Heavy Warmblood - Gelderlander

Gelderlander

The Gelderlander was originally bred in the Gelderland region of the Netherlands. Although geographically close to Groningen, the soil in Gelderland is much sandier and does not require a horse with the same power as the Groningen horse. While breeders in Groningen used other horses bred on the heavy Frisian soil - the Alt-Oldenburger, East Friesian, and Holsteiner - those in Gelderland more often used half-bred French stallions as outcrosses. Therefore, Gelderlanders were and remain significantly longer-legged than their northern cousins, though they have the same high-set necks and level toplines.

In 1964, the VLN, which managed the Gelderlander studbook, formed a "Sportregister" in hopes of accelerating the Gelderlander towards a more marketable riding horse type. The successive merger with the NWP in 1969 - forming the Royal Warmblood Horse Studbook of the Netherlands or KWPN - further convoluted the identities of the Gelderlander and Groningen. After a few years, the breeding direction for foundation horses was dissolved and the Gelderlander would have been entirely absorbed into the new Dutch Warmblood and Dutch Harness Horse.

The KWPN oversees the breeding of Gelderlander horses today. There are 12 approved sires in the Netherlands. Unlike most of the other heavy warmblood breeds, the Gelderlander is overwhelmingly chestnut with a great deal of white. As they were lighter horses to begin with, there are many Gelderlander and part-Gelderlander horses with exceptional performance in dressage, show jumping and combined driving. Of course, the descendant of Gelderlanders, the Dutch Warmblood, is a dominant force in sport. The Gelderlander is considered to be a more amateur-friendly horse.