Equestrian American presidents ride into Dublin
An exhibition charting the history of American presidents and their horses opened at the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) library in Dublin on Friday (May 1).
White House Horses at the RDS is a series of photographs and pictures spanning the long-term relationship between the presidents and horsemanship.
Presidents pictured in an out of the saddle include John F. Kennedy (right), Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and George Washington on his white charger.
Director of the RDS library, Joanna Quinn, said: “We had over 80 people at the launch. The exhibition covers horses and presidents through the generations and is free to the public.”
The exhibition includes such gems as the rules when out riding with a president which include keeping ones right stirrup behind the president’s left stirrup and withdrawing to the rear if one,s horse proves unruly, and a quote from President Roosevelt when offered a motor car: “The Roosevelts are horse people.”
In conjunction with the exhibition, Dublin town hall also has an display about Irish-born architect James Hoban, who designed the White House.
The White House Horses exhibition is on until June 12 in the RDS library, Merrion Road, Monday-Friday 10am – 5pm.
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The Royal Dublin Society is famous for its annual horse show, staged since 1868 every August. For more info go to www.rds.ie
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.