SRS Hofreitschule Wien | 1944 | Spanish Riding School

Morgen training bei Spanischer Hofreitschule, Wien. Morning training at the Spanish Riding School during WW2. Die Spanischer Hofreitschule im Zweiter Weltkrieg. 1938 wurde die Spanische Reitschule der deutschen Wehrmacht eingegliedert. Das Gestüt unterstand dem Reichsministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft. Am 1. Juni 1939 übernahm Major Alois Podhajsky die Leitung der nunmehrigen “Spanischen Hofreitschule“ und mit einer Festvorstellung (im Beisein von Generaloberst Wilhelm List) am 18. Juni 1939 in die Wehrmacht übernommen. Während des Kriegs wurde das Gestüt von Piber nach Hostau (ehemalige Tschechische Republik) verlegt. Die Lipizzanerherde, die bereits am 28. April 1945 von den amerikanischne Truppen von Hostau in den Westen transportiert worden war, wurde später nach Bad Wimsbach bei Lamberg (Oberösterreich) gebracht, während die Schule 1946-1955 in einer ehemaligen Dragonerkaserne in Wels untergebracht wurde (in dieser Zeit regelmäßig Gastspielreisen). Am 7. Mai 1945 bat Podhajsky mit einer Vorführung vor United States-General Patton in St. Martin um den Schutz der Schule und die Rettung des Gestüts. Erstmals wurden nun auch ausländische und weibliche Gastschüler aufgenommen. Im Jahr 1945 wurden die Schulhengste der Spanischen Hofreitschule und die nach Böhmen evakuierte Stutenherde des ehemaligen Bundesgestüts Piber in St. Martin (Oberösterreich) zusammengeführt und danach nach Wels bzw. Wimsbach (Oberösterreich) gebracht. Zehn Jahre später, im Jahr 1955, kehrte die Spanische Hofreitschule in ihr angestammtes Zuhause in der Wiener Hofburg zurück. Die erste Vorführung fand am 26. Oktober 1955, dem damals erstmals gefeierten österreichischen Nationalfeiertag, statt. Alois Podhajsky leitete das Institut bis 1964. THE SPANISH RIDING SCHOOL The Spanish Riding School in Vienna is the only institution in the world which has practiced for more than 450 years and continues to cultivate classical equitation in the Renaissance tradition of the Haute Ecole – which can also be found on UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity. In 1939, Podhajsky (Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina) became chief of the Academy of Classical Horsemanship, better known as the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1572, the school’s main focus was the training of Lipizzan horses in the art of Classical dressage. Podhajsky was director of the school throughout World War II and continued in the position until his retirement in 1965. Following his retirement, he continued to teach classical horsemanship, and wrote a number of books on the topic. During World War II, worried for the safety of the school and the horses due to bombing raids on Vienna, Podhajsky evacuated most of the stallions out of the city to Sankt Martin im Innkreis in Upper Austria. A number of mares from the Piber Federal Stud, the breeding farm that supplied horses for the school, were also evacuated. Though the horses were in relative safety, there were still harsh challenges; there was little food for human or animals, and starving refugees sometimes attempted to steal the horses, viewing them as a source of meat. As American General George Patton was leading his troops through Austria, he was alerted to the presence of the Lipizzans in Sankt Martin im Mühlkreis. Patton and Podhajsky had each competed in equestrian events at the Olympic Games. The two men renewed their acquaintance, and after Podhajsky orchestrated an impressive performance by the remaining horses and riders of the school in front of Patton (a lifelong horseman) and Undersecretary of War Robert P. Patterson, the Americans agreed to place the stallions under the protection of the United States for the duration of the war. Podhajsky alerted Patton to the location of additional Lipizzan bloodstock. Many Lipizzan mares and some stallions had been appropriated by the Germans from the Austrian breeding farm at Piber and sent to Hostau, to a Nazi-run stud farm in Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). When Hostau fell behind Soviet lines, captured German officers, under interrogation by U.S. Army Captain Ferdinand Sperl, provided details on the Lipizzans’ location and asked the Americans to rescue the horses before they fell into Soviet hands, because it was feared they would be slaughtered for horsemeat. Patton issued orders, and on April 28, 1945, Colonel Charles H. Reed, with members of Troops A, C and F of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, conducted a raid behind Soviet lines, accepted the surrender of the Germans at Hostau, and evacuated the horses. The Lipizzans were relocated to Wels, then to Wimsbach, Upper Austria. After the war, the Lipizzan stallions finally returned to Vienna in the autumn of 1955 More Patton: