The Shagya Arabian horse
This horse, much appreciated for its character, is robust, resistant, vigorous, courageous, and agile.
Caractère et aptitudes du cheval
Its gaits are those of the Arabian. He is a gifted jumper.
Utilisations du cheval
A saddle horse par excellence, it is suitable for all disciplines. They are equally at home in light carriage driving, leisure riding, show jumping and endurance. However, it is in the latter discipline, endurance, that this horse is particularly renowned. Despite its reputation as an excellent competitor, its presence in France is still tenuous.
It was in Hungary, at the Haras de Balbona, founded in 1789, that a long selection process began, aimed at obtaining a strong Arabian horse to be used as a remount for the imperial armies. The original nucleus was made up of Hungarian mares already heavily Arabized following the Turkish invasions of previous centuries. Arab stallions were regularly imported from the Middle East. The famous Grey Arab stallion Shagya, born in Syria in 1830, was imported to Hungary in 1836, and in 1983 gave his name to the breed. Patient work over two centuries has created a breed of the highest quality, recognized in France in 1989. Originally an Arabian half-blood, the Shagya has the Arabian type, but is taller and more strongly built.
Up until the 1900s, the Shagya Arabian horse enjoyed considerable growth, thanks to the use of this animal by influential figures such as Empress Sissi and the Emperor of Japan at the time. However, it was the arrival of the Communists that put breeding in jeopardy with the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918.
Morphologie du cheval
Refined head. Concave profile. Fine nose tip. Large nostrils. Large, wide-set eyes. Medium-line body type. Very elegant, swan-neck neck. Accentuated withers. Sloping shoulders. Short, slightly concave back. Strong loins. Strong limbs. Strong bones. Particularly well-shaped feet. High set tail. Coat: gray, but all other Arabian colors. Size: 1.50 to 1.60 m.
