“We have to promote inbreeding of the best bloodlines.”
August 30, 2016 9:18 AM Subscribe
The Secret Nazi Attempt to Breed the Perfect Horse by Elizabeth Letts. [Longreads] The bestselling author of ‘The Eighty Dollar Champion’ describes the Nazis’ secret stud farm, where dubious visionaries imagined a breed of perfect (and perfectly white) horse.
The excerpt is adapted from The Perfect Horse by Elizabeth Letts. The book describes an American colonel’s quixotic mission in the waning days of World War II: to rescue Europe’s purebred horses from a secret Nazi stud farm mere hours before the starving Soviet army arrived and likely slaughtered the animals for food. In this excerpt, Letts explains the origins of the Nazis’ secret horse breeding project.
The excerpt is adapted from The Perfect Horse by Elizabeth Letts. The book describes an American colonel’s quixotic mission in the waning days of World War II: to rescue Europe’s purebred horses from a secret Nazi stud farm mere hours before the starving Soviet army arrived and likely slaughtered the animals for food. In this excerpt, Letts explains the origins of the Nazis’ secret horse breeding project.
I just watched A View to a Kill last night so I am very prepared for this article.
posted by everybody had matching towels at 9:36 AM on August 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
posted by everybody had matching towels at 9:36 AM on August 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
Thanks for posting this. I'll definitely read it later when I'm not (supposed to be) working.
Politicians using horses for their own purposes has been going on for ages, and still continues to this day. I was reading this about the Polish government's interference in the Arabian breeding business the other day.
posted by sardonyx at 9:38 AM on August 30, 2016
Politicians using horses for their own purposes has been going on for ages, and still continues to this day. I was reading this about the Polish government's interference in the Arabian breeding business the other day.
posted by sardonyx at 9:38 AM on August 30, 2016
Horse Eugenics is my favorite Tom Waits EP
posted by beerperson at 9:38 AM on August 30, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by beerperson at 9:38 AM on August 30, 2016 [13 favorites]
From the article, (which to be fair I have not finished yet)
By the end of 1942, Rau had gathered almost every Lipizzaner in the world into a single location.
This seems to be a Stupid Movie Villain thing to do. Put all of valuable resource in one place. During a war. Where explodey things are dropped from planes.
posted by pointystick at 9:51 AM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
By the end of 1942, Rau had gathered almost every Lipizzaner in the world into a single location.
This seems to be a Stupid Movie Villain thing to do. Put all of valuable resource in one place. During a war. Where explodey things are dropped from planes.
posted by pointystick at 9:51 AM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
Many years ago, a fellow college student who raised Lippizaners got very angry with me for laughing about her all-white, Nazi-origin horses. It was the point where she described this very special gait or step they had been trained to do while on parade where I really lost it. At the time I thought it was just a funny coincidence. Now it just seems so on the nose.
posted by ga$money at 9:57 AM on August 30, 2016 [8 favorites]
posted by ga$money at 9:57 AM on August 30, 2016 [8 favorites]
fucking neigh
posted by thelonius at 10:02 AM on August 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by thelonius at 10:02 AM on August 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
My mom loves the Lippizaners. She's paid money to see them perform. I'm better off not telling her that I think those poor starving Russian soldiers should have been allowed to eat the horses.
posted by LindsayIrene at 10:08 AM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by LindsayIrene at 10:08 AM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I had a children's book about the Lipizzaners that I adored as a kid, but I mostly don't remember it, except every four years when I catch a few minutes of Olympic dressage and think "This? I loved a book about this?"
