Selle Francais Horses

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Being France’s most significant horse breed, the Selle Français is also known as the Cheval de Selle Français, which means the “French Saddle Horse”. You may not be from France, so I am pretty sure you’re confused on how to pronounce “Selle Français”, you can pronounce it this way, "Sell-fran-SAY".

Trotters, Thoroughbreds, Arabians, and Anglo-Arabians were cross bred in order to develop the Selle Francais. It was developed around the government stud farms of Saint Lô and Le Pin in the French department of Normandy. The Selle Français were recognized as a breed in December 1958 and its first Stud Book was published in 1965. In the Stud Book, the Selle Français is one of the few Warmblood breeds that only have a little foreign blood. In the 19th century, the Anglo-Norman was developed. It’s a high-ranking breed developed by crossing Norfolk Trotter, Thoroughbred and Arabian stallions. The crossbreeding process was done to enhance the local mares.

The modern day Selle Français can be traced back to these breeds. Other than this, they are also influenced by other regional breeds such as the Charolais, Corlay, Vendee, Anjou, Ain, and Ardennes. The Thoroughbred stallions have also influenced the Selle Français but only by a little percentage. The Selle Français was influenced by Thoroughbreds like the Orange Peel, Ibrahim, Furioso, Rantzau and Ultimate. From 1925 to 1940, Orange Peel has stood at the national Stud. All the Thoroughbred names have contributed to the development of the Selle Français. Presently, the Selle Français is still bred with other horse breeds. Because of this, the Selle Français can more likely do a lot of activities.

The Selle Français are flexible and powerful. They have good bone structure. They move fast and are highly trainable. They stand 16 to 16.2 hands high but they can also be 17 hands high. They usually come in bay, chestnut and sometimes roan colors.

Today, they are divided into two: the lighter racing animal and the showjumper. These horses can be used for sports such as show jumping, racing, eventing, dressage, and in leisure riding.