Kip Mistral

Cultivating legacy and posterity for classical traditions

Recent Posts

  • Bonding with Your Horse

     Bonding with Your Horse

  • The Horse We Have in Our Stable is the Horse We Make

     The Horse We Have in Our Stable is the Horse We Make

  • Sparkling Marie Antoinette: Irreverent Rider of Donkeys

     Sparkling Marie Antoinette: Irreverent Rider of Donkeys

  • The Vanishing Point of Lightness: Michel Henriquet on Equestrian Art

     The Vanishing Point of Lightness: Michel Henriquet on Equestrian Art

  • Music and Riding

     Music and Riding

  • Magnum Opus – Coming Q4/2024 & Q1-Q2/2025

     Magnum Opus – Coming Q4/2024 & Q1-Q2/2025

Memoir of a Page of the Grand Stable of King Louis XVI

Memoir of a Page of the Grand Stable of King Louis XVI

(Extract from “Recollections of a Page at the Court of Louis XVI: Chapter, The Pages,” by Charles-Alexandre-François-Felix, Comte de France de Hézecques, Baron de Mailly. (Author Hézecques born 7-30-1774, died August 1835.) Originally written 1804. Edited, from the French, by Charlotte M. Yonge, 1873)

[NOTE from K.M. What was life really like for a young aristocrat serving as a page to the King of France and taking early life lessons from the paramilitary organization of the Grand Stable? From 1784, from the age of 12 through the age of 18, this young Count served his King…read on for a very interesting story.]

“The imagination always recurs with delight to the happy days of youth. In the thorny paths of life, a moment of sweet satisfaction is often felt in turning the thoughts to these peaceful years of tender age when the only sorrow was to be thwarted in some little project, when privations were so short, and tears so soon forgotten.”

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François Robichon de La Guérinière on “Why There Are So Few Horsemen…”

François Robichon de La Guérinière on “Why There Are So Few Horsemen…”

In 1731, François Robichon de La Guérinière was complaining in his book “School of Horsemanship”, Chapter I “Why There Are So Few Horsemen & the Qualities Necessary to Become One”. Nearly 300 years later, we are asking the same questions! Here, his initial comments:

“All arts and sciences have principles and rules governing the methods resulting in those discoveries that lead to their perfection. The Cavalry [School of Horsemanship] is the only art for which it seems there is only need of practice; however, the practice, stripped of sound principles, is nothing more than routine that only results in a forced and uncertain performance and a false brilliance that fascinates the demi-connoisseurs, who are often amazed by the horse’s kindness, rather than by the rider’s skill. This is the reason for the small number of well-trained horses and the lack of ability presently seen in the majority of those people who call themselves horsemen.”

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Riding the Labyrinth with Valentín

Riding the Labyrinth with Valentín

(© Kip Mistral 2018)

The labyrinth is a archetypal symbol that has appeared in pan-global culture, art and literature for thousands of years. A formal labyrinth created for meditation appears to meander in circles, but in reality is a purposeful path that focuses our attention in a powerful way on a personal pilgrimage experience. The word labyrinth can also describe a place, as in a garden maze, full of intricate paths and blind alleys, or as in the myth of the Minotaur, who is found in a labyrinth of tunnels and chambers on the island of Crete in Greece. Finally, it can be used to describe something extremely complex, intricate, confusing, and even tortuous. And why would I use that word in the title of a blog post that also includes the word “riding” and the name of my beloved Valentín (Val for short)?

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Kip Mistral: On Creating a Horse-Human Partnership

Kip Mistral: On Creating a Horse-Human Partnership

(© Kip Mistral 2018. Horsewoman Petting Dog by Alfred de Dreux.)

Recently I was asked by the lovely folks at www.horsesandfoals.com to contribute to their “expert roundup” to answer the following two questions:

1. How do you bond with your horse so that you can get him/her to trust you? and 2. What is your best tip for bonding with a new horse?

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“Horseman Pass By”: Riding the Wild Atlantic Way in William Butler Yeats’ Ireland

“Horseman Pass By”: Riding the Wild Atlantic Way in William Butler Yeats’ Ireland
(© Kip Mistral 2018)
Cast a cold eye
On life, on death.
Horseman, pass by!
~ William Butler Yeats, from “Under Ben Bulben”

“Beaches, Dunes and Trails: This unguided ride is for experienced and resourceful horse people who are prepared to take all responsibility for themselves and their mounts for a week,” the description began…

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