Breed history
ONE OF THE OLDEST HORSE BREEDS CALLED OLD KLADRUB HORSES BREEDING ARE ALL OVER THE WORLD MORE THAN FOUR HUNDRED YEARS. THEY ARE WARM BLOODED HORSEŚ BREED ORIGINALY FROM OLD SPANISH AND OLD ITALIAN BLOOD. HORSE BREEDING INTENTION IS GALAKAROSSIER THAT IS A POWERFUL COACH-HORSE TO BE USED FOR REPRESENTATIVE AND CEREMONIAL SERVICES.
Expansion of horse breeding in Central Europe started in the mid – sixteen century and in particular in the eighteenth century.Monarchs and their families and also secular with clerical aristocracy established their stud just like in the country of Czech royalty. According to the brevet issued on April 24 in 1579 in Pragś castle, court stud in Kladruby nad Labem was established by Rudolf II. on the imperial landed estate of Pardubice in Kladrubś park.
During the first two centuries of the existence, the stud farm prospered and went down according to financial conditions and preference of monarchś needs. All Kladrubś horse breeding was moved to Eneyedu stud in Uhry until 1771. That was the biggest loss of the seven years war. On June 10 in 1757 the stud with its breedś records was burnt down during the celebration of Laudon victory in Battle of Kolín.Upon this the stud was rented to Dutch company called Tuissant as a store of textiles. Not until 1770 all breeding stuff was returned back to Kladruby and the stud was reestablished again by Emperor Josef II. Kladrub stud duties were to produce horses to serve the Emperors court. The expectation of ruling courtly elite was the horse with powerful graceful body in all different colours.
Under Rudolf II., Pragś court stud in Hradčany were supplied with Kladrub coach - horses until the first putsch in 1918. But his brother Matyáš II. and his successors were supplied from Vienna. For this purpose the first batch of Spanish horses and Spanish – Italian horses were used. Based on Emperors orders they had to be kept as full-bloods horses in separate way mostly by the end of eighteen century and begining of nineteen century when the interest for English horse breeding was rising. Lack of demand for others breed meant that many of them were faded even in their home countries.
„ Old Kladrub Horse“ became as a new name for the breed because nowhere else in the Word the Italian-Spanish horses might not be purchased. Under this name the breed was indicated even in a book of hippology and zootechnical books. They were reflected in two batch of horses and it was batch of black horses and batch of white horses. Till 1830ś there was a batch of brown horses which had to be removed for their degradation with another Dutch stud horses.
In the first mid of nineteen century Cleveland bayehouse : Cleveland baye coach – horses were established to serve for the court. The stature of the horses was elegant and well figured. On the move they kept their neck nicely. They were famous for their endurance and speed along cadenced run together with easy controllability.
In 1918, Kladrub stud was takenover by Czechoslovak republic. As the new purpose of the stud was decided to produce stud-breed horses to be used for state horse breeding in particular countries of ČSR. After liquidation of Austria – Hungary empire all Austria and Hungary national stud sources in Radovec,Bukovina, Piber were destroyed. The breeding material was split between the single succession states. Part of mares and English stud – horses with Anglo – Arabic halfbred horses as Przedswit, Gidran, Furioso and North-Star were brought from Piber to Kladruby. The breeding mares were also brought from Radovce. During the first war in Kladruby there were also three year classes of Lipican foal horses. Upon the putsch they became state property and in 1923 were transfered to Topolčianek. From the authentic and very extended breed of Kladrub horses were before federalization of ČSR left only few from the breed in two colour variety. White horses with father line Generale and Generalismus and black horses from Sacramoso and Napoleone line.
In 1918 in Kladruby the big hatred of all Hapsburg spread even against the former court stud of breed horses. It was decided to liquidate the historical Kladrub white and black batch of horses and also cleveland batch of bay horses together with all unsuitable breed for a new purpose of the stud.
After much difficulties they managed to keep a historical Old Kladrub batch of horses in Kladruby as the zootechnical unique of ČSR. About the perpetuation were also interested abroad. It was resolved to keep batch of white horses in a small rate while batch of black horses were considered as less highbred and common draught horses to be cleared gradually in silence.
The liquidation started by selling the breed stud horse called Napoleona Sola in his full vitality for slaughter. They resolved not to keep his brood. Thoroughbred black stud horse called Sacramoso XXVII – Aja was the only one to be left to inseminate others Old Kladrub black mares. In accordance with current records of the stud the effort to eliminate a batch of Old Kladrub black mares is evident. The liquidation would have proceeded faster if the black horses were not the strongest and best draught horses in the farm stud. Well each time even in Kladruby or in Vienna the black horses are occasionally used in funeral parades as coach – horses, in service of construction administration you could also see them working as a draught animal during contour farming and picking harvest up from fields and forest. (In agreement with Hippologycal spread literature that Old Kladrub horseś usage is only for ceremony of Spanish formality is not in accordance.)
In 1925 the big restriction of batch of Old kladrub black horses in stud Kladruby nad Labem last till November 1931. Part of the batch was given to archbishopric in Červená Voda and Chrast u Chrudimi and also to self – employers and to a farm in Průhonice. The rest of batch together with his stud breed horse named Sacramoso XXIV was undertaken by Jablůnkov business administration of Spišský episcopate. The destruction of Old Kladrub black horses was initiated by this diversion of Old Kladrub black horses from their birthplace. The only autohorsebreeding breed kept in Czech for centuries.
Thanks to professor of VŠZ in Prague, PHDr.et.MUDR. František Bílek DrSc. it come into recovery by 1941. ( In the publication called "50 let hřebčína Slatiňany 1945 - 1995" is writen in detail all about the regeneration of Old Kladrub black horse issued at the end of 1995 by National stud of Kladruby on the occasion of 55th anniversary of their inauguration.)