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 10:12 AM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 10:12 AM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
"Secret Nazi Stud Farm" sounds like title of the most ill-conceived porn flick ever.
posted by jonmc at 10:13 AM on August 30, 2016 [16 favorites]
posted by jonmc at 10:13 AM on August 30, 2016 [16 favorites]
Pounded in the Butt by Secret Nazi Stud Farming
posted by beerperson at 10:19 AM on August 30, 2016 [12 favorites]
posted by beerperson at 10:19 AM on August 30, 2016 [12 favorites]
these horses look pretty amazing, but do they taste like raisins?
posted by prize bull octorok at 10:59 AM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by prize bull octorok at 10:59 AM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
In his approach to horse breeding, Rau followed Weismann’s theory. He believed that purebred horses had an uncorrupted substance that was passed along ancestral lines. This germ plasm was inherently fragile and needed to be protected from corruption from outside influences, such as “mixed blood.” Rau wrote, “We have to promote inbreeding of the best bloodlines to get identical germ plasm to prevent corruption and to preserve it.” Not understanding the dangers of inbreeding, Rau believed that increasing purity would improve quality.
Man, eugenicists that don't understand genetics. That can't end well.
posted by GuyZero at 11:30 AM on August 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
Man, eugenicists that don't understand genetics. That can't end well.
posted by GuyZero at 11:30 AM on August 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
"Secret Nazi Stud Farm" sounds like title of the most ill-conceived porn flick ever.
It's set in Argentina, right?
posted by leotrotsky at 11:49 AM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
It's set in Argentina, right?
posted by leotrotsky at 11:49 AM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
Man, eugenicists that don't understand genetics. That can't end well.
Could have been worse.
posted by IndigoJones at 11:50 AM on August 30, 2016
Could have been worse.
posted by IndigoJones at 11:50 AM on August 30, 2016
Wasn't Gen. Patton involved in the rescue? Indeed. Wasn't there a movie about it? Indeed.
posted by lagomorphius at 12:02 PM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by lagomorphius at 12:02 PM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
ga$money, they aren't of Nazi-origin. They've been the favorites for horse dancing since the Renaissance. Non-Nazis are pretty enthusiastic about their Spanish/Berber/Arabian mixed origins, too. Your friend may have been creepy, of course.
It makes me sad when we wipe out any of the animals or plants and associated skills that we developed over so long a period. It's history and art and environmental niche adaptation and embodied knowledge, often working-class -- even the Lipizanners: you have to have skilled grooms as well as riders.
Until pretty recently (a hundred years ago or so) it was common to understand humans by comparing actions or temperament or character to animals that exemplified them, good or bad. Now it's just us and the computer programs designed to reflect us flatteringly, which, in context, seems a little too much like inbreeding.
posted by clew at 12:11 PM on August 30, 2016 [8 favorites]
It makes me sad when we wipe out any of the animals or plants and associated skills that we developed over so long a period. It's history and art and environmental niche adaptation and embodied knowledge, often working-class -- even the Lipizanners: you have to have skilled grooms as well as riders.
Until pretty recently (a hundred years ago or so) it was common to understand humans by comparing actions or temperament or character to animals that exemplified them, good or bad. Now it's just us and the computer programs designed to reflect us flatteringly, which, in context, seems a little too much like inbreeding.
posted by clew at 12:11 PM on August 30, 2016 [8 favorites]
Puts me in mind of Crimson Tide, in which the Denzel Washington character counters the Gene Hackman character's insinuation about the nature of Lippizaner horses. Hackman implies that only white animals could achieve the level of trained ability that is unique to the Lippizaners, upon which Washington reminds him that they are born black.
posted by e1c at 12:11 PM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by e1c at 12:11 PM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
Lipizzaners are a gorgeous breed, as are the Andalusians. Both breeds are used nowadays, in performance, to display ancient military tactics. The irony is hard to miss. We see an awesome dance, but it was designed to protect the rider from the infantry lance or cavalry saber, or to kill infantry soldiers. It doesn't bear thinking about in any detail: I can't put my head in the right place, where I could ride my beloved mount into the midst of flying blades or deadly shrapnel.
