Friesian Horse

Origin: HollandProvince of Friesland.

Height: About 15hh.

Color: Black - no other color is permitted, and even white markings areconsidered undesirable.

Character: Exceptionally pleasant temperament - sweet-natured, willing and hardworking. Has excited comments such as "cheerful", "loyal" and"very sensitive."
Physique: Fine, rather long, alert head with small ears, carried high on acrested neck. Body very strong and compact, with prominent shoulder,rounded barrel and hindquarters. Rather short, sturdy legs with colossalbone and feather on heels. Hard, open hooves. Exceptional growth of maneand tail - mane said sometimes to reach the ground. The action active andsomewhat flamboyant, and the horse bears itself with pride.

Keeping in mind that the horses of yesterday bear scant resemblance totoday's favored breeds, the Friesian is one of the oldest and most consistentlypopular horses in Europe. There is evidence in Friesland of a prehistoriccold-blood which was used as a domestic animal as long as 3,000 yearsago. Later descendants (presumably) of this heavy native animal werevalued as saddle horses by the medieval nobility, and are portrayed by manyof the Dutch Old Masters. It is probable that by this time the Friesian hadbeen strongly enriched with Andalusian blood, and Oriental influences arealso likely.

The 19th-century craze for trotting seems to have influenced breeders ofthe Friesian towards a lighter, faster type of horse which, have declined in ability as an agriculturalworker, and it is possibly because of this that the breed came very close to extinction just before World War I. At that time, numbers•were so muchreduced that only three Friesian stallions were left, and it is only because afew Dutch farmers spotted the emergency in the nick of time and tookprompt and clever action that the Friesian survives today. Oldenburgstallions were imported to help build up the depleted stock.

A strong revival of the Friesian occurred during World War II, whenmotorized vehicles fell into short supply and fuel was strictly rationed. Thedemand for horses in agriculture rose sharply; Friesians were particularlysuited to adapt to any kind of work required of them, and so their numberswere quickly increased. In 1954 Queen Juliana of the Netherlands honoredthe Friesian breed society with the title "Royal."
Nowadays the Friesian is popular in harness (often in the show ring,where it sometimes causes a kind of patriotic nostalgia), in the circus(because of its striking carriage and willingness to adapt itself), and underthe saddle; but its first function remains supreme - it is a "cheerful, loyal,and very sensitive" all-round working horse.