Duke of Britain to Be Retired from Sport in Ceremony at 2024 CDI Frankfurt

Dressage

Germany

Frederic Wandres' career starting Grand Prix horse Duke of Britain will be officially retired from sport in a special ceremony at the 2024 CDI Frankfurt.

Duke of Britain is a 17-year old British Hanoverian gelding by Dimaggio out of Real Gold (by Rubinstein x ). He is bred by the late Tony Pidgley and his wife Sarah.

From Britain to Hof Kasselmann

The chestnut was named Duke of Britain to refer to his British breeders.

Hof Kasselmann came in ownership of the horse as a youngster when Tony Pidgley decided to call the horse business quits in the late 2000s following his wife's health issues and her decision to focus on judging instead of riding. Pidgley had several horses in Germany, including at Johann Heinemann's yard at the time. He sold his horse stock and Kasselmann purchased a chunk of it, including Duke of Britain.

Michalke and Duke of Britain at the
World Young Horse Championships

Fortunately, Sarah's health improved and the family re-invested in horses for their two horse doting kids, Annabella (dressage) and Jessica Pidgley (eventing).

Duke of Britain was first competed as a 4-year old by Spaniard Borja Carrascosa, who worked at Hof Kasselmann at the time. He rode him in two A-level dressage horse tests in Mettingen and Greven.

Victoria Michalke

Duke of Britain sold for 360,000 euro to Victoria Michalke (now Nielsen) at the 2011 PSI Auction.

Michalke premiered him at a local show in Balham in March 2012 at L-level and by June she was showing him at M-level. They were selected on the German team and finished fourth at the 2013 World Young Horse Championships in Verden

She continued to compete him through 2015. She showed him in the 7-8-yo developing Prix St Georges class at the 2015 CDI Verden, which was open to past WCYH finalists. He finished fifth in that division in Verden. They lat show as a pair was in the PSG Special in Nürnberg in November 2015.

Frederic Wandres' Career Starter

The horse moved back into ownership at Hof Kasselmann early 2016 and Ullrich Kasselmann allocated the ride to new Hof Kasselmann team rider Steffen Frahm. Carrascosa had left Hof Kasselmann in 2015 and Frahm was initially appointed as his replacement, but it was Wandres who worked his way up to the top rung of the ladder at the horse dealing stable and got the ride in the end.

Frahm competed Duke twice in May in an Inter II test at the Grafschafter dressage festival and in June in an S-level test, but Wandres then took over as Duke matched better with him.

Duke of Britain became Frederic Wandres' international career starter, opening the doors to the German squads and elite team selection. The pair's show debut was in August 2016 at S-level at a small show in Zobbenitz and by October of that year they were competing at Inter II and Short Grand Prix level in Annum.

The pair's Grand Prix break through came in 2017 when they won the Louisdor Cup qualifier on home turf in Hagen and went on to place fifth in the Louisdor Cup Finals in Frankfurt in December that year. It was a highly successful group of horses in the finals that year with double Olympic champion Dalera BB winning, followed by German team horses Faustus (Dorothee Schneider), Franziskus (Ingrid Klimke) and Carlos (U25 Team horse with Hannah and Helen Erbe).

German WEG Team Horse

Winning the London World Cup Qualifier in 2019

The combination's international Grand Prix debut was at the 2018 CDI Hagen, scoring 70.087% and in the 4* tour at the CDIO Aachen they were second in the Kur. They represented Germany in the Nations Cups in Rotterdam and Falsterbo and Had their first international victory at the CDI Zakrzow in Poland in October 2018. Their Grand Prix score had climbed to 75.457% at the time.

In 2019 they started to make consistent headlines, first by winning the 2019 Hamburg Dressage Derby. The pair had a super "camp" freestyle designed that fitted Duke of Britain perfectly and their first major break through was at the World Cup qualifier in London, where they won the kur to music with 80.030%, beating Charlotte Dujardin on Hawtins Delicato on her home turf (she also had 80.030% but Wandres' artistic score was higher)

At the 2022 World Championships in Herning

As of 2019 they won 14 more international classes. Although a very consistent performer and with a textbook piaffe that kept on improving as the horse aged, it took until 2022 for the pair to get picked up for the German team for the 2022 World Championships in Herning. In 2021 they were 10th at the 2021 German Dressage Championships, but by 2022 Duke of Britain's Grand Prix score had risen to a 77.239% and at the 2022 German Championships they earned double silver At the 2022 World Championships they captured team bronze. Unfortunately Duke of Britain had to be withdrawn from the Special due to fitness issues.

Second Iron

In 2023 Wandres' second Grand Prix horse Bluetooth started to rise to the top and Frederic had two strong German team candidates to compete. At the German Championships Frederic won bronze in the Special with Duke, but withdrew him from the freestyle as he had to compete two rounds in the upcoming German team selection trial in Aachen. He won both classes of the 4* tour there and Duke was nominated as the reserve horse. They concluded the year at the 2023 CDI Hagen in September winning the Grand Prix (77.522%).

As of 2024 the 17-year old Duke became the second iron with Bluetooth going for Olympic team selection. Duke competed in the Nations Cup in Compiegne, where he won the Grand Prix (76.435%) but got rung out from the Kur. At the 2024 German Championships the pair won kur silver. Their last international was the 4* tour in Aachen, in which they finished third (73.913% in the Grand Prix). It became the horse's last show. Wandres and Bluetooth won Olympic team gold in Paris.

"He Opened All the Doors"

Duke of Britain will be officially retired from sport in a special ceremony at the CDI Frankfurt on Sunday 22 December 2024.

Eurodressage asked Frederic what this horse has meant for him in his career and his reply was quick: "everything. He opened all the doors."

Freddy describes Duke as a horse that helped shape the path of the entire family.

"Duke was a life changer, not only for me, but for all of us at Hof Kasselmann," said Frederic. "The whole family from young to old was part of the story; in good times and bad times - everyone gave their heart and soul for Duke."

Wandres praised Duke's innate ability for the piaffe. "When your score sheet shows a 9.2 average for piaffe, you know that he is a natural talent. I think he gave me also a lot of strength and taught me also to develop a good piaffe feeling, which I really use for a lot of other horses at home to help them learn a nice piaffe.'

Wandres continued, "charakterwise, he is the easiest buddy in our barn. He is so uncomplicated in every case. We all love him." When asked what Duke would say to Freddy if he were to talk, Wandres replied, "I think he would like to say also 'thank u Freddy that u really believed in me and us toghether although I was not the champion on first view. Many years ago you gave your heart for me, so I gave you mine."