With their performances, the Lipizzaners treat us to what amounts to a magical rapport between horse and rider. It's not hard to see the difference between a horse that's responding to a cue, and a horse that dances with its rider. These shows highlight the animal's sense of pattern and stance, their precise awareness of posture and distance. We humans are magically able to meld our sensibilities to theirs, and create a performance that belongs to neither, yet both. I believe many riders have experienced that incredible moment when the horse they were riding became weightless and invisible. This is what you can see during some of the performances by Lipizzaners.
Even the Nazi's failed to fuck that up.
If any WWII vets are reading this: thanks for killing Hitler.
posted by mule98J at 12:52 PM on August 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
With their performances, the Lipizzaners treat us to what amounts to a magical rapport between horse and rider. It's not hard to see the difference between a horse that's responding to a cue, and a horse that dances with its rider. These shows highlight the animal's sense of pattern and stance, their precise awareness of posture and distance. We humans are magically able to meld our sensibilities to theirs, and create a performance that belongs to neither, yet both. I believe many riders have experienced that incredible moment when the horse they were riding became weightless and invisible. This is what you can see during some of the performances by Lipizzaners.
Even the Nazi's failed to fuck that up.
If any WWII vets are reading this: thanks for killing Hitler.
posted by mule98J at 12:52 PM on August 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
Isn't the white-angle a bit overdone? Lipizzaners are white, or rather, they become white with age. But that has nothing to do with Nazis, they were always that way.
The inbreeding is also more complex than it appears in the article. Inbreeding can be very productive, as I think most breeders know. It is risky — when you mate cousins, the result can be spectacular and it can be terrible. At our stud, we had a series of three fillies with the same closely related parentage. One became the best mare of the race ever (in our country, obviously), another came out good if more plain than her sister but she was a fantastic breeder. The third came out a pygmy monster which only I could handle and thus ended up as dogfood while I was away at college. She was so dangerously bad that my gran quit that particular form of gambling, in spite of the extremely good revenue from the other two.
posted by mumimor at 1:07 PM on August 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
The inbreeding is also more complex than it appears in the article. Inbreeding can be very productive, as I think most breeders know. It is risky — when you mate cousins, the result can be spectacular and it can be terrible. At our stud, we had a series of three fillies with the same closely related parentage. One became the best mare of the race ever (in our country, obviously), another came out good if more plain than her sister but she was a fantastic breeder. The third came out a pygmy monster which only I could handle and thus ended up as dogfood while I was away at college. She was so dangerously bad that my gran quit that particular form of gambling, in spite of the extremely good revenue from the other two.
posted by mumimor at 1:07 PM on August 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
I got to see an extremely informal Spanish Riding School performance because I used to live near the edge of nowhere where one of the WWII US soldiers involved had settled, and Lippizaners were still pausing to recuperate at his farm while touring the US, and they did a tiny show at the tiny county fairground.
Mostly adolescent, half-trained horses, and one with a strained something, and they were still astonishing -- not just the physical movement, but how they interacted with their people. Reminded me of working sheepdogs or logging horses, they seemed kind of independent.
posted by clew at 2:12 PM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
Mostly adolescent, half-trained horses, and one with a strained something, and they were still astonishing -- not just the physical movement, but how they interacted with their people. Reminded me of working sheepdogs or logging horses, they seemed kind of independent.
posted by clew at 2:12 PM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
The only difference between inbreeding and line breeding is intent and willingness to cull. It's very sad having to put down a bad result, but fixing a trait like parasite resistance can be kinder in the long run.
posted by ridgerunner at 2:20 PM on August 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by ridgerunner at 2:20 PM on August 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
Reminded me of working sheepdogs or logging horses, they seemed kind of independent.
IMO money has ruined dressage, even as we still see wonderful performances. Back in the day, the whole point was that the horses enjoyed the training and you saw their spirit in the drills. Now, there is just too much money involved and some really sinister training methods are used at the top levels.
