The tradition of breeding Lipizzan horses in Slavonia, Baranja and Srijem as an intangible cultural heritage element has been included in the Register of Cultural Property of the Republic of Croatia in early 2017. In late 2017, the international initiative for the drafting of a nomination before UNESCO began, with the Ministry of Culture as Croatia’s main coordinator for the process of preparing and drafting of the nomination. Support in the preparation of nomination was provided by numerous holders of this cultural property, from the Đakovo and Lipik National Stud Farms to some large and small horse breeding associations that are active in the breeding of Lipizzan horses in Slavonia, Baranja and Srijem, as well as scientific, educational, cultural and administrative institutions.
The history of the Lipizzan breed in Croatia
The Lipizzan horse breeding tradition in Slavonia, Baranja, and Srijem regions has formed an important part of Croatian cultural heritage. The breeding of Lipizzan horses played a notable role in Croatian history, it was a tradition especially firmly rooted in the life of aristocracy, landowners and army, but in the life of ordinary people as well. The first Lipizzan horses were bred in Croatia as early as around 1700 at Count Andrija Jankovć stud farm in Terezovac (present-day Suhopolje) near the town of Virovitica. It is in this stud farm that the stallion bloodline, Tulipan, was first bred around 1800. This stallion bloodline is officially included in one of the eight recognized Lipizzan stallion bloodlines and it is the only one to have originated in the Republic of Croatia. Today Lipizzan horses in Croatia are bred either in state owned stud farms or in traditional family farms. These two are closely connected and compatible in their activities, and this is something that has been developed since the 19th century, and was especially pronounced in the 1920s when the first horse-breeding peasant associations were founded in Slavonia.
The Lipizzan breed in Đakovo
The breeding and selection of Lipizzan horses in Đakovo, i.e. Croatia, dates back to 1806, when the breeding Lipizzan horses were, due to wartime circumstances, moved from the Lipica stud farm to the Đakovo Diocese stud farm.
Breeding and selection, in other words, work and care about breeding and formation of the Đakovo Lipizzan horse, is under constant surveillance of experts in horse breeding with a goal to propel advances in selection and to preserve the elite genetic potential of the Lipizzan breed in the Republic of Croatia. Special attention is paid to the selection of each and every stud mare for further breeding with an emphasis being placed on their appearances, movements, and the potential they have in breeding. Stallions, as crucial factors for achieving advances in selection, are also put under close scrutiny of special selection criteria. In addition to that, in order to foster genetic variability, it is a routine procedure to use stallions bred in other countries, most often in other European state stud farms of the Lipizzan breed.
The state stud farm Đakovo uses two locations for horse breeding and selection: Pastuharna, located in the heart of Đakovo, and Ivandvor, in the immediate vicinity of the town.
Today's Đakovo Lipizzan horse is a reflection of the conditions and circumstances under which it was bred. In terms of its strength and size, it outperforms the breeds bred at the Lipica and Piber stud farms. Because of this, the Lipizzan horses are well suited for sporting competitions and tournaments, both national and international, where they achieve admirable results.