Located at Kryal Castle near Ballarat in Victoria, this one-of-a-kind event will see the Andalusian, Friesian, Lusitano, Lipizzaner, Pura Raza Española and Warlander breeds performing breathtaking displays in traditional costumes, transporting you to the heart of the Baroque era.
Founded by Lisa and Phillip Leitch in 2015, the Festival has become a true celebration of these beautiful breeds – and is eagerly anticipated by spectators and participants alike.
Love at first sight
Katherine McQuade first laid eyes in Andalusian gelding Gaudi at the inaugural Baroque Horse Festival; she fell in love and purchased him 18 months later. That was a decade ago, and since then they’ve attended the Festival together several times. No stranger to Kryal Castle, Katherine has also worked there previously as a knight!
At this year’s Festival, keep an eye out for Katherine and Gaudi in several of the displays. “We’ll be in the Gorrocha display, the Baroque Horsemanship Challenge – which is skill at arms with working equitation obstacles – and the Quadrille, as well as the Grand Parade in costume. We get a new costume every year, and this year we’ve got a big set of gold wings… I’ll just have to have a couple of rides beforehand to make sure they’re going to be okay!” she laughs.
Outside of the Festival, Katherine and 16-year-old Gaudi compete in four-phase Working Equitation (which includes working cattle), team penning, sword fighting, and have recently added horse archery to the list.
“They’re a very intelligent breed,” says Katherine of Andalusians. “They’re quite sporty, they develop a real bond with you, and they’ve got a good work ethic…. sometimes my guy’s got a bit too much of a work ethic! You can have a go at everything with them – and still head out on trail rides and have an animal that is just nice to be around.”
Now that Katherine has a Baroque breed, she says there is no going back. “A year ago, I bought a baby as my next horse coming through. He’s a Lusitano x Friesian cross, so a Warlander. I’m sticking with the Baroque breed!”
For those who have never heard of a Warlander, they are produced by crossing Friesian horses with horses of a purebred registered Iberian horse breed such as the Andalusian or Lusitano.

An incredible group of horse breeds
Rodney and Liberty Deamon, along with friend Jacquiline-Lee Dominick, are heading to the Festival with six horses this year – three young horses and three under saddle – for what will be their fourth appearance.
“We have three Warlanders, a Lusitano, and a Friesian x Andalusian – she’s not actually a Warlander, as she doesn’t meet the breed standard being blue roan!” explains Rodney of the equine team.
Rodney, Liberty and Jacquiline-Lee are involved in several events throughout the weekend. “I usually do the jousting and horse archery. Among other things, Liberty and I are horse archery instructors and have represented Australian in the sport. Liberty is also doing the side saddle display, I’m doing the Rossfechten (mounted fencing) display, and we are also doing a long-reining display with the three young horses.”
Rodney explains their involvement in the Festival came about via the connection with Phil and Lisa, who they met while spending time at Kryal Castle training for jousting in the early days. It was during that time they became enamoured with Phil and Lisa’s Baroque horses. “I ended up buying a Warlander mare they bred many years ago,” says Rodney, explaining how their passion for the Baroque breeds began.
“Since then, we’ve found all the things we thought we liked about the breeds we’re very true! They are amazingly flexible… it’s really hard to explain, but their work ethic is just insane. They are very clever, very willing, and wanting to get things right. They are well set up to just cope with the workload that’s thrown at them. They really are just an incredible group of horse breeds!”
Rodney, Liberty and Jacquiline-Lee attend many events around the country with their horses, however Baroque Horse Festival is at the top of the list. “It’s one of our favourite events in the year. This is one we really do just for the love of the horses that are being celebrated.”
“Baroque breeds are very quirky!”
Kathrine Stazey Evans is taking two horses to this year’s festival: 17-year-old Lipizzaner gelding Conversano Trieste, aka Socks, and Andalusian gelding Shepherds Hill Benny.
Kathrine has had Socks for around seven years, and this will be his fourth Baroque Horse Festival where he’ll feature in the Lipizzaner Display.
“I predominately do historical dressage and Rossfechten, which is mounted fencing. Socks is one of the very few specialised Rossfechten horses in the country. He’s also done mounted archery, side saddle and carriage driving,” says Kathrine of the horse’s versatility.