That might not be the case in Vienna, I haven't been there, but they aren't at all connected with the international dressage world. I went to the stud in Slovenia, and it is wonderful. All the foals are black ;-)
posted by mumimor at 3:01 PM on August 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
IMO money has ruined dressage, even as we still see wonderful performances. Back in the day, the whole point was that the horses enjoyed the training and you saw their spirit in the drills. Now, there is just too much money involved and some really sinister training methods are used at the top levels.
That might not be the case in Vienna, I haven't been there, but they aren't at all connected with the international dressage world. I went to the stud in Slovenia, and it is wonderful. All the foals are black ;-)
posted by mumimor at 3:01 PM on August 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
God this was just such an excellent read. I may actually have to buy the damn book. Horses AND misapprehension of science? It's like it was made for me.
posted by Made of Star Stuff at 3:57 PM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Made of Star Stuff at 3:57 PM on August 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
Yup, Star Stuff, this one's on my reading list, too.
There was a passing mention of the Arabians from Janow, including the bay stallion Witez. Whatever Rau thought he was doing, collecting the Arabians had nothing to do with breeding pure white Aryan war horses. Adding horses with the greying gene might have produced fairly large amount of greys, but getting the pure white of the Lipizzaners would always be a genetic pipe dream within the "pure" Arabian breed.
Occasionally the Lipizzaner will produce a dark bay or brown that doesn't change color as it ages. It is a tradition of the Spanish Riding School to have a bay or brown horse in residence, and some of them have been considered top quality. I'm not sure what Rau was aiming for when he ... planned to use the science of selective breeding to erase the individual differences characterizing the several strains of purebred Lipizzaner that had emerged since the end of World War I and replace them with a single mold....
There are eight sire lines (strains) of Lipizzaners which are separated into two distinct types. The Conversanos, Maestosos, Neapolitanos, Favory, Incitato, and Tulipan are heavier bodied, Baroque style horses with classical heads. The Pluto and Siglavy lines are more similar to the Arabians, being smaller and more refined, with a fine head and tapered muzzle. The heavier strains would be more suited for battle horses and the lighter strains are noted for their endurance, much like the Janow Arabians. Additionally, there are 20 mare lines which are also divided into two distinct types, of which about 1/3 descend from Arabian or Barb lines.
Witez was known for his strength, stamina, and stamping his get (passing on physical traits) and many Arabs used for endurance riding are descended from him. He was a great grandsire of two of my old horses.
This book is sitting on my shelf, and I may have to read it again in homage to a fantastic horse.
posted by BlueHorse at 9:21 PM on August 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
There was a passing mention of the Arabians from Janow, including the bay stallion Witez. Whatever Rau thought he was doing, collecting the Arabians had nothing to do with breeding pure white Aryan war horses. Adding horses with the greying gene might have produced fairly large amount of greys, but getting the pure white of the Lipizzaners would always be a genetic pipe dream within the "pure" Arabian breed.
Occasionally the Lipizzaner will produce a dark bay or brown that doesn't change color as it ages. It is a tradition of the Spanish Riding School to have a bay or brown horse in residence, and some of them have been considered top quality. I'm not sure what Rau was aiming for when he ... planned to use the science of selective breeding to erase the individual differences characterizing the several strains of purebred Lipizzaner that had emerged since the end of World War I and replace them with a single mold....
There are eight sire lines (strains) of Lipizzaners which are separated into two distinct types. The Conversanos, Maestosos, Neapolitanos, Favory, Incitato, and Tulipan are heavier bodied, Baroque style horses with classical heads. The Pluto and Siglavy lines are more similar to the Arabians, being smaller and more refined, with a fine head and tapered muzzle. The heavier strains would be more suited for battle horses and the lighter strains are noted for their endurance, much like the Janow Arabians. Additionally, there are 20 mare lines which are also divided into two distinct types, of which about 1/3 descend from Arabian or Barb lines.
Witez was known for his strength, stamina, and stamping his get (passing on physical traits) and many Arabs used for endurance riding are descended from him. He was a great grandsire of two of my old horses.
