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The Freiberger, also known as Franches-Montagnes, is a
fm-ch.ch
/ref> Today they are bred with strict regulation at the Avenches federal stud.
A site about Freibergers
(French and German)
www.derfreiberger.de
Information about the race and character of Freibergers (English/German)
A Canadian site about Freibergers
(English) {{Equine, state=collapsed Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in Switzerland
horse breed
A horse breed is a selectively bred population of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a broader sense to define landrace animals of a common phenotype located within a lim ...
from Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, from the Jura region, described as either a "heavy warmblood
The heavy warmbloods (german: Schwere Warmblüter) are a group of horse breeds primarily from continental Europe. The title includes the Ostfriesen ("East Friesian") and Alt-Oldenburger ("Old-Oldenburger"), Groningen, and similar horses from Sile ...
" or a "light coldblood
Coldblood-7 (Eric Savin) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in ''Marvel Comics Presents'' #26 (Aug. 1989).
The character was portrayed by James Badge Dale in the M ...
". It was widely used as draft and pack horse in the Swiss army
The Swiss Armed Forces (german: Schweizer Armee, french: Armée suisse, it, Esercito svizzero, rm, Armada svizra; ) operates on land and in the air, serving as the primary armed forces of Switzerland. Under the country's militia system, re ...
. It has a good disposition and is versatile, suitable for both driving and riding. Each year at the ''Marché Concours'' in Saignelégier
Saignelégier () is a municipality in the canton of Jura in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district of Franches-Montagnes. On 1 January 2009, the formerly independent municipalities of Goumois and Les Pommerats merged into Saignelégier.
...
in the Franches-Montagnes district
Franches-Montagnes District (, , Franc-Comtois: ''Dichtrict des Fraintches-Montaignes'') is one of the three districts of the canton of Jura, Switzerland. Its capital is the town of Saignelégier. The French-speaking district has a population ...
of the Swiss canton of Jura
The Republic and Canton of Jura (french: République et canton du Jura), less formally the Canton of Jura or Canton Jura ( , ), is the newest (founded in 1979) of the 26 Swiss cantons, located in the northwestern part of Switzerland. The capita ...
, on the second weekend in August, a variety of shows and competitions are held.
Breed characteristics
History
The presence of anautochthonous
Autochthon, autochthons or autochthonous may refer to:
Fiction
* Autochthon (Atlantis), a character in Plato's myth of Atlantis
* Autochthons, characters in the novel ''The Divine Invasion'' by Philip K. Dick
* Autochthon, a Primordial in the ' ...
horse breed in the Jura traces to the year 1619.
By the early 19th century, there were active breeders in the district of Franches-Montagnes. In 1817, there were 4,000 breeding mares on record. The horses were bred for use in agriculture and by the army as pack animals
A pack animal, also known as a sumpter animal or beast of burden, is an individual or type of working animal used by humans as means of transporting materials by attaching them so their weight bears on the animal's back, in contrast to draft ani ...
and artillery draft horses. There are records of imports of Anglo-Norman horses for the year 1821, and of other horses from England, France, Hannover and Oldenburg for the year 1830, with the goal to overcome the faults of the landrace
A landrace is a domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural environment of agriculture and pastoralism, and due to isolation ...
breed, which was viewed as inferior due to its heavy and thick head, short neck and sloping rump, though its frame was considered excellent.
The name ''Freiberger'' appeared in the late 19th century, used for the three types of horse previously named after the districts of '' Franches-Montagnes'', ''Porrentruy
Porrentruy (, fc, Poérreintru , german: Pruntrut) is a Swiss municipality and seat of the district of the same name located in the canton of Jura.
Porrentruy is home to National League team, HC Ajoie.
History
The first trace of human pre ...
'', and ''Delémont
Delémont (; fc, D'lémont; german: Delsberg, ) is the capital of the Swiss canton of Jura. The city has approximately 12,000 inhabitants .
History
The area of the municipality was already settled in the middle Bronze Age. Fifteen urn buria ...
''. These types were called ''cheval de Jura'' and later ''Franches-Montagnes'' regardless of which district from which they originated. They also had been called ''race welsche''.
Until the early 20th century, it was also common to use names for the sub-types, such as ''Anglo-Jura'' for animals with Thoroughbred admixture, ''Normand-Jura'' for those with Anglo-Norman ancestry. It was only in the late 20th century that the name '' heval desFranches-Montagnes'' became official.
The ''Marché-Concours des Chevaux'' in Saignelégier
Saignelégier () is a municipality in the canton of Jura in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district of Franches-Montagnes. On 1 January 2009, the formerly independent municipalities of Goumois and Les Pommerats merged into Saignelégier.
...
, a combined show, race
Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to:
* Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species
* Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...
and market dedicated to the breed, has been held annually since 1897.
The breed was crossed with Swedish Warmblood
The Swedish Warmblood or Swedish Half-bred is a Swedish breed of warmblood horse. It was originally bred as a cavalry horse at the Strömsholm and Flyinge studs. In the twentieth century it became a general-purpose riding and sport horse ...
in the 1970s, especially in Alsatian studs. By 1985, about half of the breeding population were descended from these Alsatian types, with the more traditional types becoming increasingly scarce. The last admixtures to date took place in the early 1990s, with Swiss Warmblood
The Swiss Warmblood, also called the Einsiedler, is a horse breed, founded in the 10th century on the local Schwyer stock. It was first bred at the Benedictine Monastery of Einsiedeln. They are now raised at the Federal Stud at Avenches.
...
, with the intention of increasing the breed's suitability for the saddle. Since 1997, the breed's studbook
A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...
has been closed to any external admixture.
In the same year, a Swiss federation of breeders was established, ''Schweizerischer Freibergerverband'' (FM) / ''Fédération suisse d’élevage du cheval de la race des Franches-Montagnes'' (FSFM)./ref> Today they are bred with strict regulation at the Avenches federal stud.
See also
*List of horse breeds
This article is a list of horse and pony breeds with articles on Wikipedia, and also includes terms for types of horse that are not necessarily standardized breeds but are often labeled as breeds. While there is no scientifically accepted defin ...
References
External links
A site about Freibergers
(French and German)
www.derfreiberger.de
Information about the race and character of Freibergers (English/German)
A Canadian site about Freibergers
(English) {{Equine, state=collapsed Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in Switzerland