For one of the country’s great castles, it’s been a long time coming – but Derbyshire’s Bolsover sees the return of ‘horse ballet’ to its grounds this Easter, for the first time in three centuries.
The horses will perform the breathtaking and intricate displays of circles, turns and leaps introduced to England in the 17th century by dashing playboy, poet and royal horsemaster William Cavendish, first Duke of Newcastle.
English Heritage is introducing the spectacular twice-daily displays at weekends in tribute to Cavendish, who is widely credited as being the ‘father’ of modern dressage – which so vividly caught the public imagination during the gold medal-winning performances of the British equestrian teams at last year’s London Olympics and Paralympics.
Cavendish used kinder training techniques than his contemporaries to perfect the complex art of dressage including leaps or ‘airs above the ground’ – the pinnacle of the dance-like moves which were once deployed on the field of battle to out-manoeuvre the enemy.
The performances will recreate the sights and sounds of fine horses going through their balletic paces in the grand Riding House, built by Cavendish in the 1630s – one of the finest indoor riding schools to survive in the land.
To mark the start of the displays, the castle is turning the clocks back to 1642 over the Easter weekend – from March 29 to April 1 – with a host of activities following King Charles I into battle on the eve of the English Civil War.
From March 29, admission to Bolsover Castle is £8.50 for adults, £7.70 for concessions, £5.10 for children and £22.10 for a family ticket (2 adults and up to 3 children).
Click here to book with www.english-heritage.org.uk/bolsovercastle
