Embrujo. A fine example of a PRE who held very important linage from Yeguada Militar, Miguel Granda Losada and Viuda de Terry
The Purebred Spanish horse (PRE) is an ancient breed of horse. It was a notable warhorse due to its strength and agility. Its ancestry traces to the cave dwellers of the Mesolithic Age, living about 8,000 years ago in the mountains of the Iberian Peninsula.
It was well known to the Romans as a superior warhorse because of its strength and agility. They used their qualities under saddle and to pull their chariots. Julius Caesar wrote of the noble steeds of Hispania in ‘De Bello Gallico’.
The Andalusian is the ancestor to many modern breeds. For example the American Quarter Horse, Friesians, Welsh horse’s to name a few. The Lipizzan breed is almost totally of Spanish blood. “The Spanish Riding School” of Vienna, named because of the Spanish horse. In 1968, an imported four-year-old stallion of the Carthusian line was used to rejuvenate the present line of Lipizzans.
Although the term “Andalusian” is used in many countries to refer to the Spanish horse; this can be attributed to the fact that Andalusia was and still is the major area for breeding. In Spain the Andalusian is called “Pura Raza Española” (PRE), meaning pure Spanish race.
The popularity of the PRE is rapidly increasing. Horsemen worldwide are rediscovering the traits that once made the Andalusian the most sought-after horse in the world; it’s strength, agility, beauty, pride, intelligence and docility bred for centuries into the Spanish horse.
Spanish stallions are unique. The edict of King Ferdinand of Spain, who enforced the old law that gentlemen must ride only stallions meant that the Spanish began to breed their horses for good temperament. Once again the temperament, agility and strength of the PRE are being sought after for many equine disciplines.