What do you mean by french classical riding?
Classical Equitation can refer to many different approaches to the art of riding. When I speak of “French Classical Equitation” I’m speaking of a way of working horses that is not military in nature, unlike modern dressage and unlike Classical military riding.
Rather it is based in work developed in the Renaissance that was created to support the well being of the horse, and it finds its expression in the development of a true connection between horse and rider.
This approach is called “Classical” because it has ancient Greek roots and has been practiced for thousands of years. It has a distinct lineage of masters that can be traced across time. It is centered in being beneficial to both participants (horse and rider) and, while being based in ‘feel’ it can, nonetheless, consistently be taught through time-tested, horse and rider proven methods.
It’s called “French” because the lineage of masters that I studied came from France, and French culture with its sense of artistic expression, of joie de vivre and savoring life: that special French je ne sais quoi is at the root of the work. Whereas most modern dressage is based on German culture— and while Germany is brilliant at engineering and discipline, and is exceptional at making lists and hierarchies… (very useful in competition!) but it can be said that German culture it is not known for sensitivity, light heartedness and personal expression.
German training weeds out unsuitable horses.
French training finds what’s special and unique in each one.
This is a way of working with any horse, not just the elite or ‘bred to it’ breeds, and with any rider, not just the ones that appear on the cover of competition magazines.
The first references to the work in writing are from Xenophon, 300 years before the current era began. But much earlier images from other cultures show horses who are presenting themselves in the posture of a horse that has been invited to explore their best balance, and that suggests a much longer history existed of working horses this way before writing was common.
Equitation has always been driven by the forces that define the rider’s need for the horse. Military demands, the need to put meat on the table, herding and moving cattle, travel, and self expression have all been elements that influenced training styles.
Today in competition you see the distillation of various forms. And what we see is no longer connected to the basic questions that created those forms.
When you watch dressage, consider the term “dressage”. It means “training.” What are these dressage horses being trained for? In France, where the term originates, the horses were trained for whatever application they seemed most suited to accomplish. Dressage was the basic physical and mental therapy that helped calm the horse, develop its focus, and give it a healthy body that could move without impediment in any direction. “Calm, Forward, and Straight were General L’Hotte’s famous words— and he went on to say “And the order matters.”
The most important element, the element that must underlay all of the rest… is calm. Without a calm mind you don’t proceed to the next order of business… “Forward”.
Forward is an English translation of the French “en avante” which means the kind of forwardness that we refer to when you are so engaged that you finish my sentences for me. Before I even finish saying ‘hey do you want to go out for a cuppa…” you’re grinning and reaching for your coat. You’re engaged, curious, alive, and at the ready. “Forward” in this sense has nothing to do with rushing or speed or explosiveness. It’s all about directed bright engagement, and a horse can be very forward at the stand still, ready and curious about what happens next— but because it’s based in calm, remember, there’s no fussiness. When the horse is both calm and engaged, then you’re ready to address “straight”, the final element.
Straight, L’Hotte said, could also be considered ‘directable’ as a horse that has stiffness, tightness, or over laxity will have a hard time going in certain directions or at certain gaits. Straightness is about being equally supple in both directions.
So the work of the rider is to help the horse find calm, then to make sure you’re engaging… and then to work with a calm, curious horse to develop a lovely supple body, mind and heart to play together.
It’s good for the horse, and it’s good for the rider!