanoverian horses.
The policy of the Hanoverian Union is different. The Hanoverian Studbook is open, and blood of any other breed can be infused with these horses, provided that the individual used has been licensed for use on Hanoverian horses. If the offspring meets the requirements, it fits into the Studbook as a Hanoverian horse. Stallions are usually used to infuse fresh blood.
Considering that German breeds are all related to each other and can interbreed with each other, the horse is often written not of the breed that its parents had (as in Russia), but according to the place of birth. For example, the horses of the Westphalian breed have the same stallion lines as the Hanoverian.
The modern market demands a large, well-dressed horse with good movement and jumping ability. Infusion of external blood and rigorous selection are aimed at improving the horses of the Hanoverian breed in this direction.
The headquarters of the Hanoverian Breeders Union is located in Verdun. The main auction of Hanoverian horses is also held there. 900 heads of young Hanover breed are sold per year. The union also conducts selection of breeding young stock and licensing of stallions-producers.
Exterior
The photo shows that the Hanoverian horses have a typical athletic build of a rectangular format. Their oblique body length is greater than the height at the withers. In the Hanoverian breed there are several types: from heavy, in which draft blood is noticeable, to the so-called "commander" - a tall large horse of a purely riding type.
The Hanoverians have a long, high-set neck and often a large head. Modern dressage lines have an oblique shoulder blade with an "open" shoulder that allows them to move their front legs forward and upward. Short loin. Strong back. For dressage lines, it can be relatively long. For show jumping, a short back is preferable. The growth of the Hanoverians ranges from 160 to 178 cm and above.
Hanover can be red, black, bay and gray. Colors with the Cremello gene: dun, salty, isabella, are not allowed for breeding. Too large white markings are also prohibited.
Black horses of the Hanoverian breed are preferred for dressage. This is not due to the superpowers of horses of this suit, but to the fact that dressage judging is subjective, and the black suit looks more spectacular than red or gray. But this preference does not mean that the way to dressage is closed to individuals of a different suit. Just other things being equal, they will prefer the black one.
There are no such problems in show jumping. The main criterion there is the ability to jump.
Historical incident
The coat of arms of Lower Saxony depicts a white horse rearing up. There would be nothing unusual in this: heraldry is a conditional thing, and among the Hanoverians there are gray horses. But it turned out that white Hanover did exist.
In those years, the concept of breed was rather arbitrary, and white "Hanover" appeared in Lower Saxony even before the founding of the plant in Celle. They began to breed them back in 1730 in Memsen. Where these horses were brought from remains unclear. It is only known that some horses came from Denmark. Descriptions of individuals of this population by contemporaries vary. In some cases, dark spots in foals are mentioned. Since the horses were collected from everywhere, there is an assumption that there were individuals with a dominant white color and low-spotted forested ones. The population of white "Hanover" lasted only 160 years. With each generation, the vitality of animals decreased. Inbreeding, practiced from generation to generation, added to the problems. The selection of horses for performance was not carried out, the emphasis was on the color.As a result, the population of white "Hannovers" suffered the fate of all show lines that focused on one extreme difference. It ceased to exist in 1896.
Cream "Hannovers"
Quite a mysterious group. And in fact, it may be that the coat of arms of Lower Saxony actually depicts not a white, but a cream horse. It's just that there is no such color in heraldry.
Cream Hannoverans appeared 20 years before the founding of the plant. King George I, ascending the throne of Great Britain, brought with him from Prussia cream horses, which at that time were called the royal Hanoverians.
The color of this group is not known for certain. "Cream" is a very conventional name, which hides a very light color of the coat. It is believed that these were horses with a yellowish body or ivory color and a lighter mane and tail. However, the surviving portrait of one of these "Hanoverians", which was ridden by George III, shows an animal with a pale golden body and a yellow-brown mane and tail.
The stallion is of the "baroque" type and there is a reasonable opinion that in fact the cream "Hanover" is of Iberian origin.
The "cream" population lasted until the beginning of the twentieth century. But the livestock was constantly declining due to the growing inbred depression. In 1921 the factory was disbanded and the remaining horses were sold at auction. The economic factor also played a role here, since the maintenance of the royal "Hanover" at that time cost the treasury 2500 pounds a year.
The preserved black-and-white photo of the cream horses of the Hanoverian breed shows that here, too, the tails are darker than the main body.
Testimonials
Conclusion
Hanover, being one of the best sporting breeds in the world, in Russia require a careful approach to the selection of a particular horse for the task at hand. It is often better to buy a ready-made horse than to take a "young and promising" one. Often, due to poor foal maintenance, health problems are diagnosed very early in the horse. And the pursuit of growth negatively affects the musculoskeletal system of the horse.
