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Frederiksborg
Frederiksborg: Considered Denmark's oldest horse breed, this horse was tremendously popular throughout the Renaissance and Baroque periods and were considered luxury items. Today the breed is rare, but has a loyal following. They are most often chestnut with white markings.
The Royal Stud was founded in 1562 under King Frederik II, who populated it with the Neapolitan horse and the Iberian forerunners of the Andalusian horse. As the Norfolk Roadster and Arab-bred horses gained popularity later on, they too were selected to stand at the royal stud. As a courtly mount, the breed had to be agile and trainable for the courtiers' pursuits in Haute Ecole and warfare, stylish and high stepping for parades and court ceremonies, and strong and uniform in appearance to trot before the royal carriages. By the 18th century, the breed enjoyed such particular fame that the Danes began to export them in great numbers. They contributed to the formation of the heavy warmbloods, but also to the Lipizzaner. Pluto, a white stallion born in 1765 became a foundation stallion in the breed. The popularity of the breed took its toll, and in 1839 the royal stud was closed. The breeding of Frederiksborgers continued with private breeders, though the needs of the people reshaped the horse to some degree. Instead of a luxury item, the horses were redirected to be more suitable for the stagecoach and agricultural work. This breeding aim, which corresponded to similar changes among the other heavy warmblood breeds, continued until the mid-20th century when the demand for riding horses skyrocketed. They have been pure-bred for the past century, which accounts for their uniform type, standing around 16hh tall and chestnut in color.
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