World Breed Horse spectacular at the Royal Cheshire County Show

Visitors to this year’s Royal Cheshire County Show are set to be impressed by a captivating new World Breed Horses Parade Spectacular inside the main ring.

This eye-catching display, part of the Light Horse Section, will bring together horses from Germany, France, Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands and the UK in national costume for a unique, 30-minute event that’s not to be missed.

ⓒ Gloria Wright

Mr Mike Daley, Chief Light Horse Steward at the Show since 1980, said: “When they’re in the ring, the audience is going to be amazed.

“The majority of these horses have been imported by their owners but some are British-bred.

“It really will be a sight to see – we are sure visitors will impressed.”

Breeds will include Espanola, Appaloosa, American Saddle Breed, Lusitano, Lipizzaner, Haflinger, Morgan, Friesian Fjord and Icelandic horses, he said.

ⓒ Gloria Wright

Sue Durkan of Cheshire from the Lusitano Breed Society said World Breed Horses had a fascinating history.

“The Lusitano for example is one of the oldest breeds and can be traced right back to 1,700 BC through cave paintings in Portugal,” she said.

“The breed originated in the rough, hilly areas of Portugal which produced an agile, hardy, brave and very intelligent horse who, along with his Spanish cousins, travelled the globe as a war horse and contributed to the bloodlines of many other breeds throughout Europe and the Americas.

“The Lusitano remains at the heart of Portuguese culture – it is very much a working horse used in the fields to herd bulls and cows.”

The World Breed Horses Parade Spectacular is scheduled on the first day of the Show (Tuesday, June 21) inside the Creamline Dairies Main Ring at approximately 4.55pm.