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Introduction.
Breeders of the Swedish Warmblood Horse have good reasons to be proud. They and their predecessors have developed a sound, intelligent horse – proven to be internationally competitive in all disciplines of equestrian sport and representing a well established type.
History.
The Swedish Warmblood is one of the oldest warmblood breeds in the world. The history of he Swedish horse closely follows that of humans in Scandinavia. Archeological evidence has been found showing the existence of horses in what is now Sweden dating back to 4000 BC.
For centuries, the breed has been specifically developed for riding, while most other warmblood breeds at times were bred to be draft horses for farm work. The Swedish military chose stallions that would produce comfortable and rideable horses for the army, carefully selecting Thoroughbred and other warmblood horses for fresh blood.
Today's Swedish Warmblood is the product of an efficient selection system utilizing modern genetic principles rather than closed book breeding. The three cornerstones of the program are: The Stud Book, The Selection Procedure, and Progeny Testing of the Stallions. A complete register of breed mares and their foals has been kept since 1894. North American mares, foals and stallions have their own part of the stud book.
Avelsforeningen for Svenska Varmblodiga Hasten (The Swedish Warmblood Association – ASVH) was formed in 1928. The first ASVH inspection of Swedish Warmblood mares and stallions in North America was organized in 1981. Increased interest in Swedish Warmbloods led the ASVH in Sweden to appoint more representatives in North America. In 1994, The Swedish Warmblood Association of North America (SWANA) was formed and became a dues-paying sub-organization under the direction of ASVH in Sweden.
Foundation.
The Swedish military began importing Thoroughbred, Anglo-Norman, Hanoverian and Trakehner stallions to improve the breed. In order to direct the breeding efforts and to consolidate the different breeds, the Swedish government began an examination system in 1874.
The Swedish Warmblood Association – ASVH was formed by breeders with encouragement from the army to promote the development of uniform mares of high standards. In the period between the world wars, ASVH's breeding focused on the production of excellent riding horses at a time when other warmbloods were bred primarily as agricultural draft horses.
Many of the most successful horses during the last two decades have had a pedigree that could be traced back to one of the breed's legendary sires.
"Drabant 315", born in 1946, sired progeny with extremely light and forward-reaching movements. His offspring have been outstanding in dressage, jumping and eventing.
"Gaspari 340", born in 1949, transmitted an exceptional ability to perform piaffe and passage. He represented Sweden in two Olympic Games (Rome, 1960 and Tokyo, 1964) and was active at stud until the age of 26. He sired 11 licensed stallions, of which four were exported to Germany where they won international Grand Prix competitions. One son, "Piaff 399", was a member of the West German Gold Medal team of 1968 and captured the Individual Gold Medal for West Germany 1n 1972. Another son, "Herkules 504", competed for Sweden at the 1988 Olympics in dressage and "Imperator 529" was an internationally successful show jumper.
"Jovial 369" was a champion producer of successful horses in all disciplines. He was born in 1952 and had a pedigree "high in blood". He proved himself to be one of the most successful sires of all kinds of sport horses.
"Utrillo 432" imported from Hanover to Flyinge (The National Stud of Sweden) in 1964 did extremely well with Swedish mares, with the get excelling in all disciplines. He sired 13 approved sons.
An emphasis on breeding for show jumpers beginning in 1972 led to the importation of "Irco Marco" from Holland in 1979, leasing of several stallions from Holstein and the purchase of "Robin Z" from Zangerheide. This proved very valuable for the Swedish Warmblood because these and subsequently imported stallions produced excellent jumping horses with the Swedish mares.
Type.
In contrast to most other riding horse breeds of Europe, the Swedish Warmblood has a unique tradition of a consolidated type – specifically developed for the purpose of riding. Thus the breeding result is very predictable. The stud book is also open to acceptance of carefully selected individuals of other breeds. No matter what the breed – such as Thoroughbreds, Hanoverians, Trakehners or Anglo Normans – the individual must serve the purpose to preserve the desired type and the performance qualities.
The ability of the Swedish Warmblood to "rise to the occasion" – in dressage, show-jumping and eventing – is due to a rare combination of soundness, character and "heart".
Olympic statistics provide the most striking proof of the excellent performances by Swedish Warmblood horses on the international scene. Ever since equestrian sports were introduced into the Olympic Games, founded by Swedish horseman Clarence von Rosen in 1912, Swedish horses have been very successful – especially so in dressage and three-day eventing. In total, Swedish horses have captured no less than seven individual gold medals in dressage and four in three-day eventing. This is a remarkable achievement for a comparatively small breed. In the 1988 Seoul Games, thirteen Swedish Warmbloods competed in dressage and six won medals.
Colors.
The Swedish Warmblood can be any solid color (although certain colors associcated with albino and lethal factors will exclude a stallion from breeding approval). Most common colors are chestnut, bay or brown. True blacks are rare. There are also grays and roans.
