Northeast Trakehners
Why Northeast Trakehners?
EXPLORE: It is our intention to educate the Trakehner community with news and links, as we work to develop and compete our Trakehners in an age appropriate manner for potential breeding and/or sale.
EXPLAIN: It is our intention to help nurture and educate prospective clients and to help match them up with their desired Trakehner.
BUY AND SELL: It is our intention to provide a vehicle to engineer a community and support structures on which Northeast Trakehners and Trakehners worldwide can grow. We bring you details on how to breed with our horses or buy horses we have bred and competed. We also are in contact with breeders in Germany that are interested in marketing their Trakehners or other Warmblood breeds in North America.
Please contact us with items that would be interesting to share through Northeast Trakehners.
History of Trakehners
Trakehner horses originated from an area not far from the gently rolling countryside, verdant pastures and dark forests along the southern shores of the Baltic Sea. In 1732 the King of Prussia, Friedrich Wilhelm I decreed that the Royal Stud Farm in Trakehnen (located in East Prussia, part of Poland today) would develop the original warmblood horse called a Trakehner. The studs were ordered to use the local draught horses called Schweike, cross them with the best English Thoroughbreds and Arabs into a horse of larger stature, tremendous refinement, superior strength, speed and endurance. This horse was to prove itself not only as an excellent yet elegant riding horse to be used by his officers but also versatile to be used as a strong working farm horse also capable of pulling the war machinery of that time.
The very disciplined breeding of the Stud Farms under the direction of their Stud Directors had terrific results in the grounding of the Trakehner Warmblood of East Prussian Heritage. Today the Trakehner is a large horse displaying breathtaking refinement, superior intelligence, a cool head, excellent conformation, strength and elegant movement suitable for any of the riding or driving disciplines.
Not only in WWI but also during WWII the Trakehner was almost decimated when, in early 1945, experiencing one of the harshest winters of the century the “Trek” as it has come to be called, was initiated. With the advancing Russian Troops the majority of these horses died traveling through the deep snow, icy roads, frozen rivers and the cracking ice of the Baltic Sea across the only bay that would lead them on the road to possible safety, the Frisches Haf. Having almost reached safety they were lastly bombed on the fragile ice with only a very few horses reaching the west safely with their precious human cargo.
For half a century afterward, under the Russian occupation, the stud farms were designated cattle farms.
In 1947 a few Trakehner breeders and enthusiasts in Germany were able to ground the Trakehner Verband and rebuild the breed with only a few hundred remaining horses of which only 21 stud book mares had survived.
Today, with the expert guidance of Trakehner enthusiasts worldwide the Trakehner has grown to the many thousands and has the honor of having become the basis pedigree of some of the most successful sporthorses. The Trakehner, not only has reached the breed goals of its originators but has become the “improver” for many other warmblood registries worldwide.
For an interesting and detailed recount of the the History of the Trakehner please refer to: http://www.trakehners-international.com/history.html
Trakehners generally stand between 16 and 17 hands, display superb performance which is routinely passed on in their carefully paired pedigrees. They exhibit a soft balanced canter with an elegance helping them to excel in dressage. The Trakehner has an exceptional character and exhibits a commanding presence. With it’s powerful hindquarters and strong refined muscles the breed also contributes to world class show jumpers and event horses.
To us, the most important attribute is the Trakehner’s temperament, alertness, keen and intelligent work ethic. They enjoy having a “job” accepting direction and anxious to please. It is easy to fall in love with a Trakehner and maintain a commitment to help them achieve the best performance possible whether in a sport or breeding program.
We believe in breeding the most complimentary pedigrees for correctness of conformation, true to trakehner type with the goal of performance to the highest levels of their discipline coupled with the temperament to be the best equine partner for their owners/trainer. Our Trakehners will prove themselves in competition thereby demonstrating their ability to reproduce their talents in their offspring providing years of soundness and good health.
Our website, and particularly the gallery page, contains photographs that will
give you a taste of the life we love and lead with our Trakehner horses.
We have a tremendous passion for the horses that we study, breed and compete. Please feel free to contact us with your questions, comments, stories and photos!
History of Northeast Trakehners by Christina Potter
The Northeast Trakehners cornerstone was set in Germany and continues to grow here in the beautiful New England countryside. Below, you will learn of our passion for the Trakehner breed, our strong friends and family ties, and how the two create the ideal environment to breed, raise, train, and compete the unparalleled Trakehner sport horses, partners of today and tomorrow. We proudly present horses that thrive on a cool head, intelligence, good form, a unique style with excellent Trakehner type and superior strength.
In 1951, my family immigrated from Germany to Montreal. My parents had been born in what was East Prussia, the lands where Trakehners originated. We eventually settled in New England, enchanted by the beautiful countryside that reminded my parents of the lands of their youth.
