1991 –2013 167 cm Black
Breeder: Harry Bartsch
After the success of their first stallion, the Trakehner, Caprimond, Klosterhof Medingen continued to grow, and soon another stallion was added to the ranks. Let Burkhard Wahler tell the tale:
“The next stallion was Hohenstein. At that time Trakehners, especially in this area in Hanover, were not very popular. The Hanoverian people at that time said, no Trakehners, they are too difficult in the mouth, crazy in the head, all those bad things. Then they saw Caprimond, and they went, well… and started to think. Then they saw Hohenstein, and he was a premium stallion, with a very good test at Adelheidsdorf. Then Dr Bade of the Hanoverian State Stud at Celle, asked if he could lease him – we said, no, we need him on our stud, but we could supply semen. We got a contract and it helped us promote the stallion, because when Dr Bade said, ‘I have here now a good Trakehner in my program’, Hohenstein very quickly became famous in the Hanoverian breed.”
Hohenstein descends from Donauwind, who stood in Germany, Denmark and the USA
And yes, this stallion also has his story:
“Hohenstein was in our auction as a foal. First I sold the mare to a new breeder, an older gentleman, he was a director of a big insurance company. He wanted a nice mare, and I had just bought the mare some weeks before. I said, okay, buy this mare and go to Caprimond. He asked me if I would take the foal to the auction.”
“I would have bought the foal at the auction, but a good client of mine was bidding on the foal so I couldn’t bid against him! After the auction he came to me and said, what should I do with this foal, can I leave the foal here on your farm? Sure.”
“So we raised him until he was two and then I could see, oh cripes, it’s a fantastic stallion, I would like to buy that one. ‘No’, said the owner, ‘no chance, he will go to the stallion approval in Neumünster and then we will see’. That was the time when the Trakehner stallions got pretty expensive – Kennedy sold for €200,000, and so he was thinking, I’ll make a fortune with Hohenstein.”
“When Hohenstein was accepted for Neumünster Sale, we sat down for a chat, and we agreed on three different prices. One if he was champion, one if he was reserve, one if he was premium. At the end he got ‘only’ premium stallion so that was good for me, but really there was not one stallion better than him. He should have won, no question, but it was good for me. So I got Hohenstein, then he went to the Bundeschampionate, then a good stallion test, then Bade became interested, and his breeders started to breed the Hanoverians to him.”
Father and son, Caprimond and Hohenstein, and daughter and father, Theresa and Burkhard Wahler
At the 2002 Trakehner Stallion Licensing in Neumunster, Germany, Hohenstein was awarded the title of 2002 Trakehner Stallion of the Year. Hohenstein is by Caprimond out of Helena XIV (by Matador x Grimsel). As a two year old stallion, Hohenstein won the premium title at the licensing. As a three-year old he finished second in the Stallion Performance Test in Adelheidsdorf with a dressage ranking of 148.29 – the highest of his group, and in 28th place in the jumping with 102.95.
He was a finalist in the five-year old division at the German Bundeschampionate, and continued to be trained up to Intermediaire II level by Andreas Platzdasch.
Fie Skarso and Münchhausen
One early star by him was Münchausen. The bay stallion, owned by Gestut Wiesenhof, was second with Fie Skarsoe as a six-year old at the 2001 World Championships for Young Dressage Horses in Verden before going on to compete at Grand Prix level in the Danish team. Münchausen is proving an excellent sire in his own right and was at one stage ranked 3rd on the German FN list of dressage stallions – and third on the Hanoverian dressage stallion rankings. Münchausen won €24,462 in prizemoney.
Insterburg at the Bundeschampionate
Another son, Insterberg has dressage winnings of €31,458. The stallion was trained to Grand Prix success by Carola Koppelmann, then sold to Sweden in 2010 to be campaigned by a young rider. As of the 2021 Hanoverian Stallion book, Hohenstein has nine progeny who have won €10,000 in dressage competition, Münchhausen is second to Insterberg with €24,462.
Hohenstein constantly produces top sport horses that are sold for high prices at the Elite Hanoverian auctions in Verden. At the 2002 Hanoverian Stallion Licensing, the president of the American Hanoverian Society, Douglas W. Leatherdale, purchased the black colt His Highness (by Hohenstein out of a Donnerhall mare) for the then record price of €515.000.
His Highness at the Bundeschampionate
According to Jens Meyer, who stood the young stallion, His Highness, the Trakehner influence is very necessary in Hanover.
“I have seen it with my stallion, Dacaprio, who is by Caprimond, it is very important for our breeding to get the type, and the only way to get the type is from the Trakehner.”
The problem with the Trakenher is that sometimes they are not so athletic, not such good movers – but Hohenstein seems to produce very clean moving horses?
“I agree, with the Hanoverian mares we have had very good progeny from Hohenstein in the auction, and also at the Bundeschampionate, I think he gives the Hanoverian the right type, and from the Hanoverian we get the movement.”
The 2021 Hannoverian Stallion book has Hohenstein with 601 competitors with winnings of €565,076. 505 in dressage with 10,458 placings, and 70 competitors at S level. He has an FN dressage rating as a producer of young horses of 127 and a highest level achieved ranking of 143. His Hanoverian dressage value is 133 while he scores 143 for type which would have put him in 7th of the topliste if he was still alive.
Insterburg and Carola Kopellmann at a Warendorf Seminar
For much of his life, Hohenstein was the most popular Trakehner sire in Hannover.
Hohenstein is available to Australian breeders: https://ihb.com.au/product/hohenstein/
View Hohenstein on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmvKlG0KG3E
