Spanish Riding School

This is the home of the world famous Lippizaner stallions. These pictures are of their stables, located as part of the Hofburg (see another post).
In case you're wondering why it's the "Spanish" riding school, the Hapsburgs, at one time (for about 200 years), had 2 royal lines: one here in Austria and the other in Spain. When an Austrian king died without an heir, a Spanish Hapsburg was sent to take the throne. It is said he brought with him his favorite things, which included horses and all the related materials, teachers, etc.
The flying horse in the last picture hangs over the center of the yard around which are the individual stalls for each horse. You can see an occasional head looking out of a stall here and there as it was dinner time when I was there, and the stallions where looking for their food.
The riding school also includes a hall for training and shows that I didn't get to see. There are many sites online that show what these stallions are trained to do, all of which dates back to the days when these guys were warhorses.Read more