The environment I grew up in not only appreciated the new land but also grounded us with a strong commitment to our German heritage. I was raised in Durham, New Hampshire, near the dairy farms and equestrian grounds of the University of New Hampshire (UNH). I was blessed with a passion for horses, and looked longingly at the farms surrounding us. My life was committed to enjoying the Northeast with family, friends, a variety of animals, and good horses. I discovered sane and athletic horses and proceeded to own remarkable horses as I matured. Upon graduating from UNH, I married my “hitchhiker” David. We grew together professionally, raised four outstanding children, and expanded our equestrian lifestyle to our home on Cape Cod. Today Northeast Trakehners is located in Durham, New Hampshire on the very ground where my passion for horses originated.
In 1999, after researching both my family's history and the history of the Trakehner, we grounded Northeast Trakehners LLC, intent on breeding world-class horses for competition. We were fortunate to establish contact with the relatives that had been lost to our family since the end of WWII, who had embarked upon a similar quest to share in the revival of the decimated population of some exceptional Trakehners after the war. With the reunification of the Germanys, the Keunecke family had been able to “buy back” their original family farm lands, 5000 acres of the Neubrandenburg area, an hour north of Berlin. All of the brothers, their families and their matriarch returned to reconstruct and restore the farm. They incorporated the family talents in the process: agricultural engineer, forester, window/door manufacturing business, architechtual engineer, real estate investment and appraiser and of course, the livestock, which happened to include Trakehners of great historic pedigrees and significance.
While on an acoustics seminar / business trip to Berlin (David was heading the protected species branch at NOAA/NMFSC, largely studying the ecolocation of marine mammals) we decided to visit the Keuneckes and see the progress on the reconstruction of the farm. The industriousness and success of the farm was astounding. Knowing that we wanted to establish Northeast Trakehners, we asked if it might be possible to import a youngster. We were amazed that we were offered not a youngster but an approved, performance tested broodmare. As an added bonus, she would be pregnant when imported. We were witnessing our dreams come true and our goals were beginning to be realized.
Before departing for home, not only had David agreed to this plan, but I had the opportunity to ride Indira XV. It was certainly one of the most remarkable experiences of my life, to experience her lightness, responsiveness, and willingness mixed in with her beauty in conformation and Trakehner Type.
Of course now the work began.... finding the right stallion for her.
Long discussions ensued. We wanted to compliment her stellar pedigree and produce offspring that might excel in performance and superior Trakehner type. Would it be Polarunkt, Itaxerxes, or the fairly young stallion Buddenbrock? Buddenbrock it became, and Northeast Trakehners was begun.
Indira had not only been Performance Tested in Telgte but upon agreeing to purchase her, her dam Irene (by the Century Sire Mahagoni) and her granddam Ironie were were taken to Graditz in 1999 for the Mare show that happens only once every seven years. Indira won the title of Champion Mare and her family was deemed Champion Mare Family. Farms from Germany and Poland attend this prestigious show. A tremendous honor was bestowed on Indira, her family and the breeding expertise of the Keunecke family. Indira stems from the Dam line of “Isabella” This Line has produced not only the 2008 Bundeschampion, Reserve Young Dressage Horse World champion and the 2009 Bronze Medal World Champion Imperio (EH Connery/ Mahagoni) but also Interconti (EH Consul) sire of Zauberfürst, Instergraditz (Bonito XX) sire of show jumper Sir Graditz, and also Idahoe (Abdullah P*g*E) who achieved a 10 for his jumping ability at his approval.
Indira’s Dam, IreneVI, was sired by the Century Sire Mahagoni (Pasteur). Mahagoni not only was Champion Stallion of his Stallion Performance Test but has also been determined to be one of the best dressage sires of all times for the Trakehner. Mahagoni not only sired the great Peron (Bronze Medal 1994 Olympic Games) but additionally 8 other approved sons and a great number of signifigant daughters to the Trakehner Stud book. He was known as a producer of beautiful and athletic horses with great performance potential.
Indira’s sire, Fontainbleau, achieved Champion Stallion in Neumünster 1993 and was campaigned from his home at Hörem, the stud farm of the Poll Family. Fontainbleau was a remarkable International CCI*** event horse and was only able to bless the Trakehner Breed with his valuable genes until his 12th year. He contributed such compitition “Kracks” as International Eventer CCI**** and Bundeschampion Kunta Kinte TSF (Trakehner Sport Forderverein Horse), Bundeschampionat Reserve Champion Karama M and approved Stallion and event horse El Greco and the Premium Stallion Albarrano. From this Mare line also stems the international Grand Prix Dressage Stallion EH Friedensfürst. Fontainbleau was Sired by the EH Rockerfeller, one of the best sporthorse producers of the Trakehner Breed.
Indira has not only produced the ATA approved Stallion Inamorato, eventing through CCI* with Andrew Palmer, of Royal Palm Farm in Abbeville, Alabama, but also the young Stallion Isamu (Cosmopolit/Fontainbleau) and the young mare Independence Rose “M” (Fandango/Fontainbleau). We look forward to many more foals from this remarkable Trakehner mare in addition to our other wonderful mares we have bought and bred over the years.
“There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.”
– Sir Winston Churchill
Proven Bloodlines for Performance