François Robichon de La Guérinière’s name echoes through the world of classical dressage, yet many riders today only know fragments of his work. His training methods, developed in the early 18th century, were designed to address a growing problem—horsemanship had become muddled with contradiction, overly complicated writings, and a lack of clear structure. La Guérinière sought to change that.
At the time, previous masters such as Grisoni, Fiaschi, and the Duke of Newcastle had written extensively about training horses, but their texts were dense and often unclear. La Guérinière, overseeing the royal stables in France, had to train both elite riders and cavalry soldiers, meaning he needed a system that worked across disciplines and could be understood by many. His solution was to refine and simplify classical training into something universally applicable.
Central to his method was the use of shoulder-in and renvers. He didn’t claim to have invented the shoulder-in, but he did recognize its power. This movement, along with its counterpart, renvers, became the cornerstone of his system. By teaching the horse to step under its center of gravity, these exercises built balance, suppleness, and strength. Without this foundation, he argued, advanced movements couldn’t be performed correctly.
His book, Ecole de Cavalerie (School of Horsemanship, Part 2), is surprisingly concise. Compared to other writings of his time, it reads with clarity and purpose. He cuts through the clutter of conflicting advice, presenting a method that is as relevant today as it was in the 1700s.
What is often forgotten is that La Guérinière was not just training horses for the arena. His horses needed to be versatile. He believed in preparing them for all kinds of riding—trail work, jumping, war, and carriage driving—before introducing them to collection and dressage. He emphasized that before refining a horse, you must first build its strength and confidence in movement.
Today, dressage has largely specialized into a competitive discipline, but La Guérinière’s approach reminds us that true horsemanship is broader. His methods laid the groundwork for trainers like Baucher and Steinbrecht, who later adapted his ideas for the changing horse breeds of the 19th century. And in the 20th century, Nuno Oliveira carried these principles forward, showing how they could still be applied to modern riding.
If you’ve ever struggled to understand how to build balance and engagement in your horse, looking back at La Guérinière’s method offers a clear path. His approach remains as effective as ever, providing the tools to develop a horse that is not only capable of dressage but also truly well-trained in mind and body.
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