“I thought Lipizzaners were just a dream; I didn’t realise they were in Australia. And then I actually went overseas to start riding them… when I came back, I found out they were in Australia,” she says of how she became involved with the breed. “I somehow became surrounded by the right people and got my first Lipizzaner and suddenly…. I don’t really know how it happened…. but I’ve got 11 now!” she laughs, explaining that she breeds Lipizzaners at Halado Park in the Adelaide Hills.
“Lipizzaners are very unique and very much an aristocratic breed. They’re very different to the Andalusians in their mindset, and their core strength is what really separates them from the Spanish horses. They’re just so powerful and that’s why they really excel at the ‘airs above the ground’,” enthuses Kathrine.
“They’re also very easily offended. You need to ride them correctly, otherwise they do take offence… whereas often an Andalusian will just bend over backwards trying to please you. The plus-side to this is Lipizzaners are very accurate in their feedback regarding how you’re riding them. They’ll absolutely crush your ego as a rider, but they’ll make you a better rider for it!”
Kathrine says Socks is a prima donna when it comes to performing. “He loves the crowds – the more that they cheer him on, the better he’ll work for me. A crowd of about a thousand people is an awesome training aid!”
A former movie horse with extensive carriage driving experience, Benny is in his late teens and has been with Kathrine for two years. It will be his second Festival.
“Benny’s an old boy. He’s been there and done that, so I don’t really tell him what to do, he is just out to enjoy himself. He is a complete ham in front of crowds; if he can please anybody, he will. And if it’s a crowd, he’ll do what he thinks they want him to see, regardless of what he’s meant to be doing… that can include all kinds of acrobatics. You never know what you’re gonna get with Benny!”
However, Benny’s biggest quirk is his reaction to bot flies. “There was a lot of concern when we brought him home for the first time, because it was bot fly season… he was lying flat on the ground completely immobile, we thought he was dead!”
Fortunately, Benny wasn’t dead – he was just drawing on his acting skills acquired in his past life as a movie horse.
“It turns out, if there is a bot fly, he will lay down and play dead until it’s gone. Baroque breeds are very quirky!”
Where it all began
Baroque Horse Festival founders Lisa and Phil Leitch have been involved with the breeds for over 20 years.
Lisa had always had horses on and off throughout her life, however it wasn’t until her husband Phil jumped on her horse with the intention of taking up jousting that a love of the Baroque breeds was sparked. With a passion blossoming for the sport, Phil purchased a 14-month-old Friesian colt named Noble Shadow Valiant. Next came Lisa’s three Andalusian foundation mares, and Noble Shadow Baroque Horse Stud was on its way. They started breeding Warlanders and haven’t stopped since.
A decade ago, Phil landed a job at Kryal Castle and so the couple made the move from Tasmania to Victoria.
“I was sitting on the veranda having a couple of drinks with a friend and I just said, ‘you know, I’m going to see if Phil can persuade the owners of the castle to run a festival with all the Baroque breeds’, because there really wasn’t anything like it in Australia at the time,” recalls Lisa.
It went from there: the first Festival ran in 2015, and it has now run every year apart from during the pandemic.
In past years Lisa has often taken part herself with rising 10-year-old Lucio Do Rei, a Lusitano stallion they imported from the USA as a 14-month-old. This year she’ll be watching from the sidelines as she recovers from surgery, while Lucio lives the dream out in the paddock with his mares and foals.
Assisting from the sidelines certainly hasn’t dimmed Lisa’s enthusiasm for the festival: “It’s about getting likeminded people with Baroque breeds and displaying what these riders and their horses are capable of. It’s about having fun on the day, it’s not a competition; it’s just showing the beauty and the grace of our noble steeds.
“It’s fantastic because everyone’s so passionate about their horses. I actually I thought initially it would probably be once-off event… but no, here we are!”

Witness the magic
Whether you’re a breeder, rider, horse lover, or medieval enthusiast, the Baroque Horse Festival offers a rare opportunity to see these majestic breeds in action – and an unforgettable weekend for the whole family!
Dates: Saturday 15th February – Sunday 16th January
Time: 10am – 5pm