THROUGH ENGLAND ON A SIDE-SADDLE PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Celia Fiennes | 96 pages | 02 Apr 2009 | Penguin Books Ltd | 9780141191072 | English | London, United Kingdom Sidesaddle - Wikipedia Ninth century depictions show a small footrest, or planchette added to the pillion. In Europe , the sidesaddle developed in part because of cultural norms which considered it unbecoming for a woman to straddle a horse while riding. This was initially conceived as a way to protect the hymen of aristocratic girls, and thus the appearance of their being virgins. However, women did ride horses and needed to be able to control their own horses, so there was a need for a saddle designed to allow control of the horse and modesty for the rider. The earliest functional "sidesaddle" was credited to Anne of Bohemia — The design made it difficult for a woman to both stay on and use the reins to control the horse, so the animal was usually led by another rider, sitting astride. The insecure design of the early sidesaddle also contributed to the popularity of the Palfrey , a smaller horse with smooth ambling gaits, as a suitable mount for women. A more practical design, developed in the 16th century, has been attributed to Catherine de' Medici. In her design, the rider sat facing forward, hooking her right leg around the pommel of the saddle with a horn added to the near side of the saddle to secure the rider's right knee. The footrest was replaced with a "slipper stirrup ", a leather-covered stirrup iron into which the rider's left foot was placed. However, not all women adopted the sidesaddle at all times. Catherine the Great of Russia went so far as to commission a portrait showing her riding astride wearing a male officer's uniform. In the s, Jules Pellier invented a sidesaddle design with a second, lower pommel to the sidesaddle. In this design, still in use today, one pommel is nearly vertical, mounted approximately 10 degrees left of top dead center and curved gently to the right and up. The lower right leg rests along the shoulder of the left near side of the horse and up against the second pommel called the leaping head or leaping horn which lies below the first on the left of the saddle. It is mounted about 20 degrees off the top of the saddle. This pommel is curved gently downward in order to curve over the top of the rider's left thigh, and is attached in a manner so that it can pivot slightly, to adjust to the individual rider. The rider places her left leg beneath this pommel, with the top of the thigh close or lightly touching it, and places her left foot in a single stirrup on that side. The impact of the second pommel was revolutionary; the additional horn gave women both increased security and additional freedom of movement when riding sidesaddle, which allowed them to stay on at a gallop and even to jump fences while fox hunting and show jumping. With this design, nearly all recreational equestrian pursuits were opened to women, yet they could also conform to expectations of modesty. The riding habit worn by women riding sidesaddle originally was similar to clothing worn in everyday life. It was not until the second half of the 16th century that a riding habit specifically designed for sidesaddle riding was introduced, though sidesaddle habit design still tended to follow fashion of the day. In , the first safety skirt was introduced and later evolved into the open-sided apron. Sidesaddle habits, also known as riding habits, developed as women became more active in the hunting field. The development of the leaping head on sidesaddles allowed women to jump fences while hunting. Cumbersome skirts were gradually replaced by the apron still worn today—which is actually a half skirt worn over breeches; designed so the rider does not sit on any apron fabric. The sidesaddle apron can be attached to the right foot by a piece of elastic to hold it in place when riding. When dismounted the apron is wrapped behind the legs and attached to a button on the left hip to give the impression of a skirt. In the early 20th century, as it became socially acceptable for women to ride astride while wearing split skirts, and eventually breeches , the sidesaddle fell out of general use for several decades. The rise of women's suffrage also played a role as women rejected traditional restrictions in their physical activities as well as seeking greater social, political and economic freedoms. Riding correctly is critical to protect the horse from injury as well as for the safety of the rider. Because both legs of the rider are on the same side of the horse, there is considerable concern that too much weight will be placed on only one side of the horse, which can cause physical harm to the animal. In addition, if a rider is not balanced, a sidesaddle may need to be cinched up far tighter than would a regular saddle, leading to discomfort in the animal and even possible breathing difficulties. Correct posture is essential for balance and security in a sidesaddle and is specifically judged in sidesaddle classes. The rider sits squarely on the horse with the spine of the rider centered over the spine of the horse. The shoulders and hips are square to the horse, not twisted or turned off- center. The hands must be carried square to the horse, keeping both reins at the same length and tension. Only one stirrup is used and it places the rider's heel higher on the horse's body than when riding astride. The left ankle is flexed and the heel of the left leg is kept down for proper balance, accurate contact with the horse, and correct placement in the stirrup. For modern riders, there are competing schools of thought as to the position of the right leg. Some argue that the right heel is also to be flexed down and the toe up, the same as when riding astride, while others argue that the toe of the right leg should be pointed down. Advocates for each toe position both argue that the position is required to maintain correct balance and make effective use of the leg muscles. In either case, when needed, the rider can squeeze her right top leg downwards and against the upper pommel, and her left bottom leg upwards into the leaping head to create an extremely strong grip. It is tiring for both the rider and the horse to maintain this emergency hold, however, and most riders rely upon good position, balance, and coordination to maintain their seat. The spur and the whip are employed as supportive riding aids , in addition to weight and seat, used in a humane manner for cueing, not punishment. The English rider's whip is carried on the off right side, and is used in place of the rider's right leg to cue the horse on the off side. The sidesaddle whip is between two and four feet long, depending on style of equipment and competition rules, when applicable. Western riders generally use the romal a type of long quirt attached to the end of a set of closed reins to support cues in place of the right leg. If the rider wears a spur to assist the use of her leg, she will wear only one, on the left boot. Riders hold the reins evenly, not allowing one rein to be longer than the other. Most sidesaddle designs also force the rider to carry her hands a bit higher and farther from the horse's mouth than in a regular saddle. Because high hands on a direct pressure bit such as the snaffle bit may encourage the horse to carry its head too high, use of bits with curb bit pressure, such as a pelham bit or a double bridle , which help the horse lower its head to a proper position, are often seen in sidesaddle competition. The horse used in sidesaddle riding will have additional training to accustom it to the placement of the rider and the use of the whip to replace off side leg commands. The horse also may need to adapt to a different and higher hand position. However, most well-trained horses adapt to the basics fairly quickly and generally can be used for riding both sidesaddle and astride. In the past, when the sidesaddle was common, it was recommended to frequently change from one side to another, to prevent irregular development of thigh muscles, especially in girls who start riding in childhood; [8] this would be impossible with the usual modern design of sidesaddle, unless the rider had available two sidesaddles, one left-sided and one right-sided. While sidesaddles came to be regarded as a quaint anachronism , some modern riders have found new applications in the horse show ring, in historical reenactments , and in parades or other exhibitions. The modern sidesaddle rider may be seen in many equestrian disciplines, including dressage , eventing , show jumping , western pleasure , and saddle seat -style English pleasure. Specialty sidesaddle classes with either traditional equipment or period costume are popular at many horse shows. Another common place to see a sidesaddle is the fox hunting field, where the tradition is preserved by sidesaddle devotees. More recently, a small number of gutsy sidesaddle riders have also taken up steeplechasing [9] and flat racing [10] with the creation of several side saddle steeplechases in Britain [11] and the US. In addition, the sidesaddle has become a part of some therapeutic riding programs , because the design of the saddle provides extra security to certain types of riders.