This book is sitting on my shelf, and I may have to read it again in homage to a fantastic horse.
posted by BlueHorse at 9:21 PM on August 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
A friend of mine rode at the SRS in the 80s. Lippizaners are an old breed, much much older than Nazis. The US soldiers who rescued the horses were cavalrymen, they would have considered these horses absolutely irreplaceable and more precious than any art or building. It's kind of a mindset.
One other amazing story is that of the Hungarian Countess Judith Gyurky. Her life is like something from a movie and her family still breeds those horses today.
posted by fshgrl at 11:13 PM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
One other amazing story is that of the Hungarian Countess Judith Gyurky. Her life is like something from a movie and her family still breeds those horses today.
posted by fshgrl at 11:13 PM on August 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
I had a children's book about the Lipizzaners that I adored as a kid, but I mostly don't remember it, except every four years when I catch a few minutes of Olympic dressage and think "This? I loved a book about this?"
Very likely it was White Stallion of Lipizza by Marguerite Henry. It's a gorgeous book, but the story is not terribly exciting. I mostly loved it for Wesley Dennis' art.
Also you guys' knowledge of this topic amazes me. I love Metafilter.
posted by emjaybee at 7:50 AM on August 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Very likely it was White Stallion of Lipizza by Marguerite Henry. It's a gorgeous book, but the story is not terribly exciting. I mostly loved it for Wesley Dennis' art.
Also you guys' knowledge of this topic amazes me. I love Metafilter.
posted by emjaybee at 7:50 AM on August 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Can I say I'm just happy we're actually getting to talk about the horses? I was afraid this thread was going down the rabbit hole of bad porn and Nazi jokes. It was staring to get that feel of your favourite sports team/band sucks.
The last time I got to Vienna the SRS wasn't performing, but the training sessions were open to the public, so of course I went. I had seen the troupe decades before when they performed in my home town, but I wanted to see the horses and riders on their (glorious) home turf.
As Blue Horse mentioned, there was a young brown horse among the pack of whites. He was actually something to see. You could tell he was more inexperienced in comparison to some of the others in the ring, but he really had a fire in him. It wasn't just his coloring that caught my eye.
Even without the formal performance aspect, it was a lovely way to spend part of the day. So if you ever have the opportunity to go watch and are hesitant about it because it's "just training" I can say it's worth the time.
posted by sardonyx at 8:03 AM on August 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
The last time I got to Vienna the SRS wasn't performing, but the training sessions were open to the public, so of course I went. I had seen the troupe decades before when they performed in my home town, but I wanted to see the horses and riders on their (glorious) home turf.
As Blue Horse mentioned, there was a young brown horse among the pack of whites. He was actually something to see. You could tell he was more inexperienced in comparison to some of the others in the ring, but he really had a fire in him. It wasn't just his coloring that caught my eye.
Even without the formal performance aspect, it was a lovely way to spend part of the day. So if you ever have the opportunity to go watch and are hesitant about it because it's "just training" I can say it's worth the time.
posted by sardonyx at 8:03 AM on August 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
See also Heck cattle.
It seems the Nazis really wanted steaks they had vanquished in mortal combat.
posted by acb at 9:38 AM on August 31, 2016
It seems the Nazis really wanted steaks they had vanquished in mortal combat.
posted by acb at 9:38 AM on August 31, 2016
I just finished Perfect Horse this morning, and wasn't going to comment, but upon reflection, I have some feels. The book was...OK. It had lots of good research, a tale with plenty of high drama and excitement suggested, a subject close to my heart, but was somewhat of a disappointment in the end.
There were too many holes and giveaways--Plenty of repetitions of giving sugar cubes and kisses to Neapolitano Africa, but short shrift given to Pluto Theodororosta, equally brilliant and beloved. The author didn't discuss the either horse's specialty in performing the Airs above the Ground. I know from other sources Pluto excelled in the capriole, an incredibly difficult maneuver. I believe Africa performed the levade, but need to reread Podhajsky's My Horses, My Teachers to refresh my memory.
