| The word "dressage" is derived from the French word | | | | the dressage saddle of today. |
| meaning "training." Its origins can be traced back over | | | | The Renaissance period saw the comeback of |
| 2000 years, when the Greeks used dressage as a | | | | dressage as warfare made the transition into firearms |
| means of training for war. During that time, fighting on | | | | for combat. Armor was significantly reduced as one |
| horseback is advantageous and so it was very | | | | could engage the enemy from a great distance. The |
| important for the horse to be in sync with its rider. | | | | battles in this era called for chargers -- horses swift in |
| Dressage would entail movements such as pirouettes, | | | | movement so that strategic formations within the |
| piaffes, and courbettes -- those which can be used in | | | | army could be executed. Dressage once again |
| the battlefield. | | | | comprised of critical action on the part of the horse. |
| While the Greeks didn't use dressage saddles when | | | | It was also during the Renaissance that the design of |
| riding horses, it is said that they used jointed snaffles to | | | | dressage saddles began to branch out. In England, as |
| aide their maneuvering. The beginnings of a proper | | | | foxhunting became popular, so did it call for a |
| dressage saddle would be developed by the | | | | modification of the saddle structure. The pommel and |
| Assyrians about 700-800 BCE, and consisted of a | | | | cantle had to be lowered so that jumps would be |
| cloth attached around the horse's girth. | | | | safer and more comfortable. The flap's angle was |
| The art of dressage declined during the Middle Ages | | | | also adjusted so that the equestrian saddle could |
| when soldiers began to use armor to protect | | | | achieve a better position during a high jump. |
| themselves. Their horses would be covered in heavy | | | | The dressage of today came about during the |
| armor that weighed from 50 to more than 150 pounds, | | | | Twentieth Century in the standards of Olympic sports. |
| therefore hindering any complex movements that | | | | Rather than being used for war, dressage has |
| classical dressage entailed. The dressage saddle | | | | become a competitive sport practiced by all countries |
| evolved into a stronger piece of equipment that could | | | | in the world. Men and women of all ages are now |
| reliably support an active soldier. The cantle and | | | | welcome to take part in this activity that is both fulfilling |
| pommel became higher so that the rider wouldn't be | | | | and enjoyable. It is regarded as a time-honored |
| unseated. The seat was padded with wool or | | | | tradition that encourages lightness, balance, and |
| horsehair and covered in leather -- something similar to | | | | harmony between the rider and his horse. |