The family-friendly National Gallop takes over Heroes’ Square this weekend, a crowd-pleasing showcase of Hungarian horsemanship.
It’s a tradition that dates back millennia, the promotion of which is one of the main aims of the National Gallop. But the man behind this equine revival was not a hussar or a captain of the cavalry but a former rap star and original jury member of the Hungarian version of pop TV talent show, The X-Factor, Péter Geszti.
When trying to come up with some kind of popular celebration that would bring Budapest and the rest of Hungary together, he hit upon a common point, the fact that horses were integral to the culture both in the capital and in the rural provinces. He and the team even had the the Palio di Siena in mind when we were trying to visualise the whole thing.
Right away, Heroes’ Square, created for the Hungarian Millennial celebrations of 1896 and lined across one side with a colonnade of iconic national figures, became the obvious choice of venue.
The space proved the perfect size and length to hosts competing teams of horses and riders in various disciplines, while offering visitors with a great spectacle in safely controlled surroundings.
To design the technical aspects of the course and the event itself, Geszti and crew brought in the renowned Lázar brothers, four-time individual world coach driver Vilmos, later president of the Nemzeti Vágta organisation, and Zoltán, five-time two-in-hand and twice four-in-hand world champion.
Unveiled in 2008 with famed medieval King Mátyás as the theme, the Nemzeti Vágta evolved year by year. With English thoroughbreds, brought to Hungary nearly 200 years ago by the great Anglophile Count István Széchenyi, dominating the event, it was decided in 2011 to allow non-thoroughbreds only.
Carriage driving, horseback archery and jousting, all hark back to 1,000 years and more of Hungarian horsemanship and hussar tradition.
Ultimately, it’s the pageantry and the expert equitation that the crowds come for. Riders from some 300 communities from across Hungary and nearby take part, with all eyes focused on the curtain-closing main race on Sunday.
Event information
Nemzeti Vágta
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Heroes' Square
2-3 October
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