The Holsteiner Horse
A Brief Overview
The Holsteiner is a horse breed originating in the Schleswig-Holstein region of northern Germany. It is thought to be the oldest of warmblood breeds, tracing back to the 13th century. Though the population is not large, Holsteiners are a dominant force of international show jumping, and are found at the top levels of dressage, combined driving, show hunters, and eventing.

800 YEARS HOLSTEINER HORSE
The Count and the Monastery
The history of the Holsteiner horse traces back to the year 1225.
Gerhard I, count of Schleswig- Holstein and Stormarn, granted the Uetersen monastery the right to graze its horses on the uncultivated land of county Pinneberg.
Already under King Christian I (1460-1481), Holstein had a state stud department.
Rural Breeding
Between Elbe and North Sea
For centuries, the Holsteiner horse has been bred by farmers. The breed originated in the marsh lands of the river Elbe and the west coast of Schleswig-Holstein. Then bred as an agricultural horse, the breeding goal included particular traits like the characteristic breed type which could be described as expressive, with a lot of frame, substance, and bone due to the selective insertion of Thoroughbred blood.


Charisma and Performance Attitude
Already then known far beyond the borders of the country.
At that time, Holsteiners used to have predominantly bay coats and were noted and appreciated for their performance traits well beyond the borders of the country.
Particularly as exclusive driving horses, highly impressive for their type and their typical Holsteiner, ground-covering and high striding gaits, the breed attracted attention during the 18th century.
But also among farmers, the Holsteiner horses had a reputation for their performance attitude and hardiness, traits they had been highly selectively bred for owing to the difficult soil of the Holsteiner marshes.
Systematic stud book record keeping as the basis of sports horse breeding
In 1883, Georg Ahsbahs of Sommerlander Riep issued the first stud book. The mare families or stems still in existence and continued today that form the basis of today’s Holsteiner breeding originate from this systematic breeding records.
The middle of the 20th century has seen the adaption of the breed from agricultural horse to sport horse. Again, primarily English Thoroughbred stallions were successfully used to improve and refine the Holsteiner breed as they found an excellent basis in the consolidated Holsteiner mare families.


More Recent History
In 1944, the brand still in existence today was introduced.
After World War II, the land between the seas saw an alarming decrease in horses. In 1960, with only 1311 Holsteiner mares left, the Schleswig-Holstein Parliament decided to dissolve the Traventhal state stud established in 1874.
After a great deal of discussion, the Verband took over almost the entire Traventhal stallion portfolio and went on to build the Elmshorn stallion depot over the years.
Currently round about 50 Verband-owned and approximately 150 privately owned activated Holsteiner stallions are bred, with about 5.300 brood mares registered in Holstein today.
Our Famous Stallions
With the arrival of heavy machinery in agriculture at the end of the fifties, the Holstein horse had lost its right to exist as a "worker" in the fields. In order to refine the type that had previously been of a high caliber and to turn it into a modern sport horse, the breeding management decided 40 years ago to use thoroughbred stallions.
During the 1960s alone, more than 25 TB sires were put to stud in the land between the seas, with one stallion in particular to put his stamp on the breed at this time:
Ladykiller xx

Ladykiller xx, an English Thoroughbred stallion, had a transformative impact on the Holsteiner breed. Introduced as an 'improvement sire', he refined the breed's heavier frame by contributing traits like athleticism, elegance and exceptional jumping ability His influence is evident in modern Holsteiners' high set necks, strong loins and powerful hindquarters.
He delivered 35 state premium mares and just as many licensed stallions, including Landgraf I, who was already commemorated in front of the Elmshorn stables during his lifetime.
His offspring have so far won more than 7 million mark in sport, and his numerous sons and daughters ensure that this valuable blood is passed on worldwide.