Knabstruppers can be used for all types of general riding, and
are a success at dressage and eventing, and show jumping.
They can also be used as carriage horses because of their
beautiful movement, proud appearance and striking colouring.
The 1870s saw in Knabstrup. Knabstrup stables an inevitable
downfall. In the Lunn family, the herd grew to during the
period, during the Schleswig wars, between 40-50 horse s
potted, each descendants from”Flaebe,” the “Flaebe” mare.
The inbreeding resulted in a lot of difficulties in keeping the
color and quality of the horses as the breed started to decline.
22 Knabstrup horses were burned to death in 1891. This fire,
along with the issue of inbreeding caused the importance
and number for the breed to decrease. smaller and less
important.
1902 a tigered horse from St. Petersburg was imported into
Denmark. He was given the name “Mikkel”, and he was
breed by A.F. Rasmussen up to 25 years old. He was in some
instances the father of 60 to 80 foals, and half of them either
spotted or more. A Mikkel-son that was the right color ended
up being sold to dairyman and was probably the basis for the
next generations of Knabstrup horses around 1930.
The stud farm in 1954 culminated by having 15 horses in its
stables. It was a well-known institution and people throughout
the world visited the farm until 1959 when the farm was shut
down.
“Association for promotion of the Knabstrupper in county
of Holbaek” was fighting on however, when it was founded
of the “Danish Sporthorse Breed association” in 1962, to which a
lot of Knabstrup breeders joined, the world was in a state
of complete chaos.
Knabstrup fun facts
The Knabstrupper got its name due to the fact that its cradle
was located at the Knabstrup farm located in Denmark and
was derived out of a chestnut mare, with white hair in her coat.
It was is what a Spanish officer had left in Denmark following
his time in prison for war. The chestnut mare was the color of
frost or roan, which is also common within the
Appaloosa breed. The mare was later breeding to Frederiksborg
Stallions.