The book needed tighter editing, with fewer repetitions of sunlight glinting on shining coats, and more focus on the horses, their training, the genetics of horse breeding and how Rau's meddling did or didn't change the breed. Perhaps I was reading between the lines, but my impression was that Rau's suggestions weren't taken seriously by the stable managers, and breeding was carried out according to prior guidelines.
As well, some of the most interesting details were glossed over. At one point the Americans were assisted by a volunteer group of Australians with a mention of a Maori working to extricate the horses. What? Who?? How??? (The Australians saw extensive cavalry action on the Russian front.)
The last part of the book focuses on the Arabians, primarily Weitz II, and their export to the States. Weitz' story is excellent; And Miles to Go by Linnell Smith is what to read if you're interested in his story. Unfortunately, Letts doesn't go into much detail about the Lipizzaner's story after the war.
The fate of the horses foaled at Hostau and branded with a dagger and an H under Rau's direction is never mentioned. I'm extremely curious to find out if any of them were trained and used in the School, or if their bloodlines continued in the Piber Stud.
My final criticism of the book is probably pretty petty, but dammit, Weitz' half brothers, the two great Arabian stallions, Witraz and Wielki Szlem, were NOT named Stained Glass and Grand Slam, as Letts continually refers to them in her book. While Weitz is the only one of the three that was brought into the States, their influence on the bloodlines of American Arabians is exponential, especially IMO, Wielki Szlem, who was a noted sire of influential broodmares. I can't imagine any Arabian horse fancier calling these stallions by anything other than their registered names.
posted by BlueHorse at 11:01 AM on September 19, 2016 [3 favorites]
There were too many holes and giveaways--Plenty of repetitions of giving sugar cubes and kisses to Neapolitano Africa, but short shrift given to Pluto Theodororosta, equally brilliant and beloved. The author didn't discuss the either horse's specialty in performing the Airs above the Ground. I know from other sources Pluto excelled in the capriole, an incredibly difficult maneuver. I believe Africa performed the levade, but need to reread Podhajsky's My Horses, My Teachers to refresh my memory.
The book needed tighter editing, with fewer repetitions of sunlight glinting on shining coats, and more focus on the horses, their training, the genetics of horse breeding and how Rau's meddling did or didn't change the breed. Perhaps I was reading between the lines, but my impression was that Rau's suggestions weren't taken seriously by the stable managers, and breeding was carried out according to prior guidelines.
As well, some of the most interesting details were glossed over. At one point the Americans were assisted by a volunteer group of Australians with a mention of a Maori working to extricate the horses. What? Who?? How??? (The Australians saw extensive cavalry action on the Russian front.)
The last part of the book focuses on the Arabians, primarily Weitz II, and their export to the States. Weitz' story is excellent; And Miles to Go by Linnell Smith is what to read if you're interested in his story. Unfortunately, Letts doesn't go into much detail about the Lipizzaner's story after the war.
The fate of the horses foaled at Hostau and branded with a dagger and an H under Rau's direction is never mentioned. I'm extremely curious to find out if any of them were trained and used in the School, or if their bloodlines continued in the Piber Stud.
My final criticism of the book is probably pretty petty, but dammit, Weitz' half brothers, the two great Arabian stallions, Witraz and Wielki Szlem, were NOT named Stained Glass and Grand Slam, as Letts continually refers to them in her book. While Weitz is the only one of the three that was brought into the States, their influence on the bloodlines of American Arabians is exponential, especially IMO, Wielki Szlem, who was a noted sire of influential broodmares. I can't imagine any Arabian horse fancier calling these stallions by anything other than their registered names.
posted by BlueHorse at 11:01 AM on September 19, 2016 [3 favorites]
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posted by paper chromatographologist at 9:35 AM on August 30, 2016 [1 favorite]